Starting from spring 2018, freshmen are no longer in the same department as the rest of the student body. All freshmen; until they decide their majors after the 3rd semester; are part of the Mueunjae School of Undergraduate Studies. Since all students have not declared their majors, it is crucial to elect a new leader who can represent the freshmen body and speak for their needs.
The Mueunjae Undergraduate Council Election Commission received candidates from April 2 to 8, and on April 9. It was declared that two candidates would run for president of the first Mueunjae Undergraduate Council (MUC). The first candidate campaign ‘Garo-Sero’ consisted of candidate Lee Ji-eun (Mueunjae 18) and her running mate Go Ye-song (Mueunjae 18). The second campaign ‘Beom-In’ consisted of candidate Lee Sin-beom (Mueunjae 18) and his running mate Ham Beom-ju (Mueunjae 18). The election campaign was held from April 16 to 22. After the campaign, the voting was held for two days, April 23 and 24.
It turned out that among 315 freshmen who had voting rights, a total of 242 voters participated in the election. However, two votes were not listed on the voters list. 89 electors voted for candidate No. 1 and 143 electors voted for candidate No. 2. Among all of the votes, ten votes were regarded as invalid votes. In general, about 76.8% of potential voters participated in the election. 36.7% voted for candidate No. 1, and 59.1% voted for candidate No. 2. 4% of the total votes were considered invalid. As a result, the campaign of candidate No.2, Beom-In was elected by a 22.4% point difference. Until the next election, Lee Sin-beom’s student council will represent the freshmen student body. The newly elected Beom-In has promised the following to all freshmen:
1. Subdivision of MUC
The 1st MUC will consist of five departments: (1) Management/Planning Dept. will be in charge of planning and managing all programs that pertain to the MUC. (2) Treasury Dept. will be in charge of the ‘Rental Service’ and general office work. (3) Communications Dept. will connect the student body with different school institutions, operate the MUC SNS account, advertise the MUC programs, and collect/organize timetables after each MUC meetings. (4) Class Leader Association Dept. is in charge of encouraging freshmen to participate in MUC programs and mileage policy. (5) Mileage Dept. is in charge of all matters pertaining to the ‘mileage policy.’
2. Communication
Beom-In plans to improve communication through (1) revising the school curriculum manual and (2) securing means of communication with the main school facilities and student organizations.
Beom-In stated that the current manual must be revised for student convenience and communications. Presently, lecture information in the manual is difficult for freshmen to understand or deficient. Since 2018, freshmen are entirely matriculated as undecided majors, and the lack of adequate information when choosing classes can cause chaos. To prevent this, Beom-In has undertaken to add more useful information and simplify the manual.
Also, to improve communication, a definite means of communication must be set. Accordingly, Beom-In plans to arrange a Mueunjae General Assembly, so freshmen can freely share their opinions. Also, regarding communication between the freshmen body and other school organizations, the Communications Dept. will directly deliver opinions and feedback.
3. Social
Beom-In claims that they will bring together the freshmen body by (1) creating a class mileage policy, (2) supporting class exchange activities, and (3) formation of Class Associations (CA).
Beom-In expects the class mileage policy to help classes unite. They aim to plan mileage missions that can effectively facilitate class participation and communication.
They are also arranging different activities and programs that can ease interaction between classes and ultimately create a CA. Beom-In suggests a Freshmen’s Night Out or a CA Sports Day. If CA can be successfully implemented, they also plan to have a CA Beginning of the semester meeting to promote friendship between affiliated members.
4. Convenience
To improve convenience, Beom-In intends to organize a rental service of essential goods. They plan to rent items such as: power bank, outdoor mats, ear phones, umbrellas, and any other needed items.
Hopeful Outlook for Cooperation
With the outcome of the election, the Office of the Mueunjae Undergraduate Studies (OMUS), which will be working closely with Beom-In, has shown its support for the council and has expressed its excitement for Mueunjae’s bright future.
In the interview with the head of OMUS, Hwang Byoeng-suk, she expressed her desire for both the student council and the administration department to work with an open mind towards each other, thereby “having a positive effect on each other and successfully running freshmen programs.” director Hwang pointed out that the OMUS and the student council both exist for the benefit of the Mueunjae undergraduates and that there is no reason not to work under ‘mutual help’.
Concerning the election pledges, they are the most impactful determining factors for the voters, especially since they are the cornerstones of Mueunjae’s future. With such significance bestowed upon the pledges, the plausibility and feasibility of them must be considered. When asked about her thoughts on Beom-In’s pledges, director Hwang had no doubts regarding their practicality. She elaborated that “the candidates consulted OMUS about their pledges before the election and Beom-In’s pledges couldn’t have aligned more with the plans that OMUS has for Mueunjae undergraduates.” director Hwang referred to the reformation of the college credit brochure as an example of such an agreement. With the advent of Mueunjae undergraduate studies, having undeclared majors for the first three semesters has changed the whole educational system at POSTECH. With most of the freshmen confused about the system, the available resources are baffling to them. The OMUS saw it as a problem and planned to solve it themselves even before the election. But director Hwang, was delighted to say that when Beom-In suggested a Reformation of the college credit brochure as one of their pledges, she saw it as an opportunity to work together to provide a brochure explaining the college credit system from the students’ perspective.
Generally, there are two ways that the OMUS and Beom-In can cooperate according to director Hwang: applying an educational program that reflects students’ needs and providing financial support for Beom-In. Director Hwang added that the office has secured two million KRW to financially support MUC.
After congratulating Beom-In, director Hwang also had messages for the Mueunjae undergraduates. She noticed that the “students are already occupied with other clubs or student-government bodies and Beom-In is worried that they won’t have enough volunteers for the student council department.” She politely asked the students to actively participate in the student council departments, thereby helping Beom-In lay a foundation for the council. She also reminded students that this is not only for the class of 2018, but also for the following classes and requested students to help Beom-In in all their efforts. Director Hwang was confident that Mueunjae is headed in the right direction and that student support is what Mueunjae needs.
Q&As with Beom-In
Since this is the first year of the MUC, there are great expectations. The Postech Times interviewed the president and vice president of Beom-In, to get their thoughts on various topics.
Q. As the first ever MUC election, it must feel special to be elected. How do you feel about being elected?
President: I think of this election as a result of passion and eagerness to work for the Mueunjae. I still remember that feeling when the results of the election was released. I am forever grateful to the students that have trusted and supported Beom-In.
Q. Were there any pledges given by the opposition that Beom-In liked? If there were, how does Beom-In plan to go ahead and implement those pledges?
Vice President: Now, after being elected, the most urgent business would be to enact municipal rules. For MUC to stand firm, it needs municipal rules, and the opposition had a solid plan for this. We’ve stressed the importance of establishing rules, however, we couldn’t come up with a concrete plan. Of course, this is after consulting with the other candidates, but if we are to implement plans, it would be benchmarked from the oppositions undertakings.
Q. Do you have anything to say to the freshmen who are looking forward to your pledges being implemented?
President: The pledges that we promised were not made sitting at a desk. They were all made after going through the process of visiting relevant organizations and after countless modifications. Now it’s time for us to keep those pledges. I know how important the position of the ‘first’ MUC president is. I will work hard for the students who have trusted and supported Beom-In.
Vice President: During the election, I heard a lot of criticism mostly about the pledges; notably, the pledges exceeded the scope of MUC. However, all the pledges were written after tireless discussions. Now that we have been elected, we are revisiting all our pledges. I will do my best to make a student council that everyone can be satisfied with, and this begins by getting the opinion of every Mueunjae undergraduates.
The task ahead for the Beom-In administration is challenging. The general reaction of the student body concerning the pledges, is that, all of them are all extraordinary, but hard to pull off. However, the Beom-In administration looks focused and confident, and positive things are to be expected.
