As part of our 50 Years of KAIST Feature, The KAIST Herald interviewed KAIST students, alumni professors, foreign professors, and administrative staff to get their insights on how much KAIST has changed over the years, their memories of KAIST, and what they think KAIST should focus on in the future.

Please introduce yourself with a brief description of your role at KAIST.

I am Jinsub Bang, Director of the Office of Administration (as of March 1). The Office of Administration takes care of campus infrastructures including facilities, safety and welfare, and supervises human resource affairs. I will be doing my best to contribute to KAIST’s advancement.
 

Have you worked for other departments too? What were your roles in the past?

I started off working in public relations, and was involved in policies and project planning. More recently, I have been the leader of the Academic Planning Team, the head of Future Strategies, and then was the head of the Administrative Affairs Office. Over the years, I contributed to establishing KAIST’s long term developmental plans, restructuring the curriculum, and integrating academic organizations.

Do you remember your first day at KAIST? What was your first impression?

My first day was on June 1, 1992. It wasn’t too long after the campus was built, and it was even before the Dunsan new urban development project, so I’d have to say the place looked quite desolate! Compared to back then, I am astonished at how beautiful our campus has become, not to mention that it is now one of Daejeon’s landmarks too.

What is your best memory at KAIST?

I suppose I still feel most attached to the tasks I undertook when I first started here. My first post was at the PR office, and it was around the time KITSAT-1 (Korea’s first domestically built satellite) was launched. The launching was broadcasted live across to the whole nation and there was a lot of attention from the press and media. I was extremely busy back then, but my heart was full of excitement and pride. I sometimes look back at those times and think to myself, “wow KAIST really did that”. And personally, it somehow reignites my passion.

What is your favorite change or addition to KAIST campus that happened since you were here?

I believe KAIST fundamentally has an innovative DNA running through all its members. It feels as though we are unable to stay complacent. People just can’t stay still. In this jungle full of top-notch personnel, innovation is an obligation. We must keep moving to find something different from the others. KAIST has been changing restlessly through innovation, and it will continue to change. And my favorite change about our institute is that while the school keeps changing innovatively, it is also developing a community spirit. As decision-making processes became increasingly open, student contributions in administrative committee meetings were expanded, and I’m glad to see that a lot of us are starting to recognize the KAIST community as something we all get to build together. The school now discusses a lot of things with the students, and we are solving problems together. 

What would you say was your greatest contribution to the school?

My most significant contribution to KAIST’s development was having led the practical affairs when KAIST was merged with Information and Communications University (ICU). I believe it was an ultimate win-win, as it was an important step for KAIST to become what it is today. Through the merger, we could expand in infrastructure and human resources including students, professors and staff, and this played an important part in sound budgeting.

How much do you think KAIST has globalized compared to 30 years ago?

Compared to my earlier years, KAIST has become extremely globalized. Though I’d have to say that it hasn’t yet reached the level we are aiming for, it’s steadily getting there. As an administrative staff, I get a first-hand experience of its growing stature when I go on overseas business trips. When I contact foreign universities to make prior arrangements, many are already well-aware of KAIST and are very welcoming. Then when I actually get to visit these universities, most already have a lot of KAIST graduates studying there, and what’s more is that they are known to work hard. Every time I visit a new university, I am told about how excellent KAIST students are, and this makes me very proud.

On a different note, I believe college administration should also be globalized. In 2019, KAIST’s office of administration hosted a global forum for college administration. It was probably the world’s first forum of its kind. It was attended by universities like Georgia Institute of Technology, Kyoto University, and the Technical University of Denmark. It was an opportunity to discuss and debate on college administration techniques, and through this event, I could feel really that KAIST has grown in stature over the years. Professors and students already have a lot of international interactions in terms of education and research, and are driven for globalization – but this is not so much the case with administration yet. I hope that through forums like these, we will have more opportunities to discuss how college administration should improve.

What do you think KAIST should focus on in the next 50 years in order to grow more than it did in the last 50?

As I have mentioned, members of KAIST fundamentally have a DNA for innovation, so I believe we will continue to prosper in the next 50 years too. However, I believe the next 50 years will be much harder and challenging than the last 50, because we must pave even more paths no one else has walked on. It is KAIST’s fateful mission and goal to take on new challenges, and we will have to work harder. Also, from an anthropological point of view, what’s important in science and technology are humanism and fusion, because ultimately, it is all connected with human life. So for the coming years, I hope that KAIST may gain a better understanding for science and technology with a consideration for human life and a global point of view, and continue to challenge itself.

It is very impressive that you have stayed at KAIST for nearly 30 years. What would you say was the motivation or the reason that helped you stay here for such a long time?

An unusual experience I had, which most other staff members probably hadn’t, was that I moved to ICU at one point as its founding member and later led the practical affairs when it merged with KAIST, as I was the head of its Strategies and Planning Team. So you could say that I left KAIST for ICU, and then joined back here again. This was an opportunity for me to look at KAIST from an outsider’s point of view, and to think more deeply about how KAIST should go about in the future. I could overcome the limits of being just an insider with a narrow view. So thanks to this experience, I can still look at KAIST's growth and its role from our society’s point of view, and sometimes from a national or even a global point of view.

Is there anything else you’d like to add or tell the other members of KAIST?

Like any other university, KAIST is composed of professors, students, and staff. The education and research, which our professors and students are part of, has already reached the highest global standards. Our administration therefore must also aim to become the world’s best through challenge, change, and innovation. For this, we need for all members of KAIST to recognize the importance of administration, and for the administrative staff themselves to be aware of the fact that their role is indispensable for KAIST’s advancement. We will do our best to make this the consensus amongst the staff, so I’d like to ask for a lot of attention and encouragement from the students and professors. I understand that you may sometimes think that the staffs’  performances are unsatisfactory. But rather than criticizing or reproaching, please try to understand and encourage us. I believe this kind of energy can change KAIST for the better. Powered by your encouragement, we will do our best to provide institutional support from behind for your research and education.

I believe in the power of positivity. Positivity motivates individuals and generates energy, and when these energies meet, they will have a synergic effect. In the end, it is what will lead our community to growth and development.