How the National Medical School Candidates Were Selected by a 1.3-Point Margin: Evaluation of Chonnam National University and Mokpo National University

Assessment Across Five Categories Including Educational Facilities and Faculty Recruitment
Eight Reviewers Participated
Committee Formed Excluding Gwangju, Jeonnam, and Jeonbuk
Scores Calculated After Dropping Highest and Lowest in Each Category

Chonnam National University scored 89.15 points, while Mokpo National University received 87.85 points. The score difference that determined the candidate universities for the new national medical school in Jeonnam-Gwangju was 1.30 points. Eight members of the evaluation committee assessed both universities across five categories, including educational facilities and faculty recruitment plans.

Dr. Daesung Kim, the principal investigator for the review, explained the evaluation process following the announcement of the candidate university selection results on the 30th. The Jeonnam Research Institute received its official designation as the dedicated review agency from the Unified Jeonnam-Gwangju Metropolitan City on the 26th and immediately began the procedure.

Dr. Daesung Kim, the principal investigator for the evaluation of candidate universities for the establishment of the National Medical School (second from the left), is explaining the evaluation criteria and review procedures at the press conference on the 30th. Photo by Bohyun Song

The evaluation criteria were developed based on the Ministry of Education’s university selection plan for new national medical schools, which was proposed on the 6th. Of the total eight categories, five that did not require written submissions from local governments were designated as the targets for review. Specifically, these consisted of the establishment plan for the new medical school, the plan to secure educational facilities for the medical school, the plan to secure teaching hospitals, the plan for recruiting medical school faculty, and the roles and responsibilities of the medical school and its affiliated educational hospitals.

The evaluation committee consisted of eight members selected from a pool of 55 candidates nationwide, excluding those from Gwangju, Jeonnam, and Jeonbuk, and included individuals from Seoul, Gyeonggi, Daejeon, and Chungnam. After checking for conflicts of interest and ranking the candidates, the final eight were chosen through individual contact, as explained by Dr. Kim.

By area of expertise, the committee comprised two experts in medical school establishment and medical education, three in clinical and basic medicine, two in regional essential and public healthcare and healthcare policy, and one in hospital management and financial feasibility.

The evaluation took place on the 29th at the Koreana Hotel in Seoul, where both universities were reviewed through document examination, presentations, and Q&A sessions. For each category, the highest and lowest scores were excluded, and the average was calculated from the remaining six, with the totals then summed. Only one highest and one lowest score were excluded, even if there were duplicate values. The reviewers checked their final scores in the aggregated results and signed off on them.

Chonnam National University received higher scores than Mokpo National University in three of the five categories. Mokpo National University led in one category, and the two institutions tied in the remaining category.

On this day, the Unified Jeonnam-Gwangju Metropolitan City is scheduled to submit an application to the Ministry of Education to establish a new national medical school with a capacity of 100 students. The Ministry of Education will review the application and make the final decision regarding the establishment. Additionally, for Mokpo National University, which was not selected as a candidate, as well as the western region of Jeonnam, development measures will be prepared, including the expansion of university hospital-level medical infrastructure and efforts to strengthen university competitiveness.

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