Joonho Oh

I’m an Assistant Professor at the KDI School of Public Policy and Management in South Korea. My research examines institutional and social contexts that foster the emergence and growth of groundbreaking business ideas, with a special focus on entrepreneurial support organizations. I explore three key topics: the impact of entrepreneurial support organizations on entrepreneurs and surrounding ecosystems, how entrepreneurs leverage support from these organizations, and the evolution of these support models over time.

I completed a Ph.D. in Public Policy at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. I also received a Master’s in Public Policy and a B.S. in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Seoul National University. Before entering academia, I worked for the Ministry of Science & ICT in South Korea, taking charge of multiple R&D and entrepreneurship support programs.

CV

How to pronounce my name?

Most Korean names are composed of three syllables. The first letter is their family name (you have probably heard of Kim, Lee, Park, and Choi, which make up +50% of Koreans’ family names).

My family name, Oh (오, 吳), is relatively rare (less than 1%). My first name, Joonho, consists of two letters: Joon (준, 俊) & ho (호, 昊). Combined together, the two form the meaning of ‘bright summer sky’. My grandma gave this name to me because I was born on one freezing day—with a wish that my life would get warmer 🙂

Koreans read my name [joo-no] or [juno] as ‘h’ becomes silent when the two are combined. You can also think of Alaska’s state capital, Juneau, to pronounce my name.