In a world full of issues to be resolved, people have invested in educating the youngsters to lead the future. The characteristics that are asked of a leader have changed over time. However, the keyword now seems to be “Convergence.” An integrated individual who is well-versed in a wide range of matters is expected to lead the 21st century, which Korea University (KU) focuses on in cultivating talents.

Aristotle was a philosopher whose writing covered a great number of subjects, including music, logic, linguistics, politics, government, and ethics. He is referred to as the father of all academic fields. Leonardo da Vinci was a genius that showed talent in architecture, painting, sculpture, music, math, engineering, geology, botany, and writing. For some time after the Renaissance, we have not seen a person with so many diverse talents. However, we are now beginning to focus again on the potential of these integrated individuals.

For some time before the turn of the new millennium, experts who were well-acquainted with their area of study were valued as the ideal intellectuals. This idea has been around for some time ever since Francis Bacon, the medieval philosopher, created the idea of “Novum Organum,” which means “new instrument” in Latin. He asserted the need for scientific methods and artificial experiments to prove research. He also believed that, in order for studies to proceed, experts should departmentalize and study their own field in depth.

After 400 years, biologist and Harvard professor Edward Wilson introduced the term “consilience” in his book, Consilience: The Unity of Knowledge, in 1998 to counter this belief. He discussed the possibilities of linking Humanities with sciences and emphasized that different studies can come together to form a new, strong conclusion. The author describes this term in his book saying, “Literally a ‘jumping together’ of knowledge by the linking of facts and fact-based theory across disciplines to create a common groundwork of explanation.”

Since then, many individuals and institutions have worked to unite different fields of study. Steve Jobs, the former CEO (Chief Executive Officer) of Apple, accentuated converging humanities and technology and revealed that it was the key to Apple’s success. MIT’s (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Media Lab is another attempt to synthesize knowledge and devise a creative plan and goal. They gather graduate students from all over the world with diverse backgrounds. Science majors, Humanities majors, and Art majors come to this prestigious school to make imagination become reality.

Experts now agree that diversity and integration allow more creativity in any task. They are in consensus that convergence is the ultimate way to go. The problem is, no one has come up with a precise plan on how it is going to work. The question of where all the interdisciplinary studies are headed is still very vague.

“We need to have a clear vision of where it is going to lead us. If we know the exact goal and have a clear idea of what influence interdepartmental studies might have, then we can plan how to get there,” said Lee Duk Hwan (Chemistry, Sogang University). Korea is especially departmentalized in studies due to the separation of Science and Humanity majors from high school. High school students either choose Humanities, where one focuses more on language and social studies, or natural science, focusing more on math and science. Due to this unique situation, it might not be advisable to take radical steps.

KU’s Efforts

KU has taken this matter seriously and has put effort into training students to be wide-sighted and integrated. The school has encouraged students and alerted them with lectures and has implemented systems where students can receive interdisciplinary education. Throughout the year, the school has held lectures dealing with creativity and convergence at University Plus, a program where the school invites fascinating speakers to talk to the students.

Professor Chae Jae Chun, the first known person to introduce the concept of “consilience” in Korea, gave a speech on the subject. Also, Professor Suk Young Joong (Russian Language and Literature) and Kim Hak Jin (Psychology) together gave a talk on the brain suggesting different viewpoints to consider. Students could hear different perspectives on one subject and could experience how convergence might work when different backgrounds come together to form something creative.

The school has also engaged in a joint project with the Korean Institute for Science and Technology (KIST) and is establishing an organization dedicated exclusively to the government’s convergence policy called the “Think-Tank.”

   
 

Interdepartmental Major For Students

For students, the school provides an interdepartmental major for those students who want to study in more than one field. For example, Fashion Design and Merchandising combines psychology, business, home economics education, and art and design. Those four existing majors have come together to form another major that students can study.

If a student chooses to major in Fashion Design and Merchandising, they will be allowed to take classes from these four contributing majors. They would learn how to make clothes and deal with fabric in Home Economic Education, design and learn about beauty in Art and Design, learn merchandising and marketing in Psychology and Business. “I am majoring in Fashion Design and Merchandising because I want to get a job at a fashion related company,” says Lee Sun Kyung (’11, Business Administration). “It is helpful because I can take classes and acquire various knowledge from the field.”

According to the school policy, a student can apply to major in one of many interdepartmental majors including Financial Engineering and PEL (Politics, Economics, and Law), which are the most popular. The registration starts in April and all one has to do is access the KU Portal System and click on the major that they wish.

It sounds very promising, and it actually is a big opportunity to learn from different majors. It coincides with the goal of convergence because it is combining aspects from different studies in order to produce something new. However, there are concerns that the system might not serve their original purpose.

Medical Sciences is criticized for being a pre-med course instead of educating integrated individuals. The same goes for the Public Governance and Leadership major, accused of being a course for pre-law students. Another worry is that there is no strict system to keep the students on track to really get what they need. There might end up having a superficial knowledge of each major without depth.

“Instead of taking classes from different departments and majors, I wish that there were more integrated classes that could really serve the original purpose,” comments Lee. Hwang Hyungyoung (’10, English Language Education) who currently majors in Financial Engineering as an interdepartmental major. Hwang also says “The curriculum for the major does not provide basic courses, so for language majors like myself, it is hard to adjust. Thus, I was only able to focus on catching up on my classes and getting good grades for tests that, at the end of the semester, I felt as if I did not learn anything in depth.”

Since the interdepartmental majors have not been around for so long, they are still in their beginning stages. Thus, one’s willingness to learn is most important. The university, at this time, only gives students the opportunity to be exposed to various fields of study. Therefore, it is up to the students to merge what they have learned from different majors. It is evident that the aim of this system is headed the right way and that convergence between several fields is crucial to creative thinking. However, before enrolling in one of the majors, students must think about what they want out of these interdepartmental majors and how they will integrate what they know to be a truly well-rounded intellectual.

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