Kookmin University

SEA:ME, KMU G-PBL Operations
Volkswagen and Automotive Talent Development
Field trip to Silicon Valley corporate office 

Students and experts participating in Kookmin University's global education program SEA:ME discuss and work on projects with foreign students.

Kookmin University is actively operating a global campus with a practical education curriculum that can be applied to overseas sites based on the DNA of entrepreneurship. Examples include the 'SEA:ME' program in Germany in collaboration with Volkswagen Group Korea and the 'KMU G-PBL' program in the United States.

International programs to boost automotive competitiveness

The Software Engineering in Automotive and Mobility Ecosystems (SEA:ME) program is part of Volkswagen Group Korea's social responsibility initiative to develop knowledgeable and creative talent to drive the digitalization of the automotive industry. The program consists of three sub-modules - embedded systems, autonomous driving systems, and mobility ecosystems - and aims to prepare students for employment in the mobility sector by enhancing their software competencies within one year. The program will adopt a peer learning approach and will be taught by experts from the scientific and industrial fields. Starting in 2023, the program will send 30 students, 10 per year for three years, to the 42 Wolfsburg campus in Germany for 12 months.

The SEA:ME program is based on Kookmin University's long-standing know-how in the automotive sector, which is one of its core competencies. Kookmin University has consistently invested in automotive as a specialized field, including establishing the first automotive engineering department in Korea in 1992. As a result, it is considered to have the best system for education, research, and industry-academic cooperation among Korean universities in the field of 'future automobiles'. Based on these advantages, the university was selected as the host university for the 'Future Automotive' field of the 'Digital New Technology Talent Training Innovation Sharing University' project promoted by the Ministry of Education, which led to the promotion of the SEA:ME program.

The benefits for selected students are also diverse. The program is fully funded by Volkswagen Group of Korea, and the education is provided by 42, a free coding school founded by Xavier Niel, chairman of French mobile operator Primobile, who donated his own money. Kookmin University's goal is to develop talented people with practical skills that can be put to work in the field through hands-on global project experience rather than theory.

The labs in the SEA:ME program are staffed by students from all over the world, including North America, South America, and the Middle East, as well as Germany. Since all communication, including presentations, is conducted in English (a foreign language), students can not only gain practical knowledge but also develop global competencies by interacting with students from various countries. In addition, there are many opportunities to interact and collaborate directly with incumbents.

The program's achievements are reflected in competition awards and job placements. In May, the students participated in the Bosch Future Mobility Challenge (BFMC) 2024 in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, where they placed third in the final round. The BFMC is an international competition that challenges teams to develop autonomous driving algorithms for a vehicle one-tenth the size of a human car to navigate a specified environment. Students who have completed the program have gone on to work at leading automotive companies in Korea and abroad, including interns at Hyundai Motor Company's autonomous driving division and Volkswagen Group's CARIAD Sensor Fusion.

Another global education curriculum at Kookmin University is the KMU Global Project based Learning (G-PBL) program. This program trains students with the professional skills and competencies required by companies through the process of solving problems in the industrial field. Students spend about a year in the U.S. to develop globally-minded, hands-on talent in companies in Southern California and Silicon Valley.

Students work on projects with mentors who have work experience at leading companies such as Google, Amazon, and Twitter to learn on their own and develop problem-solving skills. For example, they will work together on practical projects such as “Create a Korean food delivery web service for the U.S. market using cloud services” or “Design and prototype a service for the fitness market by combining advanced technologies such as virtual reality and generative AI.” The program will also benefit from mentors who have been in the market first, which will help them gain local adaptability.

Entrepreneurship DNA in Humanities and Arts

The program is unique in that it extends opportunities to the natural world, the humanities, and the arts, including students from UX/UI and data science. Selected students receive free support and a 2 million won overseas training scholarship for living expenses. The first half of the six-month Training term includes English language training, project work, career mentoring, and visits to local companies. In the second half of the six-month work term, students will gain practical experience through internships centered in Silicon Valley.

“We designed the SEA:ME and KMU G-PBL programs to build an educational ecosystem that breaks down boundaries between disciplines and regions,” said Kookmin University President JEONG, SEUNG RYUL. ”It will be a great asset for our students to grow into true global leaders by enhancing their on-the-job adaptability and fostering a global mindset.”