Speaker(s) : Co-hosted by Indiana University's Institute for Korean Studies, George Washington University's Institute for Korean Studies, and the Korea Economic Institute of America
Language : English
time zone will be applied.
Report this post?
Original time zone : 2025-12-01 23:59 Indianapolis (America/Indiana/Indianapolis)
The Institute for Korean Studies is partnering with the George Washington University Institute for Korean Studies and the Korea Economic Institute of America (KEI) to host the Midwest Korean Policy Op-Ed Contest. The contest is open to any policies related to South Korea. Some examples include but are not limited to:
AI Standards
Defense industry cooperation
Non-traditional security
Immigration policy
Trade policy
Low fertility rate
Constitutional reform
Challenges to existing political systems
Non-traditional security
Tensions around the freedoms (of speech, protest, expression)
Eligibility
Any undergraduate students currently enrolled in universities in the Midwest
Requirements
Op-eds must be between 800-1200 words
Submissions must be in either PDF or Word Doc format
Use hyperlinks for all sources. If quoting from a secondary source that is not available online, hyperlink to the book on the publisher's website or the Amazon page for the book. (necessary for publication on KEI blog).
Criteria
Analysis of a specific policy issue and its significance
Cash prizes: $500 for 1st place, $300 for 2nd place, $100 for 3rd
Winning piece will also be published in Korea Economic Institute of America (KEI)’s flagship blog “The Peninsula.”
Deadline: December 1, 2025
If you have any questions about the project, please contact iks@iu.edu
2024 Contest winners
The winning piece for this year's competition is "Addressing South Korea’s Provider-to-Patient Ratio Crisis" by Destiny Kanning from the Michigan State University. You can read her winning piece on the KEI Blog here.
1st place: Destiny Kanning (Michigan State University). "Addressing South Korea’s Provider-to-Patient Ratio Crisis."
2nd place: Michael Ridyard (University of Illnois Urbana-Champagne). “Addressing Elderly Poverty in an Aging Society.”
3rd place: Eva Collins (Indiana University - Bloomington). "Deepfakes, Nth Rooms, and Spycams: Cybercrime is the New Frontier for South Korea’s Gender War."
