Founded in December of 1986, POSTECH has now produced numerous engineers and professors. Our fellow Postechians are each leading research in their own fields, playing a pivotal role in advancing science and technology. In particular, many POSTECH Alumni are working at universities around the world as professors. Professor Son Young-jun of the University of Arizona is a POSTECH alumnus who graduated as the top student from the Department of Industrial and Management Engineering (IME) in 1996. His research focuses on simulation and decision models, and he has received various awards in the field of industrial engineering. While many Postechians succeeded in building their careers in the fields of engineering, their contributions are not limited to this field alone.
Recent reports from media and news agencies have highlighted that the first Supreme Court Justice with a background in engineering and science has been appointed in Korea. Judge Lee Sook-yeon, is a Supreme Court Justice and also a POSTECH alumnus. Judge Lee Sook-yeon has been working as the chairperson of the AI Research Committee under the Supreme Court, and stated that she would make an effort to integrate advancements in science and technology into the rulings of the Supreme Court. Also, based on data from the Ministry of Justice, it is verified that seven POSTECH Bachelor’s graduates now have become judges or prosecutors since 2023. As such, more Postechians are paving their careers in fields beyond engineering research. Novelist Kim Cho-yeop also graduated from POSTECH and paved her career as a science-fiction writer. She now writes SF books based on her expertise in the engineering field. Her novel “If We Cannot Move at the Speed of Light” won the 2019 ‘Korea Artist of the Day’ award. She explained in the ‘1st POSTECH SF’ award, where she participated as a judge, that “The power those from the background of science and technology have been in the detailed description of science or technology, but it is critical for them not to be restricted in terms of imagination because of their knowledge.” Another example of a pioneer from POSTECH is Park Chan-hu, the founder of Geekble. Geekble is the name of both the corporation and YouTube channel where the public is introduced to the world of engineering through entertaining science experiments. The channel now has 1.19 million subscribers and is one of the biggest science-related YouTube channels in Korea.
What these pioneers emphasize in common is how their expertise in engineering can be beneficial in other fields. Judge Lee Sook-yeon, who also has expertise in computer engineering, is known for her achievement in IT programming tasks in National Court Administration. She led the development of an ‘Integrated Judicial Case Management Portal’, which integrated formerly scattered judicial programs and hence enhanced the efficiency of judicial operations. The founder of Geekble, Park Chan-hu explains that the foundation of Geekble started from a desire to share the joy science and engineering can provide. Now the channel still introduces the public to various scientific experiments and activities, inviting them into the world of science.
The world of convergence has now arrived. It is critical for us fellow Postechians to recognize our unique perspectives and advantages as individuals from the science and technology field and to utilize them effectively, and most of all, to be brave and to pioneer.
