Science-engineering students on the brink due to Yoon’s R&D spending cut and medical student increase

The Yoon Suk Yeol administration’s push to increase the number of medical school students is hurting the morale of science and engineering students.

The policy, adding to the government’s cuts of its research and development budget, is driving science-engineering students considering their career paths pessimistic about the current situation, an engineering student said Thursday.

Kim Min-sung, a student at Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST), said so when asked by Rep. Lee Jun-seok of the New Reform Party about the impact of the R&D budget cuts and the increase in medical school students on the science and technology sector at the National Assembly science-technology committee's confirmation hearing on the nominee for the minister of science and ICT.

"According to data from 2023, 393 of the students at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) have discontinued or abandoned their studies," Kim said, appearing as a witness at the hearing. "This has a lot of impact because more than 100 million won ($72,743) is financed as labor costs and research funds per student.”

Kim continued, “Moreover, due to the government's push to expand medical school students following its cuts of R&D budgets, science and engineering students are increasingly worried and pessimistic about their future.”.

Yoo Sang-im, the nominee for Minister of Science and ICT, also said he is concerned about the exodus of science and engineering talents in the wake of the medical school enrollment quota of 2,000. However, he could not present solutions, saying he would use foreign students and female workforce in science and technology.

Yoo was responding to a question from the New Reform Party lawmaker, saying "It is true there are difficulties recruiting excellent science and engineering talents."

"According to the analysis of the enrollment of the Seoul National University (SNU) School of Materials Science and Engineering, it is lower than all medical schools on an on-time basis," Rep. Lee noted. "Common sense dictates that if the number of medical school students increases by 2,000, the enrollment of the Seoul National University School of Materials Science and Engineering will fall further."

Rep. Lee continued, "As the minister in charge of the science and technology sector, are you willing to say that the issue of increasing the number of medical students is a big blow to the science and technology sector?"

Yoo replied, saying, "Many professors are concerned. In the end, students may be drawn to careers guaranteeing better treatment, so I think we have no choice but to devise measures to attract students to come to science and engineering in the future."

When asked about specific alternatives, Yoo said, "It's hard to say what the short-term measures are, but many smart foreign students are coming into the field of science and technology. We need to make the most of them, and find various ways to utilize female workers."

Rep. Lee emphasized the need to tell President Yoon about the situation in science and engineering due to the increase in medical school students.

"If the number of medical school students increases by 2,000, based on the number of CSAT test-takers, it will be a situation where no first-class students will go to SNU's science and engineering departments in the future," Lee said. "If the minister or the person in charge of such a situation cannot speak up, who will?"