Dear Sungkyun Family,

The eventful year of 2017 that saw many issues and changes within the country has passed, and the year of 2018 has come. 2018 is the year of the Golden Dog as well as the year of 得意之秋, which means all wishes come true. I sincerely hope that all SKKU members’ dreams and wishes are realized in accordance with the meaning of 2018.

Since SKKU declared ‘VISION 2020+’ as a blueprint of SKKU’s vision last year, we have   shown outstanding achievement. In particular, SKKU has expanded its value as a global leading research-oriented university by publishing over 5,200 articles in the famous scientific journal, Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE). Our research competence is recognized from various outcomes such as ranking No.2 in Korea for citation counts for top 1% research papers, the largest number of awardees (3 people) for Highly Cited Researchers in 2017, the only known Korean awardee (Prof. Nam Gyu PARK) for “2017 Potential recipients of the Nobel Prize", and more.

Also, SKKU has strengthened its brand value as a global leading university by receiving high rankings in various evaluations. SKKU is the No.1 Korean private comprehensive university, 108th in QS world university rankings and 111th in THE, No.1 in NCSI for 11 consecutive years, No.1 in the job employment rate (76.4%) for 3 consecutive years, and more. Furthermore, SKKU is putting effort into promote new technology and investment by establishing the AI Convergence Center, which will lead the 4^th Industrial Revolution and Kingo Investment Partners, a venture capital made by SKKU alumni companies.

When I was appointed as a President of SKKU, I promised to improve results by building a solid foundation during my 1^st year. During my presidency, I have been pushing for the New Challenge Project for 5 core fields: Software and Convergence Education, Research Competence, Global Alliance, Industrial-Academic Cooperation, and Management Innovation, and achieved many fruitful performances. I will give my best effort to complete projects that we have been working on.

I believe the outstanding results that SKKU has shown were achieved by our three-in-one system of university, foundation, and alumni who have given their best efforts. I would like to express my sincere appreciation for all of the Sungkyun members: professors, staff, students, the university foundation, and alumni who gave their dedication and passion for the development of SKKU.

I would like to ask for passion, active participation, and continuous innovation of all members in order to become a world top institution beyond the limits and crisis that our university is confronting.

Again, thank you very much for all of your support and dedication. I wish all of you good health, happiness, and success in the coming year.

January 1st, 2018

Kyu Sang CHUNG, The President of SKKU