“The Japanese academic community is in the mood of ‘don’t do research that everyone else does’. It i..

사진 확대
“The Japanese academic community is in the mood of ‘don’t do research that everyone else does’. It is characterized by sufficient consideration to help them develop their own original research.”

Kim Hyung-do, a professor of engineering and polymer chemistry at Kyoto University, said in an interview with Maeil Business on Tuesday that research culture was the first reason for Japan’s science and engineering majors to win the Nobel Prize.

In particular, he explained, “Since its foundation 150 years ago, Kyoto University’s academic style has been ‘freedom,’ and “Although Tokyo University is considered the most prestigious in Japan, it is for this reason that Kyoto University is far superior in the field of science and engineering.” Both Japanese who won the Nobel Prize this time are from Kyoto University.

Even in the research environment, the difference from Korea is clear. “In order to operate a laboratory in Korea, professors have to pay graduate students appropriate labor costs, but it is difficult to pay for operating a laboratory if research is not available,” he said. “For this reason, we cling to practical research that can receive research funding from companies and others, and basic research is naturally neglected.”

In Japan, labor costs are not required to operate the laboratory. This support is provided by the Government. For properly qualified doctoral students, up to 2.9 million yen (about 27 million won) can be provided annually by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.

In the case of students in science and engineering departments at top universities in Japan, the academic enthusiasm is so intense that the rate of admission to master’s programs reaches 90%. In Japan, most academic courses end in the third grade, so master’s students participate in joint research in the lab from the fourth grade. It is analyzed that the research results of master’s students are also high because they spend three years together, including two years of master’s.

[Tokyo correspondent Lee Seunghoon]