Mungyeong Technical High School has been officially designated as a meister school specializing in AI robotics. [Provided by North Gyeongsang Provincial Office of Education]
Mungyeong Technical High School has been officially designated as a meister school specializing in AI robotics. [Provided by North Gyeongsang Provincial Office of Education]

The North Gyeongsang Provincial Office of Education announced Monday that Mungyeong Technical High School has received final designation approval as the 20th industry-demand customized high school — commonly known as a meister school — after passing the Ministry of Education's conditions compliance review.

The school had received conditional designation approval in June, when the Ministry of Education recognized the growth potential of the robotics industry and the need to train specialized personnel in the field.

The provincial education office and the school subsequently analyzed the ministry's supplementary requirements in detail and overhauled the curriculum and school management framework. They drew up concrete implementation plans by area and systematically prepared the foundations needed to operate a meister school — including the curriculum, industry-academia cooperation and educational environment — satisfying all designation conditions in the review.

Mungyeong Technical High School plans to train specialists in robot system integration using physical AI, in line with the growth of the global robotics market, the government's national AI transformation drive and North Gyeongsang Province's robotics industry promotion policy, with pathways leading directly to employment at industrial sites.

To that end, the school has signed MOUs with 65 robotics-related institutions and companies nationwide, including the Korea Institute of Robot and Convergence, the Korea AI Robot Industry Association, Neuromeka, Hanwha Robotics, FRT Robotics and Fusion ENC.

The school has also established a regional-industry-academia cooperation framework under which North Gyeongsang Province, Mungyeong city and the school jointly develop talent, backed by administrative and fiscal support from both local governments.

Targeting an opening on March 1, 2028, the school plans to equip state-of-the-art practice rooms and equipment for physical AI and robot system integration education.

All enrolled students will be provided dormitory accommodation to ensure stable school life, as the student body will be drawn from across the country. An extension to the dormitory's new wing and a remodel of the existing wing are also planned.

Incoming students will be recruited nationally in four classes of 15 students each — two in AI robot development and two in AI robot control — for a total of 60 students, with no gender restrictions.

A total of 28.6 billion won is set to be invested in the meister school conversion and educational environment development: 5 billion won ($3.63 million) from the Ministry of Education, 21.2 billion won from the North Gyeongsang Provincial Office of Education, 1.2 billion won from North Gyeongsang Province and 1.2 billion won from Mungyeong city.

"We will systematically support all aspects of the school's opening preparations — including the curriculum, facilities and industry-academia cooperation — so that Mungyeong Technical High School can successfully open in 2028 and steadily produce field-ready specialists who will lead change in the physical AI and robotics industries," said Im Jong-sik, superintendent of the North Gyeongsang Provincial Office of Education.


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