Operation of Gumi Electronics, Jeonbuk Machinery, and Busan Machinery Technical High Schools
Seoul National University, KAIST, and Samsung Electronics support the entire process
Establishment and operation of contract departments for SMEs at the time of graduation


To expand the shortage of domestic AI talent, AI-specialized education will be piloted at three national technical high schools.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 4th that it will operate specialized education programs linked with AI at three national vocational high schools starting next year.

Three national technical high schools, including Gumi Electronics High School, Jeonbuk Mechanical High School, and Busan Mechanical High School, have been cultivating talent in specialized fields such as electronics, electrical engineering, and mechanical engineering to reflect the demands of the industrial sector. However, as the industrial environment changed, they faced difficulties in restructuring their curricula to reflect these changes and securing specialized instructors.

Accordingly, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups has connected Seoul National University, KAIST, and Samsung Electronics, which possess expertise in new industries such as AI, with national vocational high schools to operate specialized educational programs. Seoul National University supports general AI and robotics, KAIST semiconductors, and Samsung Electronics AI factory fields. Commonly, the plan is to provide support ranging from curriculum planning to training for teachers and students, as well as student field training and visits.

Each national vocational high school selected specialized educational fields considering the majors of each school. Gumi Electronics High School focuses on intelligent semiconductors, Jeonbuk Mechanical High School on intelligent robots, and Busan Mechanical High School on AI factories. The curriculum for each school is planned to be structured considering the job duties that national technical high school students will undertake after graduation, such as the utilization of related equipment, basic design, and product verification.

AI specialized education is operated as a non-regular course utilizing after-school and vacation time for interested students in grades 2 and 3.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups plans to establish and operate contract departments for SMEs linked to each school's specialized curriculum, timed to coincide with graduation, to enable students from national vocational high schools who have completed specialized training courses and found employment to continue their growth.

Won Young-jun, Director General of Growth Support Policy at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, stated, “We expect that operating AI-specialized educational programs at national vocational high schools will help alleviate the manpower shortage in new industrial sectors to some extent,” adding, “We will expand the program by reviewing its inclusion in the regular curriculum following a pilot operation next year.”