The Dept. of MSE ranked 19^th in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2020. This is the seventh consecutive year that our department ranked in the top `20s in the QS rankings (2014: 16, 2015: 19, 2016: 18, 2017: 13, 2018: 13, 2019: 17).

Prof. Jiheong Kang and Prof. Jihyeon Yeom joined the faculty as professors. Prof. Jiheong Kang joined on Feb. 1, 2020. He obtained his bachelor's degree from Seoul National University and Ph.D. degree from the University of Tokyo. He majored in supramolecular chemistry, functional soft materials, and soft electronics. Prof. Jihyeon Yeom joined on March 1, 2020. She received her bachelor's degree from KAIST and Ph.D. degree from the University of Michigan. She majored in nanomaterials, chiral materials, and nanotechnology. Their labs will be introduced extensively on the "Special Feature" sections of the newsletter.

As part of 'The KAIST Lecture in Materials Science and Engineering 2019', Prof. Michael J. Aziz from Harvard University was invited to give two special lectures and to have meetings with graduate students.

ㅇ Lecture 1: December 9^th (Mon), 2019 / 16:00 / Applied Engr. B/D, Multimedia Lecture Hall (W1-1, 1^st Floor) 
ㅇ Lecture 2: December 10^th (Tue), 2019 / 10:30 / Applied Engr. B/D, Multimedia Lecture Hall (W1-1, 1^st Floor)

Prof. Byong-Guk Park was selected as the "Scientist of the Month" for October 2019 by the Ministry of Science and ICT and the National Research Foundation of Korea. He was highly praised for the development of technology that efficiently produces spin currents crucial for applications of next-generation magnetic random access memory (MRAM) and controls spin polarization. His technology contributes to the fourth industrial revolution that requires large-scale information processing technology.

Prof. Yoon Sung Nam received the "Chungwoong Award" at the 2019 KIM Fall Meeting in Daegu.

Prof. Sang Ouk Kim was elected as a new fellow member of the Korean Academy of Science and Technology (KAST) at the KAST general meeting held on November 22, 2019. Through a strict three-step evaluation process, members are selected from those who have worked in the science and technology field for 20 or more years and have made remarkable contributions to their respective fields with innovative research outcomes.

Prof. Il-Doo Kim received the "Scientist of the Year" award selected by journalists at the 2019 Science Press Night ceremony on November 29, 2019, Lotte Hotel Seoul. He was recognized for active contributions including his role as an associate editor of ACS Nano, a renown journal in nanoscience. During his first year of appointment in 2019, he reviewed about 500 submitted papers and published an editorial on the May issue about the history and vision of KAIST.

Prof. Kwangsoo No retired on Feb. 29, 2020, after his long service to scientific and technological advancements and student education at KAIST. He was appointed as an emeritus professor on March 1, 2020.

A Joint Workshop with Nanyang Technological University (NTU) was held on Sept. 29 ~ Oct. 2, 2019, at NTU, Singapore. The workshop was coordinated as part of the KAIST International Collaboration Signature Project (supported for 5 years from 2019 to 2023). Prof. Chan Beum Park (Head of Department), Prof. Byungha Shin, Prof. Jonghwa Shin, Prof. Hyuck Mo Lee (Signature Project Director), Prof. Seokwoo Jeon, and Prof. Seungbum Hong from our department participated to discuss planning joint degrees and promoting exchanges.

The KAIST-ETH & KAIST-EPFL Joint Workshop was held at ETHZ (Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich) and EPFL (École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne) in Switzerland on November 11 – 17, 2019. Prof. Chan Beum Park (Head of Department), Prof. Byong-Guk Park, Prof. Byungha Shin, Prof. Keon Jae Lee, Prof. EunAe Cho, and Prof. Seungbum Hong from our department participated to promote international collaboration through exchanges ideas in materials science and chemical engineering.

KAIST-ETH

With the aid of Emeritus Professor Suk-Joong Kang's development fund donation, Seminar Room 1 in our department was newly renovated for multilateral collaborative meetings and international events. We thank Emeritus Professor Suk-Joong Kang's donation for the continued development of our department. To pay tribute, we renamed the seminar room to "Juheul Conference Room" from his epithet.

The official KAIST Materials Science and Engineering Youtube channel "K-Materials" was opened in the fall of 2019. Laboratory introduction videos for new graduate students and videos related to lab safety were uploaded. We ask for your attention and subscription to the channel.

Go to link : https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCf_VxtXTDvXN6hPV8WvtunA?view_as=subscriber

Since October 2019, we have been carrying out the "Happy Birthday Lunch" events for undergraduates as a new department project. On their birthdays, students have lunch with their advisors and receive career counseling in a casual atmosphere.

Ph.D. graduates of February 2020 Han Gil Seo (Advisor: WooChul Jung) and Ji-Soo Jang (Advisor: Il-Doo Kim) received the Materials Science and Engineering "Excellent Thesis Award"(President Award) for their excellent dissertations.

Hyewon Yoon (Advisor: Seokwoo Jeon), Ph.D. graduate of February 2020, received the 2020 "Excellent Thesis Award" in materials science from the Korea Institute of Materials Science.

The following undergraduate students were selected for the Dean's List Fall 2019 for their excellent academic performance: Seung Kun Kim (Advisor: Sang Ouk Kim), Se Young Yoon (Advisor: Jong Min Yuk), Eoram Moon (Advisor: Hyuck Mo Lee), Jihoon Choi (Seokwoo Jeon).

A career counseling meeting for undergraduates was held at the Room 2427, Applied Engineering Building. 30 to 40 undergraduates and several professors participated in career counseling and student-teacher bonding while enjoying a pizza lunch.

A department information session for undergraduate freshmen was held on November 25, 5:30 pm, at the Chung Moon Soul Building(E16) to guide them in selecting their majors. The department student representative started the session followed by a promotional video and department introductions by Prof. Chan Beum Park (Head of Department) and Prof. Jae-Byum Chang. After the session, the students had pizza and gimbap with the professors and had a valuable time in deciding their majors.

A laboratory safety staff meeting was held on Dec. 6, 2019 for staff bonding and cultivation of alertness on lab safety.

The faculty meeting for the first half of 2020 was held at Sweet Beijing on January 22, 2020. Prof. Chan Beum Park (Head of Department), Prof. Sang-Hee Park (Undergraduate Supervisor), and staff members of the MSE and EEWS departments attended the meeting.