[2025 National Assembly Audit] Four Major Science and Technology Institutes Leading STEM Talent Cultivation Face Limited Government Funding

Choi Sujin: "Severely Insufficient Support for Institutional Operating Expenses"
Government Funding Accounts for 42.7% of GIST's Budget
All Institutes Except KAIST Fall in QS and THE World University Rankings

It has been revealed that the government funding for the four major science and technology institutes under the Ministry of Science and ICT, which are focusing on cultivating talent in science and engineering, amounts to only one-quarter of their total operating budgets.

Choi Sujin, a member of the National Assembly's Science, ICT, Broadcasting, and Communications Committee from the People Power Party, stated at the National Assembly audit held at the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) in Daejeon on October 24 that, according to data received from the four major science and technology institutes, government support amounted to only 624.1 billion won, or 27.7% of the total 2.2486 trillion won budget for all institutes.

The Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST) received 118.5 billion won in government funding out of its 273.5 billion won budget, meaning government support accounted for 42.7%. The Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) received 42.2% out of a 270 billion won budget, and the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) received 30.4% out of a 348.1 billion won budget.

The Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), which has the largest budget, received only 20.5% government support out of its 1.357 trillion won budget, the lowest among the four. In other words, the smaller the institute, the higher its dependence on government funding.

Assemblywoman Choi pointed out that while support for these institutes is essential for national research and development (R&D), even the budget for personnel expenses to operate these institutions is only at 83% of the required level.

In fact, over the past six years, a total of 162 faculty members have voluntarily resigned from the four major institutes. At UNIST, 70 faculty members left during this period, accounting for 20% of its total faculty. DGIST saw 26 departures (16.7%), GIST 17 (8.6%), and KAIST 49 (7.3%). There were even cases of faculty members moving from other institutes to KAIST.

Assemblywoman Choi emphasized that due to the lack of support for the four major institutes, UNIST relies on indirect income, using more than 70% of its externally commissioned research funds for personnel and operating expenses, which in turn undermines research reinvestment and research competitiveness.

As a result, in last year's QS World University Rankings, KAIST ranked 53rd, but UNIST was 280th, DGIST 326th, and GIST 359th. In the THE World University Rankings, KAIST was 82nd, UNIST was in the 201-250 range, DGIST in the 351-400 range, and GIST in the 401-500 range, indicating continued struggles.

Assemblywoman Choi also noted that, over the past three years, faculty startup performance was limited to only 65 companies: 31 at KAIST, 19 at UNIST, 10 at GIST, and 5 at DGIST.

Assemblywoman Choi stated, "As the four major science and technology institutes are the hub of cultivating scientific talent and national R&D in Korea, the scale of government support must be significantly increased."