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The Korea Times

By Lee Gyu-lee
Members of K-pop group BTS have been accused of using a graduate programme to delay their mandatory military duty.
Speculation started swirling when their agency, Big Hit Entertainment, announced on Tuesday that BTS members Jinmin and V would start their MBA programme in advertising and media management at Hanyang Cyber University in September.
The agency said fellow member Jin had also been taking classes for the same programme since 2017 – and that RM, Suga, and J-Hope joined him in March last year.

Jungkook, the youngest member, who is working on his undergraduate degree at the Global Cyber University, is the only member who is not attending the MBA programme. Some observers have asked if the members are trying to buy time and delay their military service as much as possible.
“Isn’t it obvious that they are trying to delay the military duty?” a user wrote on an online community. “Graduate school is a common excuse male K-pop artists use,” another user wrote.
South Korean government refuses to give BTS exemption from military service
By law, all eligible South Korean men aged above 18 are liable for military duty and are required to enlist. However, they can delay enlistment until they turn 28, under specific circumstances, including studying for a master’s degree.
Jin, 27, who has been enrolled since 2017, is qualified to postpone the duty until he graduates or turns 28. The other members now can do the same. But the agency told local media that “the members enrolled on their own will to pursue higher education”.
Military duty has long been a troubling issue for the group and its fans, as it would mean the group would have to halt its act for at least 18 months during the service. Discussion of the group’s military exemption started when a fan club launched a petition on the presidential website in 2018.
Exempting pop culture artists from military service, even though they have contributed to the country’s reputation, is not in line with the government’s stance to uphold justice and fairness
South Korea’s Defence Ministry
The call for exemption was brought to the attention of lawmakers several times, leading the defence, military, and cultural ministries to form a task force to review the revision of the exemption qualification.
However, the Defence Ministry concluded that K-pop artists, including BTS, would not be given the privilege.
“Exempting pop culture artists from military service, even though they have contributed to the country’s reputation, is not in line with the government’s stance to uphold justice and fairness,” the ministry said during a press briefing last November.
Read the full story at the Korea Times


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Jinmin and V start MBA programme in advertising and media management in September, while Jin, RM, Suga, and J-Hope are already taking the course
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The boys of K-pop supergroup BTS have been accused of joining a graduate university programme to put off doing their compulsory military service in South Korea.


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BTS members sign up for MBA course to delay military service, critics say

Jinmin and V start MBA programme in advertising and media management in September, while Jin, RM, Suga, and J-Hope are already taking the course Critics of the K-pop boy band say they are using education as an excuse to avoid military service, which all adult males in South Korea must complete

Jinmin and V start MBA programme in advertising and media management in September, while Jin, RM, Suga, and J-Hope are already taking the course

Critics of the K-pop boy band say they are using education as an excuse to avoid military service, which all adult males in South Korea must complete