Ajou University

Founded in 1973, Ajou University is based in Suwon, around 30 kilometres south of the South Korean capital of Seoul. The university was established during a time of modernisation in the country, growing out of the Korea-France Technology Junior College, the result of a cultural collaboration between those two countries, when it had an original focus on engineering. Today, Ajou is home to roughly 14,000 students across its 10 colleges. The majority of these are at undergraduate level, with around 4,000 studying at master’s level and 500 completing doctoral degrees. Undergraduate programmes are offered through nine univeristy colleges: Engineering; Medicine; Business Administration; Information Technology; Humanities; Natural Sciences; Social Sciences; Nursing; and Law. Graduate programmes are run through nine schools: Business Administration; Industry; Professionals; Public Affairs; Education; Information and Communication; Information and Communication Technology; International Studies; and Law. Research and development is central to the university’s mission, which cites its research strengths as Engineering, Information Technology, Medical Science, Business and International Studies. Internationally, Ajou has collaborative partnerships with more than 200 universities in up to 60 countries. Adding to its global reach are a wide range of international programmes, including student and faculty exchanges, summer schools and Korean language classes. Courses for foreign students are taught in English and each year the university welcomes around 750 students from other countries. There are four dormitories on campus. Two are exclusively for boys, one exclusively for girls, and one for both genders, which also houses foreign exchange students. The guiding principles upon which the university operates are: respect for humans; seeking truth from facts; and one world, one family.