Suncheon University says medical school selection is “not the end, but the beginning”

Suncheon University is celebrating its selection as the candidate for a new national medical school in the Jeonnam-Gwangju region, but its president says the decision does not complete the process.

“We are not at the end, but at the beginning,” President Lee Byung-woon told reporters at Suncheon City Hall. The Education Ministry must still give final approval, and the school’s enrollment and opening date have not been settled.

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Today is not the end, but the beginning.

Suncheon scored 89.15 points in the regional review, surpassing Mokpo National University, which received 87.85. The university says the medical school would allow students who have had to leave the region for the capital area to pursue medical careers at home and serve local communities.

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We will create a virtuous cycle in which regional talent who had to leave for the capital area can pursue their dreams of medicine at home and protect the health of their neighbors.

Lee said Suncheon wants to train doctors in specialties that the region lacks most, including pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, and emergency medicine. He also pledged to establish a university hospital quickly to address gaps in serious and emergency care.

He offered words of consolation to Mokpo University and residents of southwestern Jeonnam, saying Mokpo had been the first and longest-standing advocate for a medical school in the province. Lee said Suncheon would keep the door open to cooperation with Mokpo in medical education and research. The university also said the benefits of a school located in Suncheon should reach communities throughout Jeonnam and Gwangju.

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The medical school will be established in Suncheon, but its benefits must reach every part of Jeonnam and Gwangju.