Myung Oh

Biography

Dr. Myung Oh is widely considered to be “the godfather of Korea’s IT revolution.”  During eight years of service as vice minister (1981-1987) and minister of communications (1987-1988) he laid the groundwork for the nation’s information and communications revolution.  His leadership continued over the years as he became the only person to hold ministerial appointments under four different presidential administrations in Korea.

Dr. Oh’s leadership was not limited to government, as shown in the following outline of his education and career. He led the Taejon International Exposition which was successfully held in 1993 and also served in leadership positions with private sector corporations, the media and academia.  After the turn of the millennium he served as president of both Ajou University and Konkuk University, after which he became Chairman of the board of directors of the Korea Advanced Institute for Science and Technology.  

In 2009 Dr. Oh published a Korean language book entitled Dream of Korea Three Decades from Now.  In it he wrote “ Sometimes I feel like a lucky man because I was born during the nation’s most challenging era.  There were a lot of opportunities and challenges that I had to tackle and I was lucky to play a central role in making the country a better place to live.  The future Korea will face countless challenges and opportunities as well.”

A major theme of Dr. Oh’s efforts over the years was the central role of telecommunications and digital development for Korea. Throughout the 1980s he was a tireless proponent of the coming information society, taking every opportunity to speak on this topic and consult with other leaders in industry, government and the academic world.   The revolutionary developments of the 1980s established the institutions, policies and technologies that would drive Korea’s ICT-led development through the early decades of the 21st century, in no small measure owing to Dr. Oh’s leadership and vision.

In 2017 Dr. Oh became the first individual to be inaugurated into Stony Brook University’s College of Engineering and Applied Sciences “Hall of Fame.”

[Education]
1958 Graduated from Kyunggi High School
1962 Graduated from the Korea Military Academy
1966 B.S. in Electronic Engineering, Seoul National University
1972 Ph.D. in Electronic Engineering, Stony Brook University
1997 Honorary doctor of humanities, Stony Brook University
1999 Honorary doctor of business administration, Wonkwang University in Korea
2009 Honorary doctor, National University of Asuncion, Paraguay

[Career]
1981-1987 Vice Minister of Communications
1987-1988 Minister of Communications
1993-1994 Minister of Transportation
1994-1995 Minister of Construction and Transportation
2003-2004 Minister of Science and Technology
2004-2006 Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and Technology
1989-1993 Chairman of the Taejon International EXPO Organization Committee
1993-1993 Commissioner of KBO (Korean Baseball Organization)
1996-2001 President/Chairman of the Dong-A Daily Newspaper
2002-2003 President of Ajou University
2006-2010 President of Konkuk University
2010-2013 Chairman of KAIST
2016 Honorary President of the State University of New York in Korea
2000-2004 Chairman of the National Cancer Center
2010-2012 Chairman of Woongjin Energy and Polysilicon
2013-2014 Chairman of DB Hitek

Books

Videos