It has been revealed that no matter how well one does academically in North Korea if there are marks against their family background or social status, one cannot gain admission to Kim Il Sung University.
On the 621st episode of Channel A’s “We’re Now Going to Meet You,” aired on the 12th, stories of gifted students who graduated from North Korea’s prestigious universities were shared.
The top geniuses of North Korea have been famous worldwide.
Reporter Kim Jin said, “North Korea’s top geniuses really produce excellent results, no matter how harsh the conditions. They have won many gold medals at the International Mathematical Olympiad. At the International Internet Programming Competition, they won first place 18 times from 2013 to 2020.”
The broadcast introduced Kim Il Sung University, Kim Chaek University of Technology, and Ri Chol Science University as North Korea’s three prestigious universities.
One must graduate from Kim Il Sung University if one wants power in North Korea. High-ranking North Korean figures like Kim Jong Il, Jang Song-thaek (Kim Jong Un’s maternal uncle), Choe Ryong-hae (Standing Committee member of the Supreme People’s Assembly), and Jo Yong-won (Party Organizational Secretary) all graduated from Kim Il Sung University.
Only the offspring of the high-ranking who have a combination of educational, factional, and military backgrounds can be admitted to Kim Il Sung University.
Jeon Ju-ok, a top North Korean student, said, “For ordinary North Korean residents, Kim Il Sung University students represent ‘the world they live in.’ Admission guarantees a successful life. They scrutinize family ideology, social status, and other factors even more.”
She added, “My grandparents were diplomats. My grandfather’s brother defected to the South and was discovered, resulting in his banishment to the countryside. With such a background, even if I studied very well, the probability of being rejected if I applied to Kim Il Sung University would be high.”
Kim Chaek University of Technology is the center of North Korea’s nuclear and weapons research. It is the school that cultivates talents related to North Korea’s representative threat, Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs), and nuclear weapons.
Kim Chaek played a decisive role in leading the armed resistance against Japanese rule and making Kim Il Sung the supreme leader.
It is known that Kim Chaek University of Technology is the alma mater of key military figures from the Kim Jong Il era, such as Hyon Chol-hae and the Workers’ Party’s economic director, O Su-yong.
Kim Jung-guk, a Kim Chaek University of Technology graduate, explained, “There are also science and engineering departments at Kim Il Sung University. Those who go there have supportive personalities and family backgrounds. At Kim Chaek Tech, you can’t get by without skill. Kim Il Sung University has a higher name value, and the studies are relatively easy. At Kim Chaek Tech, the name value is second, but the studies are hard.”
Ri Chol Science University, where only the best math prodigies gather, is also called the KAIST of North Korea. North Korea’s top physicists, Kim Kwang-hyun and Kim Seo-in, the key figure in the launch of the Kwangmyongsong-1 satellite, are graduates.
Ri Chol Science University graduate Jang Hyuk said, “At Ri Chol Science University and Kim Chaek Tech, all we have to show is our skills. We are ‘geniuses born in poor families and succeeded through study.'”
Jang Mi, Jang Hyuk’s sister, who also graduated from Ri Chol Science University, shared, “There are benefits unique to Ri Chol Science University. In North Korea, even if you want to live in Pyongyang, you can’t. But suppose you graduate from Ri Chol Science University. In that case, you get placed at the National Academy of Sciences (the highest institution in North Korea under the Cabinet for research in science and technology) in Pyongyang and receive citizenship in Pyongyang.”
By. Kim Yoo Jin
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