South Korea's role in research and innovation explored in latest Nature Index
The Nature Index 2024 South Korea supplement highlights the challenges that the country is facing in science and investment, including in research output and gender disparity - with only 23% of the research workforce being female, there is a major growth opportunity for the country to cement its place as leader in science.
Seoul | London, August 21, 2024
South Korea stands out among the leading countries in the Nature Index for its substantial investments in research and development (R&D) and a robust history of innovation. However, as highlighted in the Nature Index 2024 South Korea supplement published today, the country is grappling with challenges that threaten its position, including declining student enrollment, stark gender imbalances in the research workforce, and cultural factors that hinder the development of a diverse research ecosystem.
Exploring the many aspects of South Korea's research environment and the steps needed to enhance its global standing, this year’s Index shows:
- South Korea’s strong commitment to science, boasting the highest number of researchers per capita and significant spending on R&D compared to other countries in the Nature Index. However, the country is not getting as much ‘bang for its buck’, compared to other countries when output in journals tracked by the Nature Index is compared to R&D spending.
- The biggest challenges faced by South Korea, which include: maintaining its status as an innovation hub and ties between industry and academia; a rapid decline in student numbers; and a lack of representation in the research workforce.
- How South Korean research can be made open to the world, including how international students and researchers can be attracted and retained, despite cultural and language differences.
- League tables of the top 50 South Korean Institutions, listed by Share* in the Nature Index.
Speaking on this supplement, Bec Crew, senior editor of the Nature Index, said: “South Korea's commitment to science is evident in its strong investment in R&D and reputation for technological innovation. The report shows that there is opportunity for the country to advance further by addressing the disconnect between its spending and its output. By fostering more diverse international partnerships and empowering women in research, South Korea can unlock the full potential of its scientific community and reinforce its status as a leader in global science.”
*In the Nature Index, Share is a fractional count for an article allocated to an institution, city or country/region, that takes into account the proportion of authors on the article whose institutional affiliation is with that institution or location.
Nature Portfolio in partnership with KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) will host an Index Live event on Korean research in February 2025. The Index Live event will bring together experts to discuss the themes introduced in Nature Index 2024 South Korea in greater detail. Find out more and register.
The latest supplement can be viewed in the following link: Nature Index 2024 South Korea
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Nature Index’s signature metric, Share, is a fractional count for an article allocated to an institution, city or country/region, that takes into account the proportion of authors on the article whose institutional affiliation is with that institution or location. Adjusted Share takes account of a small annual variation in the total number of articles in the Nature Index.
The other main Nature Index metric is Count. A country/region or an institution is given a Count of 1 for each article that has at least one author from that country/region or institution.
For further explanation, please see natureindex.com/glossary.
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The Nature Index is a database of author affiliations and institutional relationships. The index tracks contributions to research articles published in 145 high-quality natural science and health science publications, chosen by an independent group of researchers.
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