Suncheon National University and Gyeongguk National University have been selected as new national medical school establishments.

The Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health and Welfare announced today (November 4) that Suncheon National University in the Jeonnam-Gwangju Unified Special City and Gyeongguk National University in Gyeongsangbuk-do have been chosen as the sites for new regional medical schools, with quotas of 60 and 40 students allocated to them, respectively.

Previously, the government allocated 100 slots for the 2030 academic year to establish medical schools in regions lacking them, selecting the Jeonnam and Gyeongsangbuk-do regions, which have relatively vulnerable medical accessibility, as candidate areas for new regional medical schools.

The Jeonnam-Gwangju Unified Special City selected Suncheon National University as its candidate university last August and applied for a quota of 100 students, while Gyeongsangbuk-do designated Gyeongguk National University as its candidate and applied for a quota of 50 students.

The government stated that it conducted a quantitative evaluation based on a total of 13 indicators across four areas: medical accessibility, shortage of medical supply, degree of medical vulnerability, and policy effectiveness.

For Jeonnam-Gwangju, the government took into consideration that it would be difficult for a newly established medical school to operate a quota of 100 students in the early stages of opening, while for Gyeongsangbuk-do, it considered that Dongguk University's medical school with a quota of 55 is already located in the southern region.

Internal friction continues within the Jeonnam region over the selection of the medical school candidate.

National Mokpo University protested the selection of Suncheon National University by the Jeonnam-Gwangju Unified Special City by filing a lawsuit to cancel the selection and recommendation disposition, and Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Won-i has been continuing a sit-in strike since October 30 demanding a re-examination of the candidate selection process.

(Photo provided by Gyeongsangbuk-do, Yonhap News)