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Pusan National University (PNU)

South Korea

Address: 63 Busandaehak-ro, Jangjeon-dong, Geumjeong-gu, Busan 46241, South Korea

Engineering;Life Sciences;Materials

Public university founded in 1946, PNU is a flagship institution for education and research in the southeast region.

Pusan National University, PNU, is a public university in Busan, the second-largest city in South Korea, founded in 1946. It has about 26,000 students and 2,900 staff, and around one student in ten comes from abroad. The main campus is in Geumjeong-gu, on the slope of a hill in the north of Busan, with views across the city. Other campuses are at Yangsan, which holds the medical school and its hospital, and at Miryang.

The university is organised in colleges of humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, engineering, education, medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, nursing, business, art and law. As the flagship national university of the south-east, it has a role in training teachers, public servants, doctors and engineers for the region, and it is a major provider of research in shipbuilding, ocean engineering, machinery, nanotechnology and materials.

Busan is the largest port in Korea and one of the largest in the world, and PNU works with the shipbuilding, logistics and marine industries located nearby. The university also has an active programme in Korean language education for international students and a strong department of Korean literature. The Busan International Film Festival, held every year in the city, offers students a chance to volunteer and to learn about film.

Admission for Korean students uses the national exam and the university’s own screening, while international applicants apply directly with academic records and language tests. Courses are mainly taught in Korean, with a number of programmes in English, and proof of language proficiency is required. As a national university, PNU charges lower tuition than private universities. Check the current tariff and the scholarships offered to international students.

Busan has beaches, fish markets and mountains, and the cost of living is lower than in Seoul. The campus is served by the metro, and students can reach Seoul in about two hours and a half by high-speed train.

Domains taught:

Engineering, Life Sciences, Materials

Diplomas*:

Bachelor, Doctor, Master

Status:

Public

Partnerships:

Local and international research partnerships including in Asia and Europe

Research:

Research active in marine biology, materials science, and engineering

Famous Alumnis:

N/A

International recognition**:

Number of staff***:

2900

Current students***:

26000

Foreign students***:

10%

Cumulative former students***:

200000

Pros

Strong regional reputation; broad program offering

Cons

Less internationally visible than Seoul counterparts

Best For

Regional leader in science and technology education

Most Similar Schools Locally

Chonnam National University follows much the same lines as this university, with life sciences and engineering as common ground, and it covers civil engineering as well, and has almost the same size, at about 26,000 students.
Chungnam National University works in much the same fields, chiefly life sciences and engineering, and it is also a public institution, and teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral.
Kyungpook National University works in much the same fields, chiefly life sciences and engineering, and it covers mechanical engineering as well, and has almost the same size, at about 28,000 students.
Sungkyunkwan University sits close to this university on materials and engineering; it is slightly larger, at about 31,000 students against roughly 26,000 here, and is private, whereas this university is public.
Think of Chungbuk National University when life sciences and engineering is the priority: it runs the same bachelor's, master's and doctoral programmes, and covers agriculture as well.

Most Similar Schools Abroad

Federal University of Goiás, in Brazil, takes a similar route through life sciences and engineering; it covers agriculture as well, and is slightly smaller, at about 20,000 students against roughly 26,000 here.
Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul brings a Brazil setting to the same core fields, materials and engineering, and it runs the same bachelor's, master's and doctoral programmes, and covers physics as well.
If this institution is on your list for materials, life sciences and engineering, Ningbo University in China deserves a comparison, because it runs the same bachelor's, master's and doctoral programmes, and covers logistics and marine science as well.
Autonomous University of Madrid brings a Spain setting to the same core fields, life sciences and engineering, and it covers finance and chemistry as well, and is slightly larger, at about 31,722 students against roughly 26,000 here.
Seen from abroad, Qingdao University (China) is a close relative on subject matter, since materials, life sciences and engineering are central to both, and it is larger, enrolling about 46,000 students against roughly 26,000 here, and is also a public institution.

*our own picks (our criteria: a mix between domains, diploma delivered, reputation and size), but obviously too many criteria for an apple-to-apple ranking.

FAQ

Where is Pusan National University?

At 63 Busandaehak-ro, Geumjeong-gu in Busan, South Korea.

When was it founded?

In 1946.

How large is it?

About 26,000 students and 2,900 staff.

What is it known for?

Shipbuilding, ocean engineering, machinery, nanotechnology, materials, medicine and Korean language education.

Where is the medical school?

At the Yangsan campus, next to the university hospital.

Which industries does it work with?

The shipbuilding, logistics and marine industries around the port of Busan.

How do international students apply?

They apply directly with academic records and language tests.

What does it cost?

As a national university, PNU charges lower tuition than private universities. Check the current tariff and scholarships.

In which language are courses taught?

Mainly in Korean, with a number of programmes in English.

Is Busan cheaper than Seoul?

Yes. The cost of living is lower than in Seoul.

Engineering, Materials, Materials Science, Research and Development, Sustainable Development, Sustainable Materials

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*: without any judgment of the quality, readers are strongly encouraged to check the official status of the exact diploma envisioned as many universities have a mix of recognized diplomas, not recognized, “co-delivered,” “equivalent to”, “some pathways” (…), can change over time, and can be named differently from one country to another.

**: international reputation: is based on some criteria that do not mean much in some domains or specialties (number of researchers, of scientific publications, on budget ….). Our approximate 1-4 scale:

known locally
known locally and internationally
is listed in some of the world university’s classifications
is listed among the 20 firsts in some of world university’s classifications

***: estimated numbers, based on online sources and/or feedbacks. The numbers can vary greatly depending on school organisation (ex.: school is part of a group, it employs internal staff or external consultants or has public staff without employing them …). Refer to all the links provided to have accurate and updated numbers.

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