– Announcement of the 2025 Science and Technology Talent Policy
– Future Talent Special Committee deliberates on and approves six proposals
[The Herald Business = Koo Bonhyuk] The government will invest 9.2825 trillion won this year in nurturing future science and technology talents and female scientists.
On the 25th, the Ministry of Science and ICT held the 21st Future Talent Special Committee meeting and announced the 2025 science and technology talent policy.
The Future Talent Special Committee is one of the subcommittees under the National Science and Technology Advisory Council and functions as an inter-departmental comprehensive coordination body that conducts preliminary reviews and deliberations on national science and technology talent policies.
This session of the Future Talent Special Committee deliberated and approved several proposals, including the 2025 implementation plan of the 4th Basic Plan for Science and Technology Talent Development and Support, the results of the 2024 survey on the domestic and overseas status of STEM international students, and the 2025 implementation plan for the 2nd Plan for Honoring and Supporting Renowned Scientists and Technicians, among others.
Key initiatives include expanding math education for digital-based exploration and activities, operating science and technology experience and career programs to support growth into future science talents, and nurturing core future talents in the AI field centered on science high schools and talent schools. The government will also support national scholarships for outstanding STEM students to cultivate professionals that meet industry demands.
Efforts will also be made to create an environment where young researchers can grow into key talents by expanding research encouragement grants for doctoral students, launching a new science and technology specialist master’s track, and supporting individual basic research to enhance creative and challenging foundational research capabilities.
A new “institutional recruitment type” will be introduced to strategically attract excellent overseas researchers, along with improvements to visa systems for domestic recruitment and settlement. Ongoing initiatives will include overseas dispatch of master’s and doctoral researchers, joint research and personnel exchange with foreign institutions.
The government plans to invest 143.4 billion won in nurturing female scientists and technologists.
To identify and foster excellent female talents early in the science and technology field, the government will enhance project-type activities and promote exploration-centered math and science education content development, career lectures by industry-academia experts, and major/job experiences at research sites.
To support female scientists and technologists whose careers have been interrupted due to childbirth or childcare, the government will provide employment capability training in new industries such as ICT, IP, and bio, and will pilot a voucher program for emergency childcare during research activities to spread a work-life balance culture among parenting scientists.
For matching excellent female talents with regional core industries, the government plans to establish regional hubs (R-Stations) in cooperation with local techno parks, strengthening support by providing education, mentoring, and job information and expanding tailored entrepreneurial programs and support projects for female startups.
Kwangjun Ryu, Head of the Office of Science, Technology, and Innovation, stated, “In this era of technological hegemony where the level of a country’s science and technology not only affects its economy, diplomacy, and security but determines the fate of the nation, it’s crucial who secures more excellent talents,” adding that “the government will systematically nurture outstanding talents and create a big picture for science and technology talent policies to ensure they fully display their capabilities domestically without needing to go abroad.”