External funding resources for KACA members: The Korean Studies Grand Program supported by the AKS

You can get research support when you do research related to Korea. Here are some experiences of former and current US-KOREA next-generation scholars.

Kyong Yoon, Ph.D.
2021 Korean Studies Grant Recipient 
Professor 
Department of English and Cultural Studies
University of British Columbia Okanagan

I was encouraged when I received the Korean Studies Grant especially in the midst of the prolonged pandemic in early 2021. I learned about this grant program via the Academy of Korean Studies website. The grant was a great opportunity and motivation for me as a media researcher and Asianist whose research specifically focuses on Korean media and popular culture. Pursuing my career across Asian studies and media studies, I have been keen to explore research opportunities offered by Asian Studies organizations, such as the Academy of Korean Studies, the Korea Foundation, and the Association for Asian Studies. In fact, I began my overseas teaching career as a Korea Foundation visiting professor at McGill University and conducted field studies in South Korea as an Academy of Korean Studies Fellow. I think that the Korean Studies Grant Program provides great support for any Korea-related projects without disciplinary restriction. This program is particularly helpful for intensive, small-scale research projects as its funding period is one year and the research outcomes are required to be published within two years after completion. My project, Digital Transformation of Korean Society in the COVID-19 Period, examines how digital technology-driven biopolitics reinforces the dilemma between public safety and people’s rights to information. The Korean Studies grant has allowed me to hire a research assistant and conduct fieldwork in Seoul.

Bohyeong Kim, Ph.D.
2022 Korean Studies Grant Recipient 
Assistant Professor 
Department of Communication Studies
Vanderbilt University

I learned about the Academy of Korean Studies programs from several friends across different disciplines. The AKS offers an array of funding opportunities and publishes CFPs on its website. I find it convenient to receive updates by subscribing to the “Korean Studies Internet Discussion List” (Korean studies Info Page) although you will receive many other Korean Studies-related news. My work is focused on South Korea and the AKS welcomes academic research on Korea-related subjects. I also find the AKS very supportive of humanistic social sciences which I see my work aligns with. My funded project is a qualitative analysis of Kakao TV’s original program as an instance of the financial media content produced by a Big Tech company. Having worked on cultural economy and South Korea’s financial culture, I wanted to examine the program in relation to the post-pandemic mass investment boom and the role played by Korea’s Big Tech. The application process is relatively simple, but I suggest you start as early as possible because there might be some unexpected mishaps. For me, it did not take long to write the grant proposal, but I was not familiar with my own institution’s policy about having the budget reviewed by an external grant manager before submission. The application form also requires the Department Chair’s signature, which complicates the submission process if you do not work on campus (they do not accept an electronic signature). Overall, the AKS is dedicated to supporting Korean Studies (broadly defined) overseas and I highly encourage anyone doing Korea-related research to apply.