SW Education Arts, Physical Education, Law, Humanities major, cultivate Steve Jobs type ‘Hybrid specialists students’

 SKKU President Chung Kyu Sang

- SW changes the world
- SKKU, teaches SW education to all students

“In completion of 18 credits in SW, SW certification is added to your diploma”
“By rearing SW fusion students, expect to reach Global Top 50 within 5 years”
“All fields need SW. When Business Adminstration understand SW, designing more efficient personnel management plan is possible.”

The newly appointed Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU) President Chung, Kyu Sang majored in law. He has been teaching law since his appointment  as a professor of law in 1989. But this president’s solution to the proclamation of putting the university in the top 50th of the world by the year 2020 is the “cultivation of SW specialists.” “Future competitiveness depends on SW” is President Chung’s assesment. “All fields of study needs SW as a tool for its development in this day and age” says President Chung and emphasized, “in order to create Steve Jobs type talents imagination is not enough, all students need to utilize SW as a tool.”

- SW is a MUST KNOW ability

The reason why the SungKyun Software Education (SSEN) stands out is because it  marks the shift of SW education from programing engineers producing centered college lever education to a generic education. Like English the time has come that everyone learns SW as a basic skill.

The courses which SSEN will be teaching students of humanities, social sciences, arts and physical education are not professional SW programming languages. It’s  computational thinking, the process of thinking that suits SW development. The solution is found by recognizing core principles, reorganizing and utilizing flow charts. Prof. Ahn Sung-jin, Vice President of Admissions explains “Like the reason for learning English is not only to major in English Literature, SW should be acquired as a basic skill” and also explained, “if those majoring in Business Administration understand SW, more effective personnel management SW could  possibly be designed.“

Curriculums are in levels that can be selected based on the difference of the required SW capability of each field of study. The two required general courses for all freshmen are at the beginning stages of understanding SW. And for those who need basic learning in SW and continues to take SW classes and acquires 18 credits, an SW accreditation is expected to be issued to their diploma. Those who need intensive learning and acquire 36 credits will receive a double major in SW interdisciplinary major. The newly established SW interdisciplinary major will be set apart from existing double majors which requires the same credits (51credits) needed for that major.

SKKU runs a ‘Sam-pum Jae’(Sam-pum policy) which asks for additional requirements of Insung-pum(volunteer work, etc), Kukjae-pum(language ability), and Changeui-pum(various creative activities) as graduation requirement, in addition to academic credits. In order to further promote SW courses additional consideration is being given to award Changeui-pum(various creative activities) accreditation as well to those who complete 18 credits of SW courses. 

- The Proclamation for a SW ‘SSEN’ university

SKKU is newly initiating a policy of admitting 100 students talented in SW from the 2018 college entrance exam. In addition, a SW subject is expected to be added to essay exam so that such students can be admitted more easily. 

SKKU’s reason for propelling SW convergence talent cultivation in such a way, is due to their willingness for a second takeoff.  “In 1996 Samsung joined SKKU as its foundation and SKKU saw rapid development but recently we are experiencing its limit, and showing middle to low speed progress”, says President Chung and added, “we are going to have all majors put on new garments of SW, and propel forward with this new engine of development.” President Chung also went on to explain that the name of the new SW education institute, ‘SSEN’, whose  pronunciation meaning is ‘powerful’ in korean, was adopted to further elevate the image of the university.

President Chung said that SW education fits well with the universities founding philosophy, ‘修己治人 (Su-gi-chi-in)’, meaning ‘discipline oneself and then rule the world.’

“To cultivate SW convergent talents and contribute to the betterment of humankind, directly coincides with our founding philosophy ‘修己治人 (Su-gi-chi-in)’”, he added “As a whirlwind is blowing, changing our society into a SW society, it will be SKKU who takes the initiative and produce the SW convergent talents for that society.”

Link to media report" http://news.joins.com/article/18733933