IBS research-center directors to be selected in May

The IBS adopts an advanced “person-centered” appraisal system featuring evaluation committees to screen each candidate.

Press Release: January 30, 2012

Public Relations Division, MEST

Public Relations & Coordination Team, IBS

The 2012 Call for Applications for the Directorship of New IBS Research Centers will be announced on January 31, 2012. This marks the official launch of the recruitment process according to the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology (MEST) and the Institute for Basic Science (IBS).

The IBS is to introduce an innovative evaluation system that avoids selecting directors by matching their fields and predetermined institute goals for research areas. The traditional system also means institutes typically organize research units to satisfy their prior objectives, which can be counterproductive.

In a bid to bring world-renowned scientists from overseas, the IBS has introduced a "person-centered” approach that is very different from the traditional "theme-centered" one, which is adopted as the standard evaluation system in Korea.

The evaluation committees that screen each candidate comprise authoritative scientists, and shall conduct in-depth evaluations via open symposiums, by assessing reference letters from experts, and through discussion. In addition, a number of reputable overseas scholars will be invited across to Korea to join the board in order to bring additional professional and objective perspectives to deliberations on the quality of the candidates' scientific credentials. The board will also assess the feasibility of all the candidates' research plans.

The selection process is as follows:

1. Candidate Recruitment: A candidate pool is created through open invitations and recommendations from the Science Advisory Board (SAB)

2. Candidate Selection for Evaluation: The Selection and Evaluation Committee (SEC)* selects candidates to evaluate based on research achievements and first-rate scientific research plans
(*The SEC will comprise 15 scholars by the end of February; half of the committee members will be scientists based overseas.)

3. Peer-Review Panel: Evaluation committees screen each candidate, and conduct in-depth evaluations through open symposiums and closed discussions

4. Comprehensive Evaluation: The SEC conducts comprehensive evaluations based on the findings of peer-review panels together with expert reference letters, before submitting the evaluation results to the SAB*
(*The SAB is a consulting body that assists with the key decisions made by the president of the IBS in research and administrative management. The board includes 20 reputable scholars from Korea or overseas who are experts in science and technology, humanities, and social science.)

5. Consultation & Confirmation: The president evaluates the candidates based on the results of the selection and evaluation process, and on consultations with the SAB. Successful candidates are selected after negotiations with the president over their respective research plans.

The IBS will announce the Call for Applications for the Directorship of New IBS Research Centers  on January 31, 2012. Candidates may file applications at any time. The institute plans to begin the first evaluation round this March, followed by two more evaluation rounds later in the year. A list of the IBS's first directors to be hired will be announced in May.

Successful candidates will enjoy autonomy in conducting world-class research into the basic sciences. They will be given total freedom to choose their research themes, to organize their research teams, and to allocate research budgets among their research programs.

The IBS's president, Dr. Se-Jung Oh, said: "By building on the scientific achievements accumulated by Korea's senior scientists, the IBS aims to propel Korean science to a world-class level, into the top-tier of basic-science research...We look forward to having many outstanding scientists collaborating in IBS research centers.”