KUBS, Pioneer of Korean Business Education, Moving Beyond 120 Years into the Future 

In 2025, Korea University Business School (KUBS) celebrated the 120th anniversary of its founding. At a time when the very concept of “business administration” was still unfamiliar in Korea, the school planted the earliest seeds of Korean business education and, over the past 120 years, has grown into a pioneering institution that has nurtured leaders across the nation’s corporate, academic, and policy sectors. The 120th anniversary not only commemorates this legacy but also marks an important turning point for redefining the school’s identity and future vision. 

In 2021, the Committee on History and Culture was established to shift the school’s development beyond external expansion and toward deeper academic and cultural enrichment. The committee has since carried out various projects to strengthen KUBS’s historical, cultural, and artistic identity, and to enhance members’ sense of pride. Its first initiative was the planting of plum trees, pagoda trees, and Korean pines across the KUBS campus. The plum tree—bearing blossoms that symbolize Bosung College, the predecessor of Korea University—the pagoda tree that once stood on the site of the early school buildings, and the Korean pine, now the university’s official tree, were planted to infuse the campus with its historical roots. This has created a symbolic landscape that evokes the Korea University spirit for members while allowing visitors to experience the heritage of KUBS in a natural and meaningful way. 

In 2022, artist Lee Ufan’s work Relatum–The Location was installed in front of the Business School building. Aimed at adding an emotional dimension to Korea University’s traditional image—defined by intellect and a bold, spirited character—the piece, which invites contemplation through its restrained aesthetic, visually expresses KUBS’s identity as a “campus of reflection.” 

Published in the same year, 120-Year History of KUBS Through Oral Testimonies holds particular significance as it transforms major events and experiences—once preserved only through oral tradition—into an accurate written record based on vivid accounts from senior faculty, enabling future generations to revisit the school’s history. Building on this foundation, Korea University Business School: 120 Years and Beyond was released in May 2025, followed by Professor Cho Young-hun’s The Path of Business Administration: A Civilization-Historical Reflection on 120 Years of Korea University Business School in September. Together, these publications form a comprehensive collection of the school’s key historical records, systematically organizing 120 years of intellectual legacy. 

At the 120th anniversary ceremony held on May 23, 2025, KU President Dong-One Kim stated in his congratulatory address, “The 120 years of the Business School represent the very history of the growth and innovation of Korean business education.” Dean Eonsoo Kim then presented the school’s vision, “Spearheading Next Intelligence,” outlining the future direction of business studies through the convergence of human and artificial intelligence and the integration of scholarship and technology. Emphasizing the philosophy of 3C and 4Tech, he announced plans for establishing a “Trading Zone”—an open platform where students, corporations, and startups can share knowledge and engage in experimentation. The highlight of the ceremony was an intergenerational message exchange. Alumnus Jae-bong Seo (Class of 1965) presented a letter of hope to a freshman, while Hyun-ho Lee (Class of 2025) wrote a message addressed to a student entering in 2085—creating a symbolic moment that connected the spirit of the past 120 years with the future. The letters were sealed in a time capsule along with that day’s issue of the Business School Newspaper and stored in the History Center of the Hyundai Motor Business Hall, to be opened in 2085. 

In August, students envisioned society and the business world 60 years into the future through the “KUBS Imagination Contest,” and their ideas later served as key discussion material for the September forum. In September, a public talk titled “Mapping the Future: Business Society in 60 Years” was held, along with the student-led festival “Hosang Daedong Festival: PANTHERA.” At the forum, students’ visions of the future intersected with expert insights, generating diverse perspectives on what the business environment may look like six decades from now. The public talk also explored the central question: “What role should business administration play in future society?” Meanwhile, the festival PANTHERA—a combination of the traditional name Hosangje and Panthera tigris, the scientific name of the tiger symbolizing Korea University—presented a new form of community celebration where tradition and innovation coexisted. 

The year’s journey was not merely a reflection on the past, but a pledge toward the next 120 years. Upholding its core values amid an era of change and pioneering new paths in business scholarship that serve people and society—this is the promise KUBS makes for the next century, built upon the foundation of its 120-year legacy. The final chapter of the 120th-anniversary initiatives culminates in the “KUBS 120 MARCH” fundraising campaign, dedicated to cultivating the next generation of business leaders.