A bill has been introduced to transfer the Korea National University of Arts (K-Arts) to the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City, which is scheduled to launch in July, but controversy is growing because it lacks a plan to secure funding that is expected to reach into the hundreds of billions of won.
Considering past cases and various service study results, a campus transfer requires massive budgets, but the bill only specifies the "transfer" without including a concrete plan to raise the expense.
According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on the 30th, the total site of K-Arts is 158,247 square meters (about 47,950 pyeong). This includes the campuses in Seokgwan-dong in Seongbuk-gu, Seocho-dong, and Daehak-ro, as well as off-campus dormitories. Among them, the Seokgwan-dong campus accounts for 142,328 square meters, or nearly 90% of the total.
◇Could not conclude transfer talks due to expense burden
The issue is the transfer expense. According to a self-commissioned study conducted by Seongbuk-gu in 2021, even transferring only the Seokgwan-dong campus was estimated to require about 150 billion won. If the entire campus is moved, the expense will inevitably be much larger.
A similar case cited is the Korea Institute of Energy Technology (KENTECH), established in Naju, South Jeolla. As announced by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy in 2019, the establishment expense was 621 billion won, and including the land purchase cost donated by Booyoung Group (about 167 billion won), the total reached 788 billion won. A simple conversion puts the input at about 1.97 million won per square meter.
Applying this standard to the entire K-Arts site yields a calculation that at least 310 billion won is needed. Factoring in recent rises in raw material prices and labor costs, the actual project cost is likely to increase further. According to the Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology (KICT), the construction cost index rose about 20%, from 111.33 in June 2021 to 133.69 in February this year.
Including campus design and infrastructure construction, some project cost projections range from 500 billion won up to 1 trillion won.
This is not the first time K-Arts' transfer has been discussed. Since 2009, a transfer was considered due to the restoration of Uireung, a Joseon royal tomb near the Seokgwan-dong campus, but a conclusion was not reached due to the massive expense burden.
◇Even leveling up scholarships would cost 8 billion won a year
The transfer expense does not end with simple construction costs. National and public special-purpose universities outside the Seoul metropolitan area often increase the share of scholarships to attract students. At the Korea National University of Cultural Heritage in Buyeo, South Chungcheong, last year's average scholarship per student (3,584,100 won) exceeded tuition (3,382,400 won). The Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and KENTECH also provide scholarships larger than tuition.
By contrast, at K-Arts last year the average tuition was 4,806,500 won, while the per-student scholarship was 2,079,400 won, roughly half. If scholarships are expanded in line with a relocation to the provinces, additional annual funding of about 8 billion won would be needed based on the current enrollment (2,787 students).
◇"Only transfer without a blueprint"… backlash from both students and the school
Students and the school are strongly opposed. Yoon So-hyun, vice president of the K-Arts student council, said in a statement on the 28th, "KAIST exempts all undergraduates from tuition and even provides living expense support," adding, "We need powerful incentives to offset geographic disadvantages." Yoon continued, "K-Arts' financial support is less than 30% of KAIST's," criticizing that "the bill contains only a transfer plan without financial and welfare measures."
The school also expressed a negative stance. In a statement, K-Arts said, "What is needed now is not a physical transfer but an upgrade of the educational environment and stronger links with the arts field," adding, "Before unilateral pursuit, voices from the education field must be reflected."
A lack of culture and arts infrastructure is another variable. Both K-Arts and the culture and arts community believe that without performance halls, exhibition spaces, and a creative ecosystem, the quality of education will inevitably decline. In the end, if related infrastructure must be built in line with the school transfer, the expense will inevitably swell further.