Founded on Sep. 1, 1946, Kookmin University (KMU) was established under the founding philosophy of cultivating leaders for building an independent nation, inheriting the spirit of the Korean Provision- al Government. Despite having relocated to Busan and established a temporary campus during the Korean War, the university’s founding philosophy remained intact under the leadership of Haegong Shin Ik-hee, the founder of KMU. Since its founding, it has steadily developed and expanded its influence.

KMU ranked 14th overall in the 2025 JoongAng Ilbo University Evaluation and was also ranked second nationally and first among Seoul-based universities in the ‘Growth Evaluation’ which calculates rankings by indexing changes in indicator rankings over the past decade. This year, the 80th anniversary not only sheds new light on the remarkable growth over the past decades, but also serves as a starting point for a quantum leap toward KMU’s centennial and golden opportunity to concretizing its strategic vision. Therefore, the 80th anniversary events will not merely commemorate the history, but will be composed of programs that shares a new vision toward the future.

To reach this goal, KMU established the 80th Anniversary Commemorative Project Preparatory Committee on Apr. 2025 and introduced the vision ‘A university setting the standard for higher education’ and the slogan ‘Make the Rule, Break the Rule.’ This expresses KMU’s distinctive spirit of challenge— refusing to settle for existing frameworks, creating new rules, and surpassing them to lead innovation. President Jeong Seung-ryul stated, “In line with the meaning embodied in this vision and slogan, we will not rest on this year’s evaluation results. We will proactive- ly improve various conditions to build the long-term potential to compete with overseas universities, not just domestically, across all fields of education, research, and global engagement.”

The 80th Anniversary Commemorative Project Preparatory Committee consists of seven divisions—History and Academia, Community and Social Contribution, Future and Sustainability, Educational Innovation, Global, Culture and Arts, and Public and Development Support—and will be operated for about two years until Feb. 2027. Through the 80th Anniversary Commemorative Project Preparatory Committee, it is expected to be a symbolic milestone that shares the identity of university and direction of development with society, organically connecting the past, present, and future of KMU.
Looking concretely at the major initiatives, in the Future and Sustainability division, the committee held the Quantum Campus proclamation ceremony and the 80th Anniversary Vision proclamation ceremony last year. This year, through making satellite launch vehicle and a renewal of facilities in the front yard of Bugak Hall and the main gate, the committee plans to promote externally its achievements while internally enhancing the convenience and welfare of students. 

In Public and Development Support division, the committee introduced a new graduation gown which drew strong interest. The committee is also developing our own distinctive typeface based on the spirit of Sungkok Kim Sung-kon and Haegong Kim Seok-won, whose spirits align with KMU’s history. In addition, various divisions including Community and Social Contribution as well as Culture and Arts are being planned for the 80th anniversary events that can be enjoyed not only by the members of KMU but also by local residents. In particular, the Bugak Family Festival has been decided 
to broadcast on the KBS program—Open Concert; it will be recorded at the Bugak Hall on Sep. 22 this year and will broadcast on Oct. 18. KMU hopes for your participation in the festival.

                                                                                                                                                                                                Lee Sang-Hyeok

                                                                                                                                                                                                The Kookmin Review Reporter
                                                                                                                                                                                                lshdrdr@kookmin.ac.kr