To be reborn as an academic institute organization in which restraint, balance and circulation are live, The Korean Institute of Communication Sciences (KICS, www.kics.or.kr) is reconsolidating its institute organization and operational frame with its new president's inauguration.
The KICS has been contributing greatly in the light of exchange of communications science and technology in the process of constructing an information technology advanced power Korea. However, as the information technology field faces fierce international competition day by day, projects the KICS maintained routinely over more than 30 years are likewise facing several challenges, according to its newly inaugurated President Lee Byeong Gi who serves also as professor of Seoul National University in the school of Electrical Engineering.
For instance, he points out: "As standardization comes to assume leadership of industry, interest in the papers published by KICS should be in fact decreasing as long as they don't have any concern with standardization." Furthermore, as interest increases to papers of international journals, domestic journals are becoming more distant from the object of interest.
In addition, as the subscription of papers through electronic medium is on the rise, the necessity of its institute in joining as a member is diminishing, resulting in the decrease of member eventually, Lee said.
Facing such challenges and accepting actively the trend of great change of the future, the KICS has to propel in-house reform plus fundamental change, he added.
Reconsolidating institute organization
Hence, Professor Lee comments that the Institute takes reconsolidating its institute organization and operation frame as a basic direction of operation in the year of 2007 so that the KICS can actively cope with such great changes.
To that end, he said that the Institute's comprehensive operation will be operated centering on the Vice Presidents who will play the pivotal roles for forging an institute organization, among which restraint, balance and circulation are most important.
In conjunction with this, Lee emphasizes: "The KICS should play a contributing role by forging academic foothold in building an IT power," adding that in that respect, the Institute must change toward the future-oriented institute structure.
Secondly, Lee said he would promote the technical activities of KICS by grouping the 22 technical committees into three technical groups, namely communication theory and systems, wireless communications, and networks and services, then making each technical group represented by a Director. If the activities of the technical committees can be closely connected to the activities of journal publication and conferences, it will surely bring forth a great synergy.
Thirdly, Lee decided to operate an advisory committee to maintain close bond relations with the industrial world as well as telecommunication institutions. He further said that comprehensive institute projects like academic conferences aim to provide members, particularly the industrial world, with a ground to exchange the latest research and outcome of development most preferentially.
He expected that provided The KICS practices faithfully decision items mentioned above, this Institute would be transformed into a living organization which can cope with big trend of the times swiftly and wisely.
Operation centering around vicepresident
Lee named Korea's WiBro service among other fields that the Institute uses as an important axis for Korea's IT industry development. He stressed that the KICS will drive forward as an annual function for WiBro's spread to the world by teaming up with the Ministry of Information and Communication (MIC), Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), Samsung Electronics, KT and other manufacturers and operators.
"The Institute is preparing functions to aim WiBro's technology collaboration and business at the end of February, on September and October respectively by teaming up with KT that will embark its full-scale WiBro commercial service on April this year, Samsung Electronics which stretches out its hand about WiBro technology collaboration in the continents of America and Europe, SK Telecom and Posdata," Lee introduces. Not inferior to foreign currency, which earns by exporting to the world by means of a novel idea as well as a new product, the professor said he regards papers also which are produced by great time, effort and sweat as an important motive power of national IT industry development.
In that regard, Lee explains: "JCN [Journal of Communications and Networks], a Science Citation Index (SCI) journal, our Institute publishes technically cosponsored by IEEE Communications Society by inviting renowned word-class scholars as editorial staff in large numbers, plays a leverage role to harden our country IT industry's root and trunk."
Notably, he expected that this JCN would discharge a sound incubator role as the only SCI paper journal of domestic telecommunication industry in the coming years their contribution rate for numerous younger telecommunication engineering scholars is most high.
Keeping abreast with international
communication community President Lee says KICS values high the international collaboration among communication societies worldwide. KICS keeps abreast with the international communication communities of the world through sister society relations and joint activities. KICS has three sister societies, namely, IEEE Communications Society in the USA, IEICE Communications Society in Japan and the CIC of China. KICS collaborates with them in operating the Asia- Pacific Conference on Communications (APCC). They plan to jointly establish an APCC Best Paper Award to recognize the authors of the distinguished papers presented in the APCC. In particular, KICS has recently launched together with IEEE Communications Society the Exemplary Global Service Award with the intent of recognizing people who have contributed to the global collaboration of communication technologies, people and societies.
Setting engineering education on edge
With regard to the outlook of engineering education, Professor Lee underlined the importance of science education by saying that there is the future of our country by setting mathematics and science education on edge.
As part of programs to foster engineering education, it is said that on August 30, 1999, he contributed in establishing the Accreditation Board for Engineering Education of Korea (ABEEK), an independent nongovernmental organization, by teaming up a Working Committee consisting of 45 related experts.
Since its founding, ABEEK has indicated guidelines for university engineering programs and cooperated with governmental organizations, professional academic societies, industrial organizations and representative engineering colleges.
ABEEK has concentrated its effort on fostering engineering education and promoting qualified engineers, through accreditation and consultation, according to Lee. Up to now, about 20% of the engineering colleges nationwide have been accredited, since a certification was implemented in 2000.
As in addition, the participation of engineering colleges has been increasing remarkably, now is the time for Korea's engineering colleges to lay their groundwork as this is a historic tide not only for Korea but for the world, as well, he insisted.
During an exclusive interview with The Korea IT Times, he on the other hand stressed the Institute's international IT exchange with oversea academic institutes including all sorts of IT academic societies as well as exhibitions at home and abroad such as the WiBro World Forum, WiBro Developer Forum, WiBro Convergence Service Technology Workshop and Asia Pacific Communication Conference (APCC) 2007.
