Ex-aide to education minister speculated as appointed to professor preferentially

A former aide to Hwang Woo-yea, education minister and deputy prime minister for social affairs, is speculated to have been preferentially appointed as professor of Dongduk Women’s University.

According to the education ministry and Dongduk University official Tuesday, Dongduk school foundation last month appointed former aide to Hwang while in National Assembly as full-time professor of multicultural policy. The person had worked as Hwang’s aide for six years since 2000.

New majors are normally founded at the beginning of the year’s first semester, but multicultural policy major was founded in the second semester. Among five candidates who applied, Hwang’s aide is known to have lagged behind the other four in terms of educational and professional backgrounds. This has raised speculation that he was appointed on the back of incumbent education minister Hwang.

The aide received a master’s degree in religion at Bernadean University, a cyber college in the U.S. The university hasn’t obtained certification from the Council for Higher Education Accreditation, or CHEA. Korean universities typically don’t recognize degree received at non-CHEA colleges in professor appointments. The remaining four applicants got a Ph.D. at U.S.’ elite universities, with some working as lecturers in the U.S.

Hwang denied any relations with preferential appointment. The education ministry said, “Hwang never was aware that his former aide was appointed to Dongduk Women’s University.”

foryou@donga.com