Chungbuk Industrial High to relaunch as Chungbuk Meditech High in biomedical push
In short
Chungbuk Industrial High School will be renamed Chungbuk Meditech High School in March next year, after being selected by the Education Ministry in June as a contract-type specialised high school in the biomedical field. The school has built partnerships with 51 companies including Celltrion Pharm, six universities and 14 related institutions, and will reorganise its curriculum into a biomedical division and four second- and third-year departments. The project receives 7.55 billion won over five years, and the school aims by 2031 for a net employment rate of 55% and more than 70 partner companies.
Read the full story 2 min read
Chungbuk Industrial High School will be renamed Chungbuk Meditech High School in March next year as it relaunches as a base for training workers in the K-biomedical field, Yonhap reported on 6 October, citing the Chungbuk Provincial Office of Education. Newsis carried the same development in its headline, describing the school's “new start” and its aim of training “K-medical” talent. The school was selected by the Ministry of Education in June as a contract-type specialised high school in the biomedical field. [ 1 , 2 ]
Contract-type specialised high schools are a Ministry of Education vocational-education programme in which the education office, local governments, regional companies, universities and related institutions sign agreements to jointly train workers matched to local industry needs, Yonhap reported. The school said it has built a cooperation system with 51 companies including Celltrion Pharm, six universities including Chungbuk National University, and 14 related institutions including the Osong Advanced Medical Industry Promotion Foundation. Partners are to take part in developing curricula and textbooks that reflect workplace tasks, in field training and internships, and in linking students to jobs, while universities and institutions support student education, teacher training and specialist programmes. [ 1 ]
Under the revamped curriculum, first-year students will be organised into a biomedical division. In the second and third years they will be split into four departments — medical devices, medical convergence, medical electrical control and bioprocess control — covering areas such as medical device maintenance and quality control, maintenance of pharmaceutical and medical device production lines, safety management of medical electrical systems, and inspection and quality control of drug manufacturing equipment. [ 1 ]
The project is to receive 7.55 billion won over five years, including a 4.5 billion won Ministry of Education special grant, for improving practical training facilities and expanding advanced equipment. The school aims by 2031 to reach a net employment rate of 55%, a regional employment rate of 85% and a regional settlement rate of 80%, and to expand to more than 70 partner companies. A launch ceremony was held at the school that day with about 250 attendees, including agreement partners, students and staff. Superintendent Yoon Geon-young said he expects students “to grow step by step into technical talent who will lead the bio industry” through the new curriculum. [ 1 ]
Why it matters
The relaunch ties a provincial vocational school's curriculum, funding and job placement to the biomedical industry cluster and to named employers, following a Ministry of Education programme that pairs schools with regional industries. The school's achievement targets are its own and the documents report no results yet, so the effect on students and local hiring cannot be judged at this stage.
Key facts
- Chungbuk Industrial High School will change its name to Chungbuk Meditech High School from March next year. [ 1 , 2 ]
- The school was selected by the Ministry of Education in June as a contract-type specialised high school in the biomedical field. [ 1 ]
- It has built a cooperation system with 51 companies including Celltrion Pharm, six universities including Chungbuk National University, and 14 related institutions including the Osong Advanced Medical Industry Promotion Foundation. [ 1 ]
- First-year students will be organised into a biomedical division, with second- and third-year students split into medical devices, medical convergence, medical electrical control and bioprocess control departments. [ 1 ]
- The project is to receive 7.55 billion won over five years, including a 4.5 billion won Ministry of Education special grant. [ 1 ]
- The school aims by 2031 for a net employment rate of 55%, a regional employment rate of 85%, a regional settlement rate of 80% and more than 70 partner companies. [ 1 ]
- A launch ceremony was held at the school with about 250 attendees, including agreement partners, students and staff. [ 1 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Chungbuk Industrial High School is relaunching as Chungbuk Meditech High School with a focus on medical and biomedical talent training. [ 1 , 2 ]
- The relaunch follows the school's selection under the Ministry of Education's contract-type specialised high school programme in the biomedical field, reported by Yonhap citing the Chungbuk Provincial Office of Education. [ 1 ]
- The revamped curriculum will be organised into a first-year biomedical division and four second- and third-year departments covering medical devices, medical convergence, medical electrical control and bioprocess control. [ 1 ]
Still unclear
- The number of students the new curriculum will enrol, and any admission quotas, are not stated. The documents describe the department structure and training fields but give no enrolment figures.
- Which additional companies would join to reach the stated goal of more than 70 partner companies is not stated. Yonhap reports the 70-company target as an aim but names only the current 51 partners.
- How the renaming and curriculum overhaul will affect current students or existing courses is not stated. The documents describe only the changes due from March next year.