UiO has research cooperation with South Korean partners in several areas within medicine, mathematics, and natural sciences. UiO’s main bulk of education cooperation with South Korean institutions is based at the Department of Culture Studies and Oriental Languages (IKOS) at the Faculty of Humanities.
Picture from Kyryo Saram. Hambak Village. Photo: Vladimir Tikhonov, UiO.
South Korean partner institutions
UiO has a long history of cooperation with leading South Korean universities in both research and education. In 2021, South Korea became a prioritised country as part of the Panorama strategy (2021-27), Norway's strategy for bilateral cooperation in higher education and research with key partner countries outside the EU. The Panorama strategy highlights the importance of cooperation in both research and student exchange.
Research collaboration
UiO's research collaboration with South Korean partners can primarily been found within the natural sciences.
In terms of international co-authorship, UiO's co-authorship with partners from South Korea has expanded in recent years. Projects range from cardiology and cardiovascular medicine, oncology, and radiology to physics, astronomy, to environmental sciences. Partners are found at institutions such as Seoul National University, Yonsei University, Korea University, and Sungkyunkwan University to mention a few of the 62 recent co-publishing institutions.
Project Examples
Sustainable Power Electronics: Collaboration on Training, Research and Innovations between Norway and Korea (SPECTRINKO). PI: Prof. Andrej Kuznetsov. Partner Institutions: Korea University, Seoul National University, Kwangwoon University, Pohang University of Science and Technology (UTFORSK, funded in 2022).
East-Asia Research Training and Education in Advanced Materials. Program focusing on light-matter interactions. PI: Prof. Andrej Kuznetsov. Partner countries: China and South Korea. (INTPART, funded in 2020)
Collaboration in education and student exchange
UiO has various forms of educational cooperation with South Korean universities, and we are experiencing an increased interest in South Korea as a destination for our students. The majority of the student exchange is based at the Faculty of Humanities, where the students can enroll in Korean language and culture courses as part of their degree. In addition to semester exchange, UiO also offer the students the opportunity to study for shorter periods in South Korea, for example at summer schools offered by our partner universities.
For a complete list of exchange opportunities currently offered with South Korean partner institutions, see UiO's bilateral agreements.