Ajou News

NEW Paran Ladder Program is launched with 1,220 students from 176 universities participating

  • 2019-07-30
  • 8370

The ceremony to launch the second Paran Ladder Program, which provides overseas training opportunities to students in difficult financial conditions, was held on June 26th in K Art Hall in Seoul, with participating students and officials from the relevant universities in attendance. About 100 program participants and President Hyung Ju Park joined the event from Ajou University. This year, a total of 1,220 students are participating in the Program.

The event kicked off with the playing of a congratulatory video message from Education Minister Eun Hae Yoo, followed by a congratulatory speech by Chairman Joung Woo Lee of Korea Student Aid Foundation, an introduction to and progress report on the Program, the reading of the program launching declaration and oath, and a special lecture by Italian television personality Alberto Mondi and Vice President Gil Young Song of Daumsoft.

The Paran Ladder Program, which is being carried out by the Ministry of Education and the Korea Student Aid Foundation, aims to give career development opportunities to students experiencing financial difficulties and thereby raise the level of educational equality. All the expenses for the participating students are paid by the government and the participating universities. Fifteen universities, including Ajou, are operating training courses for the Program. 

The Paran Ladder Program was initiated by the Korean government, which acknowledged the excellence of and benchmarked the 'AFTER YOU Program – Ajou Global Campus' that was launched in 2015 by Ajou University. A total of 100 students, including 20 from other universities, were selected for the month-long AFTER YOU Program this summer and will be sent to the University of Michigan and the University of Washington in the U.S. and Shanghai Jiaotong University in China later this month. Ajou's AFTER YOU Program was integrated into the Paran Ladder Program in 2018 for a three-year period.

Meanwhile, last month, Ajou University held a week-long orientation for the Paran Semester Program to provide a career design workshop, education on challenge design and overseas safety, and a seminar with a local representative of Education USA. During the orientation, President Park gave a lecture under the theme "Look Beyond and Dream Bigger," saying, "I hope that you will learn how to gain insights through experiences of connection in a different culture and environment."