Lost in between colonialism and corporatism: A critical review of the case of South Korean academia

In this paper, we critically examine the hypothesis that higher education in Korea still operates under the context of colonial dependency and has become corporatized, driven by the ideologies of neoliberalism and market capitalism. In doing so, we discuss the academic dependency and corporatization of Korean colleges by pinpointing three events: first, the recent attempt by Korean colleges to adopt the American journal accreditation system; second, the annexation of the universities to Chabeol to make universities more competitive and efficient; and third, Korean college policies for expanding English mediated courses in their curricula. We argue that these changes impacting the atmospheres of higher education and academia in Korea are not legitimate because such changes confuse the real purposes of higher education, which should not be determined only by the logic of competition or scientific development. These changes also disregard the rights of students and lecturers to think, communicate, and perform research using their own mother tongues. We suggest alternative attitudes and strategies for Korean academia to revive academic independence.