A researcher and a student from Kookmin University have each received an award at the 2026 Sustainable Smart City Champions Session, the university said. The event was part of Smart Life Week 2026, co-hosted by the World Smart Sustainable Cities Organization (WeGO) and the Seoul Metropolitan Government at Coex in southern Seoul from Oct. 6-8. Ra Min-su, a researcher at the university’s Global Development Cooperation Institute, and Ji Ye-jun, a senior at the Kookmin International Business School, won the 2026 WeGO Global Youth Award on Oct. 7. Ji is also a student supporter of the university’s HUSS (Humanities and Social Sciences) Global Symbiosis Project. WeGO is an international organization that promotes smart and sustainable urban development through cooperation among local governments, businesses and other relevant organizations around the world. Through its Sustainable Smart City Champions program, launched in 2022, the organization provides educational programs and international exchange opportunities in smart cities, digital governance and sustainable development to nurture the

Park Gi-ho, a professor in the Department of Computer Sciences and Engineering at Sejong University, will co-organize the Eighth International Workshop on Domain Specific System Architecture in Athens, Greece, Sunday. The university said the workshop is part of the 59th IEEE/ACM International Symposium on Microarchitecture (MICRO 2026), which is scheduled to run from Oct. 31 to Nov. 4 in Athens. The workshop aims to share the latest research advances in artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductors and domain-specific system architecture and promote research collaboration among experts from academia and industry worldwide. Key topics will include systematic design methodologies for AI accelerators, programming environments for next-generation neural processing units and memory technologies for robotic foundation models. The workshop is co-organized by Park, professor Sim Jae-woong of Seoul National University and professor Kim Hye-soon of the Georgia Institute of Technology. The International Symposium on Microarchitecture is a conference with a 59-year history in computer systems and proce

Kookmin University’s character mascot, “Mr. Doctor,” won the grand prize in the industry category at the Korea Character Awards 2026, held Tuesday at the Korea Press Center in Seoul, the university said. The Korea Character Awards program recognizes outstanding characters developed by local governments, public institutions and companies nationwide, evaluating them on creativity, public appeal, commercial potential and practical application. The university said it has consistently communicated its educational philosophy and brand values through Mr. Doctor while expanding the character’s use with diverse content and community engagement programs. Mr. Doctor embodies the journey of an ordinary person who becomes a leading expert in their field through learning and perseverance. It also symbolizes the university community’s entrepreneurial spirit and willingness to take on new challenges. The character originated from a gold-colored sculpture approximately 3 meters tall installed at the university’s main gate in February 2019. It was designed by Stefano Giovannoni, a world-renown

Choi Sung-jin, a professor at Kookmin University’s School of Electrical Engineering, has been named to the 2026 World’s Top 2% Scientists list jointly released by Stanford University and Elsevier. The university said Choi has been included in the list for six consecutive years. The list identifies the top 2 percent of researchers in their respective fields based on a comprehensive analysis of research impact, including citation metrics and research output, using data from Elsevier’s Scopus database. The list covers two categories: “career-long,” which measures a researcher’s cumulative citation impact throughout their career, and “single-year,” which reflects citation impact in 2025. Choi was included in both categories in the 2026 edition. In applied physics, he ranks among the top 1.3 percent of researchers based on career-long impact and the top 0.9 percent based on single-year impact. He has also demonstrated sustained academic influence, with more than 25,000 citations and an h-index of 70 or higher, according to Google Scholar. The h-index measures research productivit

Jeonbuk National University’s Science Education Institute for the Gifted will recruit 141 students for its 2027 advanced programs for elementary and middle school students to nurture young scientists in the region, the university said Tuesday. The elementary school advanced program will admit 51 students, with 17 each in science, mathematics and interdisciplinary studies. The middle school advanced program will admit 90 students, with 15 each in mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, Earth science and information science. The university said the institute will also give priority to applicants who have completed designated preparatory programs and those from socially disadvantaged backgrounds. Eligible applicants include students who have completed either the online preparatory program jointly offered by 26 university-affiliated science education institutes for gifted students nationwide or the in-person Jeonbuk Science Dream Tree Development Program run by the institute. Seven places will be reserved for priority applicants each in physics, Earth science and information science, whi

Jeonbuk National University’s Science Education Institute for the Gifted will recruit 141 students for its 2027 advanced programs for elementary and middle school students to nurture young scientists in the region, the university said Tuesday. The elementary school advanced program will admit 51 students, with 17 each in science, mathematics and interdisciplinary studies. The middle school advanced program will admit 90 students, with 15 each in mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, Earth science and information science. The university said the institute will also give priority to applicants who have completed designated preparatory programs and those from socially disadvantaged backgrounds. Eligible applicants include students who have completed either the online preparatory program jointly offered by 26 university-affiliated science education institutes for gifted students nationwide or the in-person Jeonbuk Science Dream Tree Development Program run by the institute. Seven places will be reserved for priority applicants each in physics, Earth science and information science, whi

The University of Seoul will hold its 2026 Major Information Session on Thursday at its Centennial Memorial Hall to expand students’ options for choosing their majors. The university said the session, organized as part of the government’s University Innovation Support Project, aims to help students interested in pursuing multiple majors and those enrolled in the School of Liberal Studies design their own academic paths. A total of 31 schools, departments, project groups and administrative offices, including the Office of Academic Affairs, will participate in the session. At each booth, representatives will introduce major-specific curricula and flexible academic options, including double majors, minors, changes of major and modular curricula. They will also provide road maps outlining degree requirements for each major, along with personalized consultations to help students plan their academic paths. The event will also feature activity booths offering personal color analysis and tarot readings about university life, with souvenirs available for participants. Students can register in a