Busan City has completed the first year of the “Power Semiconductor Talent Sharing University,” a joint project by 13 local universities and small and medium-sized businesses aimed at developing human resources for the semiconductor industry. This program, part of the Ministry of Education’s LINC 3.0 project, offers specialized courses in semiconductor technology taught by top experts from each of the 11 participating universities.
During the first year of the program, 304 out of 324 trainees completed their training, leading to an impressive completion rate of 94.7%. Eight graduates found employment, and Wonbang Tech, a semiconductor company in the Seoul metropolitan area, awarded scholarships to outstanding graduates. The university offers courses in material design, process, packaging, marketing, equipment technology, and more.
The “Power Semiconductor Talent Sharing University” is an exemplary sharing university, exceeding previous attempts at establishing sharing universities with common interests, and has become a successful model of industry-academia-government cooperation. Busan aims to attract more local talent and promote regional cooperation by expanding the program in the coming year and supporting the relocation of power semiconductor-related companies to Busan.
Shin Byung-cheol, the head of the Power Semiconductor Talent Development Center in Busan, said, “We will continue to work to foster local talent in the semiconductor field, which is a national infrastructure industry, and contribute to the revitalization of the local economy by creating employment opportunities with excellent companies in our region.” Lee Yoon-jae, Director of Busan City’s Youth Support Policy Division, stated that the project is a great example of intellectual property cooperation between local universities and companies.
The project aims to create a new center for the semiconductor industry in Busan and the surrounding regions. The city of Busan discussed the “creation of a power semiconductor value chain” as a major issue at the emergency economic countermeasures meeting in August 2021 and plans to complete the policy by attracting related companies to the metropolitan area and fostering core power semiconductor talents through the industry-academia-government cooperation.
The success of the Power Semiconductor Talent Sharing University is expected to create new job opportunities for local residents in the semiconductor industry, and this could contribute to the economic growth of Busan. In addition to nurturing new talent, the program aims to attract semiconductor-related companies to the region, further strengthening the local economy.
