[Editorial] University reform drive

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology has put five state-funded universities on the chopping block, demonstrating its resolve to reform domestic universities, regardless of whether they are private or public. The ministry’s action followed the selection earlier this month of 43 poorly managed private universities for possible penalties.

As has been the case with private colleges, the ministry selected the bottom 15 percent of the nation’s 38 state-run universities. The five were Kangwon National University, Gangneung-Wonju National University, Chungbuk National University, Kunsan National University and Busan National University of Education.

The ministry used the same selection criteria as that applied to private universities; they included the graduate employment rate, new student enrollment rate, availability of scholarships and level of tuition fees.

The universities singled out on the hit list are required to submit restructuring plans by January, which should include cost-cutting measures, such as merging or streamlining of departments. Should they fail to implement their plans within a year, they would face penalties such as cuts in their enrollment quotas, reduction or elimination of government subsidies and restrictions in hiring professors.

One element regarded by the ministry as an indispensable item on the reform agenda is a shift from the current system of electing a university president through direct voting by professors to an indirect election formula.

The direct election system was introduced about two decades ago amid a wave of political democratization that swept Korea at the time. In theory, it is the most democratic way to elect a university president. But in practice, it has caused more harm than good.

In many cases, election processes were marred by corruption as candidates attempted to buy votes. During election campaigns, candidates also formed factions based on school relations or regionalism, causing divisions among professors. They also sought to win votes by making costly pledges, which eventually put a strain on university finances or drove up tuition fees.

For these and other reasons, major private universities all ditched direct elections and had their presidents appointed by their boards of trustees. In this regard, the ministry was right to pressure national universities to follow suit. On Thursday, it had eight regional teachers colleges and the Korea National University of Education embrace an indirect election formula.

The five blacklisted national universities are in better shape compared with the 43 private colleges named for poor performance. Nevertheless, inefficiently managed national universities should not be allowed to waste taxpayers’ money.