On Monday, the University of Science and Technology (UST) announced that graduate students from its national research institute schools had proposed innovative research ideas. These proposals, aimed at addressing social issues and offering novel solutions, were presented in a detailed and strategic manner.
UST organized the 2026 UST Proposal Challenge, a practical training program designed to enhance students’ research capabilities and help them transform their research ideas into concrete proposals.
This year’s competition focused on three areas: △ Commercialization and Startup Research, which links research and development (R&D) outcomes to technology commercialization and entrepreneurship; △ Industry Problem-Solving Research, aimed at addressing real-world corporate challenges and boosting industrial competitiveness; and △ Open Research, allowing unrestricted exploration in any field of interest.
The competition attracted 64 students from 22 schools, including those affiliated with the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology (KRIBB), Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), and Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology (KIOST). From these applicants, 28 finalists were selected to compete.
Among the participants, one student clinched the grand prize, three received excellence awards, and six earned merit awards, totaling ten winners.
The grand prize was awarded to Kim Seong-ah, a doctoral candidate from KRIBB School, who participated in the open research category. Kim’s proposal for a next-generation DNA nanomedicine platform technology, which selectively targets cancer cells while sparing healthy ones, earned top marks from the judges.
Excellence awards were presented to Nam Gi-rim from KIST School for proposing advanced drone ultrasonic inspection technology; Kim Seong-wan from KRIBB School for researching key factors in muscle loss and aging related to specific proteins; and Elang Ghaniwijaya from KIST School for investigating novel cathode materials for next-generation sodium-ion batteries as an alternative to current lithium-based technologies.
Merit awards were bestowed upon six students, including Han Jun-kyu from the Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology (KICT) School. Han proposed developing an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered intelligent road infrastructure monitoring platform in the commercialization and startup research category.
UST President Kang Dae-im remarked that the high-caliber research ideas spanning cutting-edge R&D fields such as cancer treatment, AI diagnostics, and aging have affirmed the students’ potential to become world-class researchers. UST will continue to leverage its unique position as a national research institute university to provide comprehensive education. This approach allows students to gain hands-on experience in every stage of the research process, from planning to presentation, nurturing them into scientific and technological innovators capable of tackling societal challenges and creating new value.
The UST Proposal Challenge is a distinctive research-oriented training program that enables early-career researchers to progressively develop their research competencies while refining and presenting their ideas as formal proposals.