The government is actively pursuing a “National Research Institute” project to select university-affiliated research institutes that will lead world-class research. The Ministry of Science and ICT and the Ministry of Education announced today (10th) that the ‘Basic Plan for the National Research Institute Project’ containing these details has been confirmed and announced by the National Research Institute Project Promotion Committee.
The National Research Institute (NRL 2.0) project is a collaboration between the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Ministry of Education to select university-affiliated research institutes that will serve as sustainable hubs for converged and large-scale research, providing 10 billion won annually for ten years. This year, four institutes will be selected, and the selected institutes can autonomously manage the budget needed to expand research personnel, establish research facilities, and procure equipment.
The government pinpointed the current situation as the background for this project, noting that while universities are the cradle of creative talent cultivation and pioneering R&D, domestic universities lack global research competitiveness due to their department-centered operations. Despite the government’s continuous increase in support for universities, it finds it challenging to expand the critical scale for conducting large-scale, converged research due to dispersed support across different ministries.
Therefore, the government expects that nurturing university-affiliated research institutes through long-term and stable support will secure the world’s best research competitiveness. The government will select research institutes by comprehensively evaluating the research institutes’ capabilities, development plans, and the universities’ determination to foster these institutes. Once selected, the institutes will commence the project from September.
Previously, the government carried out the National Research Lab (NRL 1.0) project, supporting approximately 400 laboratories from 1999 to 2009.