Korean Public Administration : Education and Research

AuthorJong S. Jun
Published date01 December 1983
Date01 December 1983
DOIhttp://doi.org/10.1177/002085238304900406
Subject MatterArticles
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Korean Public Administration :
Education and Research *
UDC : 378.9 : 35 (519)
by
Jong S. JUN,
Department of Public Administration
,
California State University
,
Hayward
Public administration has a short history in
My concern in this paper, which may be
Korea as a field of study, but today it is geo-
a somewhat pretentious one, is to provide a
graphically far-flung, having active groups of
brief assessment of the progress, intellectual
scholars in virtually every major city in the
orientations, and research activities of the pro-
country. There are respectable professional
fession of public administration in Korea, and
journals and an active professional association,
to suggest some new directions for its further
the Korean Society for Public Administration.
development.
Teaching and research activities are rigorous,
and place a strong emphasis on the scientific
Progress in Public Administration Education
aspects of public administration. Today educa-
tion in public administration
Interest in the
may be more
promotion of public admin-
active in Korea than in
istration education first
any other Asian coun-
emerged in Korea with
the
try.
inception of the Korean Association of
Public Administration in 1956. Since then, the
Korean public administration has developed
Association has been holding an annual con-
in response to the necessity of managing the
ference on public administration, sponsoring oc-
complex problems faced by the country after
casional seminars, and facilitating information
the Liberation from Japanese colonial rule in
exchange. The systematic educational endea-
1945.
Korea was a newly emerging nation,
vor began in 1959, with the establishment of
and the lack of efficient administration was as
the Graduate School of Public Administration
crucial as the lack of economic resources and
at Seoul National University. Shortly after-
political capability. Political leaders had to
wards other universities set up public adminis-
find a means of maintaining government func-
tration programs to train people for public
tions in order for Korea to survive as a nation.
service.
As of 1981, there are fifty under-
They had to employ any bureaucrats and lower
graduate degree programs and twenty-four
level clerks who had learned basic technical
graduate programs in public adminstration (2).
and control skills under the Japanese. As a
By comparison, there are only seventeen de-
result, administration during the first fifteen
gree programs in the much older field of
years after World War II was characterized
political science.
by archaic forms and procedures (1). Since
then, Korean public administration has
Korean
come
public administration is in fact an
off shoot of
a long way. The government has developed
political science and of another
a rather efficient form of public bureaucracy,
older field, administrative law. Traditionally,
and to a large extent, the building of a strong
students interested in public service who were
executive branch can be credited to the role
preparing for the higher civil service examina-
exercised by students of public administration.
tion had to be particularly knowledgeable in
public and administrative laws. To a certain
degree, this legalistic orientation continues at
undergraduate level education.
Almost all
* This study is partially supported by the Social
undergraduate degree programs require four
Science Research Council in New York.
major courses: an introduction to public ad-
(1) Hahn Been Lee and Sin Taek Kang, " Develop-
ministration, organization and management
ment of the Study of Public Administration in
theory, personnel administration, and public
Korea ", in Bun Woong Kim and Wha Joon Rho
(eds.), Korean Public Bureaucracy (Seoul: Kyobo
Publishing, Inc., 1982), pp. 18-25; on a historical
development of Korean public administration, see
(2) Suk Choon Cho, Jae Poong Yoon, and Myung
also : Byung Young Ahn, " The Indigenization of
Soo Kim, A Study of Model Curriculum Development
Administrative Theory and Subjugation of Govern-
for Public Administration Programs
,
(Korean), the
ment Sponsored Studies ", (Korean) Chosun
,
Vol. 3,
Korean Society for Public Administration, December,
No. 7 (July 1982).
1981.


414
finance administration.
(Since other course
Public administration education in Korea
requirements vary from one institution to an-
has long been regarded as having important
other, they will not be discussed here). How-
outcomes.
It has made at least five major
ever, more than thirty universities and colleges
contributions to the improvement of adminis-
still require at least one course in adminis-
trative capability. First, the most prevalent
trative law (3).
view of the role of public administration
education focuses on those aspects of the
At the graduate level, there are also com-
educative process which prepare individuals
mon course requirements such as organiza-
for the mainly public service occupations.
tional theory, personnel administration, finan-
Public administration education is viewed
cial administration, and research methodology.
as
having its greatest impact as a sup-
Some graduate programs are beginning to re-
plier of much needed management skills to
quire a course in public policy. Interestingly,
the government as well as to the private sector.
administrative law is not required for all
Second, it has contributed to the development
graduate students, though a student can take
of administrative leadership, which provides
it as an elective.
Although some graduate
decison-making skills, central planning, coor-
courses carry the same course titles as the
dination, efficient government services, and
undergraduate programs do, the graduate cour-
mobilization of resources. Third, it develops
ses focus on advanced issues in personnel ad-
in its broadest sense, not only rational and
ministration, organization theory, and public
efficient administration, but also students’ atti-
financing. In general, graduate programs have
tudes concerning the ethical responsibility of
tended to adopt a public management orienta-
government administration toward society and
tion, gradually expanding toward analytical
its citizens. Fourth, public administration con-
courses in policy sciences, quantitative decision-
tributes not only administrative theories and
making, planning, and statistics. Both under-
concepts, but also advice and participation in
graduate and graduate programs lack courses
the formulation and implementation of public
teaching qualitative methods and oriented to
policies and developmental programs. Finally,
the social sciences. This seems to reflect the
it is largely responsible for the establishment
strong scientific and technical emphasis of many
of a stable government bureaucracy -
not
American public administration programs. It
necessarily an innovative one -
that sustains
is also commonly known among Korean scho-
social order through the enforcement of gov-
lars that the educational curricula are geared
ernment regulations and rules and the main-
to the higher civil service examination which
tenance of technical and productive functions.
emphasizes technical ability. Innovative cur-
riculum change is considered undesirable be-
Intellectual Orientations
cause a program’s reputation, to a large extent,
depends
A
upon the number of successful exa-
preliminary search for public administra-
mination candidates. As a result, public ad-
tion literature revealed an amorphous intellec- ministration
tual milieu. If there is
programs tend to concentrate on
any distinctive academic
the basic required courses. Furthermore, most
thrust, it is the movement toward the con-
universities and colleges do not have intern-
ception of public administration as a field for
ship programs for public administration majors
professional practice. The intellectual milieu
to provide students with experience in
is in
govern-
part shaped by the influence of American
ment agencies.
public administration and public policy studies,
an influence which...

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