Inha University

Inha University
인하대학교
MottoTruth (眞)
TypePrivate
Established1954
PresidentCho Myeongwoo
Academic staff
859 (full time) and 1,117 (except full time)[1]
Undergraduates17,175 (as of 2022)[2]
Postgraduates1,716 (as of 2022)[2]
Location,
CampusUrban, 150 acres
ColorsSky blue  , Deep blue  
AffiliationsGlobal U8 (GU8)
MascotAnnyong and Induck
WebsiteOfficial Homepage
Korean name
Hangul
인하대학교
Hanja
仁荷大學校
Revised RomanizationInha Daehakgyo
McCune–ReischauerInha Taehakkyo
인하대학교 본관

Inha University (Korean인하대학교; Hanja仁荷大學校) is a private research university located in Incheon, South Korea. Known traditionally for research and education in the engineering and physical sciences, the university was established by the first president of South Korea, Syngman Rhee. Inha is a Korean-American collaboration school, even in its name: the Morpheme "In" (인, 仁) comes from the city of Incheon and "Ha" (하, 荷) from Hawaii, USA. Started as a polytechnic university in 1954, named Inha Institute of Technology (Acronym: IIT; Korean, 인하공과대학, Inha Gonggwa Daehak, colloquially Inhagongdae), the institute has been achieving national recognition and a strong reputation as a technological research university thereafter.

Inha University is the most well-known and #1 university in Incheon area. Inha was ranked top 10 nationwide through decades according to Joongang Ilbo's annual rankings of South Korean universities; ranked 8th in 2017[citation needed]. Also, Inha is a member of GU8.[3]

History

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Establishment

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In 1952,[4] in the midst of the Korean War, the first president of Korea, Syngman Rhee proposed the foundation of an educational institute that would provide expertise and hope to a lagging industrial sector. The driving force behind the proposal was the will and determination of a group of Koreans who had emigrated to Hawaii 50 years earlier.

The name 'Inha' comes from the name of 'Incheon' and 'Ha' in Hawaii.[1] In March 1954, with the goal of establishing a world-class engineering university like MIT in the US, Dr. Lee Won Chul, an astronomer who obtained his Ph.D. degree, was the inaugural vice president Lee Ki-bong. On April 24, 1954, he had the entrance ceremony for 179 freshmen. On March 14, 1958, the establishment of a graduate school was approved.

Financial resources for the foundation came from the proceeds of the sale of the Korean Christian Institute,[5] an organization founded and managed by Dr. Rhee for the purpose of educating the children of the original emigrants, donations from Korean emigrants in Hawaii and domestic supporters, and a government subsidy. Along with school site donation from Incheon city, the Ministry of Culture and Education approved the foundation of the Inha Institute in February, 1954.

Institute building construction began in earnest, to finally have the Inha Institute of Technology opened later the same year, in the scheme of the parent 6 Departments of Metallurgical, Mechanical, Mining, Electric, Shipbuilding and Chemical Engineering.[6]

Time of expansion and development

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The Inha Institute of Technology, with its unique history and great mission to foster excellent students who would contribute to the development of the nation's scientific and technological industries, was funded to do so by the help of huge government subsidies and foreign aid from UNESCO and the German government.

In a move to improve the management of the Inha Institute, the Board of Trustees was reorganized and Dr. Choong-Hoon Jo and Dr. Jwa-Kyung Seong assumed the positions of chairman of the board and the dean, respectively. That change brought more energy to the management, and resulted in the introduction of state-of-the-art experimental and research equipment, construction of new school buildings, research centers, practice factories, experimental tanks, library, and gymnasium, and secured excellent professors, contributing to the development of the Korean industry. With the rapid development of the Inha Institute of Technology, its size and facilities surpassed those of other colleges.

It was inevitable for the institute to be elevated to the status of university, thus in December, 1971, the Ministry of Culture and Education approved the elevation and Dr. Jwa-Kyung Seong took office as the first president, solidifying the basis toward one of the prestigious universities in Korea.

Ultimately on Oct. 2, 2014, in collaboration between Inha University and the Government of Uzbekistan, Inha University in Tashkent, the first South Korean university abroad, has been established, with a view to training professional global IT leaders in the country. The curriculum and academic program of this newly emerging international university comprise the same as those of Inha University in Korea.

Academic structure

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Inha has 12 colleges in Engineering, Natural Sciences, Economics and Trade, Business Administration, Education, Law, Social Science, Humanities, Human Ecology, and Medicine, and 1 affiliation, 20 departments, 9 major fields of study. Inha University's Graduate school offers 47 fields of study for the Master's program and 41 for the Doctoral program. The Graduate School of Education has 31 majors for its Master's program and research course. The Graduate School of Business Administration offers 1 Master's program and 2 certificate courses and a part-time MBA program. The Graduate School of Engineering offers 14 majors in its Master's program and research courses. The Graduate School of Public Administration has 3 majors in its Master's program and research courses. Founded in 2000, the Graduate School of Information Technology and Telecommunications offers 1 major in its Master's program and the expanded and reorganized Graduate School of International Trade and Logistics now has 2 departments with 5 majors.

Undergraduate colleges

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Inha university consists of 11 undergraduate colleges:

Graduate schools

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Inha has 9 graduate schools: Graduate School, Graduate School of Information Technology and Telecommunications, Graduate School of Logistics, Law School, School of Medicine, Graduate School of Engineering, Graduate School of Education, Graduate School of Business Administration, Graduate School of Public Administration.

Facilities

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Attached agencies

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Inha university has 7 attached agencies which are listed below:

  • Jung-Seok Memorial Library
  • Language Training Center
  • Center for Continuing Education
  • Inha Museum
  • Teachers Training Center
  • Infirmary
  • Jungseok Research Institute of International Logistics and Trade

Research institutes

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Inha university has about 60 research institutes attached to it.[7] These institutes are listed below.

Institute Year of Establishment Institute Year of Establishment
Science & Technology Research Institute 1967 Humanities Research Institute 1974
Social Science Research Institute 1980 Basic Science Research Institute 1979
Student Life Research Institute 1973 Aviation Management Research Institute 1976
New Community Movement Research Institute 1977 Center for International Studies 1985
Institute for Business & Economics Research 1985 Center for Korean Studies 1986
Ocean Science & Technology Institute 1987 Sports Science Research Institute 1987
Medical Toxicology Research Center 1988 Institute of Polymer Science & Engineering 1990
Institute of Advanced Materials 1990 Institute of Computer Science & Applications 1990
Management Research Institute 1992 Environmental Research Institute 1992
Institute for Information and Electronics Research 1992 Institute for Mechanical Engineering 1995
Research Institute of Ship and Ocean Engineering 1994 Educational Research Institute 1994
Research Institute of Human Ecology 1994 Research Institute of Semiconductor Thin Film Technology 1995
Research Institute of Chemical Dynamics 1996 Research Institute for Medical Sciences 1996
Research Institute of Water Resources & Systems 1996 Research Institute of Construction and Environment Systems 1996
Geoinformatic Engineering Research Institute 1998 Yellow Sea Transportation System Research Center 1996
Environmental Technology Center of Thermal Plasma 2005 Institute of Industrial Biotechnology 2000
Institute for Legal Studies 1999 Regional Research Center for Coastal Environments of the Yellow Sea 1999
Intelligent GIS Research Center 1998 UWB-ITRC Center 2003
Institute of Industrial Biotechnology 2000 Institute for Culture Management and Psychology 2005
Asia Pacific School of Logistics 2004 Regional Innovation Center For Light Materials 1999
Center for Advanced Bioseparation Technology 2000

Acceptance rate and Ranking

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University rankings
JoongAng National[8] Domestic 15
QS National[9] General =19
THE National[10] General 22–27
ARWU National[11] Research 14–18
QS Asia
(Asia version)[12]
General 127
THE Asia
(Asia version)[13]
General =154
ARWU World[14] Research 601–700
QS World[15] General 631–640
THE World[16] General 801–1000
USNWR World[17] General =1327

INHA University is one of the top private universities in Incheon, South Korea. It is ranked #531-540 in QS World University Rankings 2023, and #120 in QS Asian University Rankings 2023.

In 2022, 43,062 applicants applied to 2,631 recruitments for early admission to INHA University, recording a competition rate of 16.37:1 (6.1%). This is the result of an increase of 2.10 points in competition rate from 14.27:1 (7.0%) and the increase in number of applicants by 4,936. Despite the continuous decline in school-age population, it showed the highest competition rate in the pasts four years.[21]

Taejoon Jeon, the director of the Admissions Office, said “Despite various difficult conditions such as a decrease in the school age population and a decrease in the number of early admissions, INHA University's competition for early admissions has risen sharply. This is the result of the recent recognition of INHA University's potential, which has shown excellent business orders in various education and research fields."

Notable alumni

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References

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  1. ^ inha university's statistical annual report: number of faculty Archived 2008-09-03 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ a b inha university's statistical annual report Archived 2008-09-03 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ Global U8 Consortium website Archived 2007-06-29 at the Library of Congress Web Archives
  4. ^ "Traces - INHA University". Archived from the original on 2008-09-29. Retrieved 2008-09-20.
  5. ^ "K.C.U." Archived from the original on 2008-11-19. Retrieved 2008-09-20.
  6. ^ "The 1950s - INHA University". eng.inha.ac.kr. Archived from the original on 2010-03-09.
  7. ^ "University Annex Center - Research Organizations - Research". inha.ac.kr. 2016-11-08. Archived 2019-04-28 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ "2023 JoongAng Ilbo University Rankings". JoongAng Ilbo. 2022. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
  9. ^ "QS University Rankings 2025". Top Universities. 2025. Retrieved June 4, 2024.
  10. ^ "THE University Rankings 2025 - South Korea". Times Higher Education (THE). 2025. Retrieved October 9, 2024.
  11. ^ World University Rankings - 2023 (2024). "South Korea Universities in Top 500 universities". Academic Ranking of World Universities. Retrieved August 15, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  12. ^ "QS Asian University Rankings". QS Quacquarelli Symonds Limited. 2024. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  13. ^ "Asia University Rankings 2024". Times Higher Education. 2024. Retrieved April 30, 2024.
  14. ^ "Academic Ranking of World Universities". Institute of Higher Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University. 2024. Retrieved August 15, 2024.
  15. ^ "QS World University Rankings". QS Quacquarelli Symonds Limited. 2025. Retrieved June 4, 2024.
  16. ^ "THE World University Rankings". Times Higher Education. 2025. Retrieved October 9, 2024.
  17. ^ U.S.News & World Report (2024). "2024-2025 Best Global Universities Rankings". Retrieved June 24, 2024.
  18. ^ U.S.News & World Report (2024). "Best Global Universities in South Korea". Retrieved June 24, 2024.
  19. ^ U.S.News & World Report (2024). "2024-2025 Best Global Universities in Asia". Retrieved June 24, 2024.
  20. ^ "Young University Rankings 2024: South Korea". Times Higher Education (THE). 2024. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
  21. ^ "인하대학교 경/쟁/률/서/비/스".
  22. ^ a b "뉴이스트 민현·렌·백호, 수시합격..14학번 대학생" (in Korean). starnews. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  23. ^ "Super Junior's Choi Siwon graduates from Inha University". Star News. 25 February 2012. Archived from the original on 25 March 2014. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
  24. ^ Lee, Nancy "Super Junior's Ryeowook Graduates from College" Archived 2012-07-08 at archive.today CJ E&M enewsWorld. 24 February 2012. Retrieved 2012-04-10
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37°26′58″N 126°39′16″E / 37.44944°N 126.65444°E / 37.44944; 126.65444