In February, I attended several of the events celebrating KAIST’s 50th anniversary. In the forums and speeches, a goal that was consistently emphasized by former president Sung-Chul Shin was KAIST’s quest to become a “global value-creative leading university”. To do this, the university will focus on fostering global leaders with the three core values of “Challenge, Creativity, and Caring” — as stated in KAIST’s Vision 2031. Hearing these 3C’s took me back to my first year in KAIST in 2018, when this vision was first declared. I remember being filled with awe and hope, standing in the newly opened Vision Hall and looking forward to a university experience that promised to shape me into a global leader, capable of contributing to society and armed with the skills and values to live a life of consequence. Now in my fourth year, I cannot help but question whether the last three years in KAIST have really fulfilled this promise.
To be honest, the biggest lesson I have learned from KAIST’s academic environment is how to stretch my stress tolerance to unreasonable levels. Sure, this “skill” will probably prove invaluable outside university walls — but sometimes I feel cheated. Where were the creative, mind-opening activities, the care for society that was supposed to be nurtured? I barely have enough time to look up from studying and homework; how am I supposed to muster the energy to immerse myself in the activities that will prepare me to assume the role of “global leader”?
The academic environment in KAIST creates too much pressure for its students. There is almost no time left to explore interests and learn from failures, unless we choose to sacrifice certain things (I mostly sacrificed my social life, sadly). But these things that we are forced to sacrifice — volunteering and club activities, conversations with a variety of people, or even time to enjoy hobbies — are the very factors that can contribute to leadership skills. But there is an implicit expectation that, because we got into KAIST, we are supposed to handle this extremely difficult workload and retain enough time for personal development. Pointing out the fact that classes are too hard can lead to the question of whether we are good enough to be here, rather than examining the deeper reasons behind this sentiment. KAIST’s idea of leadership activities also leaves much to be desired. Leadership programs, which explore interesting hobbies or provide insightful lectures (almost entirely in Korean), become just requirements that need to be completed for graduation, especially for international students.
Before KAIST can realistically achieve its goal, it must first reexamine the deeper problems rooted in its academic system and the mentality it creates in its students. The biggest problem that needs to be addressed is students’ lack of time and energy, caused by an overload in academic requirements. The competition for high grades should be de-emphasized so that students can study for the sake of learning, rather than to prepare for exams. While it may seem counterintuitive, I think the SU grading system implemented in some classes reduced stress and left students free to explore topics they found interesting. The new president’s vision of placing more importance on experiencing society and exploring dreams rather than studying too much gives me hope that we might see positive changes in the future. However, this reform will require much more than idealistic words — faculty, staff, and students must work together and be willing to embrace change for it to actually take effect.
As it stands, KAIST is not creating leaders — it’s creating overworked, over-stressed students who have no time and energy to “contribute to the happiness and prosperity of humanity”. We might learn all the knowledge and technical expertise necessary to launch successful careers, but that is not enough. The values that KAIST hopes to develop — the values that leaders should have — cannot be learned from books and lectures. Students must be given enough time and support to realize the bigger picture — why we are studying this hard — and to find reasons that go beyond perfect GPAs and academic awards.