Four Busan vocational high schools selected for national department restructuring program

The Busan Metropolitan Office of Education is restructuring departments at vocational high schools and moving to cultivate future talent in line with the industrial transformation of the AI era.

The education office announced Wednesday that six departments across four schools — Busan Industrial High School, Busan Visual Arts High School, Busan Marketing High School and Haeundae Tourism High School — have been selected for the Ministry of Education's "2026 Vocational High School Department Restructuring Support Project."

The program helps vocational high schools strengthen their competitiveness by supporting department overhauls to meet shifting industrial needs and upgrading curricula. The Ministry of Education has supported the restructuring of 1,247 departments at 440 schools nationwide since 2016. This year, with a focus on shifting departments toward promising future industries such as AI and robotics, the ministry selected 117 departments at 82 schools nationwide and will provide 81.1 billion won ($54.3 million) in funding.

The Busan education office has pursued department restructuring since 2016, consolidating 71 departments at 29 schools into 62, guided by industry trends and workforce demand. The latest selections are expected to further strengthen Busan's vocational high schools in emerging industries and new technologies.

The Ministry of Education and the Busan education office will provide 5.4 billion won in additional operating costs to the six selected departments, supporting curriculum and instructional material development, teacher capacity-building training, and the expansion of practical equipment. Industry consulting will be provided from before the first class of new students enrolls through to the graduation of the first cohort, and field visits for teachers at the selected departments will also be supported. The selected departments will undergo a one-year preparation period before recruiting new students under their restructured programs beginning in the 2028 academic year.

"We will support Busan's vocational high school students in growing into skilled technical talent equipped with the competencies that future society demands, through tailored department restructuring grounded in industry needs and the region's strategic industries," Superintendent Kim Seok-jun said.