ANOC and SNU Dream Together Master Program sign MoU

ANOC President Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah and Dr. Joon-ho Kang, director and professor of the Dream Together Master Program, shake hands after signing the MoU.

Last January 19 in Lausanne, the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Seoul National University’s Division of Global Sport Management Talent Development for greater academic cooperation in the development of sport administrators.

As part of the MoU, the ANOC will recommend prospective candidates from National Olympic Committees to participate in Seoul National University’s Dream Together Master Program and will assist students from the program in career and internship opportunities.

The Dream Together Master Program provides world-class education for the next generation of sport administrators through internationally recognized professors, who teach courses on a variety of topics including sport humanities, organization and governance, marketing, the Olympic Movement and international sport development.

The Dream Together Master Program is currently receiving international student applications for the Class of 2017 until March 12.

The Dream Together Master Program was launched in 2013 with the support of the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism and the Next Generation Sports Talent Foundation with the aim to educate and support next generation sport administrators in the world.

The Class of 2015, which consists of 23 students from 18 countries, will graduate this August.

After signing the MoU, ANOC President Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah said: “We are very happy to have entered into this partnership with the Seoul National University. We are always looking at ways of improving our offering to the NOCs and creating a route for them to enter into further education and learn from international best practice is an excellent way of doing that.”

He added: “Many smaller NOCs will not have access to the same level of international expertise as their colleagues from larger NOCs. The Dream Together Master Programme is specifically designed to target sports administrators at NOCs and National Federation of countries where sport is less well developed. Working with Seoul National University will allow ANOC to offer greater opportunities to our NOCs and equip them with the tools they need to advance the sports movement within their countries and beyond.”

Dr. Joon-ho Kang, director and professor of the Dream Together Master Program, shared his enthusiasm as the MOU would allow the program to connect with a greater range of potential candidates around the world.

“We are very excited about the opportunities that our collaborative partnership with ANOC will bring. ANOC represents 204 NOCs worldwide and so is ideally placed to help us connect with nations around the world. We want to work with as many NOCs as possible to ensure that they are maximising sport’s full potential to change society for the better.”