MAFRA Invites Universities to Operate "Green Bio Contract Departments"... Tuition and Operating Costs Funded by the Government

Applications accepted until March 31 next month

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced on the 24th that it is inviting applications from universities to operate "Green Bio Contract Departments" in order to train professionals who will lead the green bio industry.

The green bio industry is a next-generation industry that creates high added value by applying biotechnology to agricultural biological resources. The global market is rapidly expanding, growing at an average annual rate of more than 6%. In response to this industrial demand, the ministry is introducing and operating Green Bio Contract Departments for the first time this year to enhance the job competencies of employees at companies and to systematically cultivate practical talent focused on solving on-site problems.

This call for applications will run until March 31, and universities selected through document screening and presentation evaluation will open and operate a "retraining-type master's program (2 years, 4 semesters)" starting in the second half of 2026.

The operating universities will receive 70 million won per year as departmental operating expenses (up to 35 million won for one semester in 2026). Students will be supported for 65% of their tuition. Around 50 million won per year will also be provided for research projects aimed at resolving technical difficulties faced by participating companies in the field. The Korea Agency of Education, Promotion and Information Service in Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the dedicated agency for fostering the green bio industry, will be in charge of implementing the contract department operation project.

The ministry will hold a briefing session on the Green Bio Contract Department project at Osong Station on March 11 next month. The session will explain what universities wishing to participate need to prepare, how to prepare project proposals, and key points to keep in mind when drafting them. Universities wishing to attend the briefing session should apply in advance to the Green Bio Project Team at the Korea Agency of Education, Promotion and Information Service in Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.

Jeong Kyungseok, Director General for Food Industry Policy at the ministry, said, "The newly promoted Green Bio Contract Department is a strategic human resource development project designed to systematically nurture master's-level core talent that can be immediately utilized in industrial settings," adding, "The ministry will build an industry-academia cooperation model in the green bio sector in which education, research, and on-site problem solving form a virtuous cycle by closely linking universities' research capabilities with companies' technological needs."