Accelerating Robot and AI Talent Development... Busan Office of Education to Promote Vocational High School Department Restructuring

Four Schools and Six Departments Selected

Restructuring Focused on AI and Emerging Industries

Curriculum Innovation and Improvement of Practical Training Environments

Fostering Future Talent

The Busan Metropolitan City Office of Education (Superintendent Seokjun Kim) announced on the 15th that four schools and six departments in Busan—including Busan Technical High School, Busan Arts High School for Visual Media, Busan Marketing High School, and Haeundae Tourism High School—have been selected for the Ministry of Education's open competition project, "2026 Vocational High School Department Restructuring Support Project."

The Vocational High School Department Restructuring Support Project is designed to strengthen the competitiveness of vocational high schools by reorganizing underperforming departments to focus on future-oriented industries in line with industrial structural changes and technological advancements, or by upgrading existing curriculums.

Since 2016, the Ministry of Education has supported the restructuring of 1,247 departments in 440 schools nationwide. This year, in particular, the focus is on reorganizing departments centered around promising future industries such as artificial intelligence and robotics. A total of 82 schools and 117 departments across the country have been selected and will receive approximately 81.1 billion won in support.

The Busan Metropolitan City Office of Education has continuously worked to enhance the competitiveness of vocational high schools, reflecting changes in the industry and workforce demand. From 2016 up to this latest selection, a total of 29 schools and 71 departments have been restructured into 62 departments, striving to build an education system focused on future industries.

With these departments being selected for restructuring, vocational high schools in the Busan area are expected to further strengthen their educational capacity in emerging industries and new technologies.

The six selected departments will receive a total of 5.4 billion won in additional operational funding jointly provided by the Busan Metropolitan City Office of Education and the Ministry of Education. This funding will be used to develop curriculums and teaching materials, conduct teacher training programs to enhance competency, and expand laboratory equipment, thereby establishing the foundation for departmental restructuring.

In addition, from the preparatory stage prior to new student recruitment to the graduation of the first cohort, industry consulting and on-site support will be continuously provided to strengthen the connection between school education and the demands of the industrial field.

The selected departments will undergo a one-year preparation period before recruiting freshmen under the new departmental structure starting with the 2028 academic year.

Recently, the industrial field is rapidly being reorganized around AI and digital technologies. Accordingly, vocational high schools are shifting beyond simple vocational education and are transforming toward training talents equipped with the technological expertise and adaptability required for future industries.

This round of curriculum restructuring by the Busan Metropolitan City Office of Education is noteworthy in that it helps bridge the gap between schools and the industrial field and establishes a technical talent development system to support the region’s strategic industries.

Superintendent Seokjun Kim stated, "Restructuring vocational high schools is not merely about renaming departments; it is an innovation process in the curriculum to respond to changes in future industries. We will actively support the growth of Busan’s vocational high school students into technical talents with the skills demanded by future society through customized department reforms based on industry demand and the region’s strategic industries."

Busan Metropolitan Office of Education.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.