UT Dallas graduate student Jeffrey Bryan recently earned an international award for a case study in transportation management.

The paper analyzed the transportation system of the Seoul Metropolitan Government in South Korea and offered suggestions and recommendations for improvement.

Jeffrey Bryan

Jeffrey Bryan, who is working on a master’s degree in public affairs, traveled to Seoul recently as part of a program designed to expose graduate students to comparative public administration.

Some of the suggestions included one-way streets in the downtown area, the addition of bike lanes, incentives and training for bus drivers, increased bike parking at subway stations, red light enforcement cameras and the addition of parking enforcement officers.

“The city of Seoul continues to experience a population boom, and the transportation system is severely strained,” Bryan said. “My suggestions were intended to offer thoughtful ways to maximize the current system using ideas and policies found in urban transportation systems throughout the U.S.”

Bryan, who is working on a master’s degree in public affairs, traveled to Seoul recently as part of a program designed to expose graduate students to comparative public administration.

Participants discussed a variety of policy issues with Seoul’s public officials who manage various policy operations. Additionally, students participated in field trips to experience the urban and traditional culture of Seoul.

In preparation for the seminar, Bryan and his colleagues took a summer course taught by Dr. Doug Goodman, associate professor in the School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences.

“This program familiarizes the next generation of scholars and public managers with public administration of the city of Seoul.  The students gather information and receive hands-on experiences through lectures, field trips, and cultural experiences.”

Dr. Doug Goodman,
associate professor in the School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences

“I wasn’t considering studying abroad until I met with Dr. Goodman,” Bryan said. “After speaking with him about the class and the program, I was interested.”

Bryan, who currently works in local government with the Garland Police Department, said he thought the experience could give him new ideas to take to his job and broaden his educational endeavors.

He and other students wrote  policy research papers on aspects of policy implementation for city governance by the Seoul Metropolitan Government.

“This program familiarizes the next generation of scholars and public managers with public administration of the city of Seoul,” Goodman said. “The students gather information and receive hands-on experiences through lectures, field trips, and cultural experiences.”

The 2012 Seoul Field Trip was part of a Case Study: Policy Management program that is funded by the city of Seoul. Goodman’s course marked the third year that public affairs graduate students attended the Case Study seminars in Seoul.