Soyeon Yi, PhD

Dr. Soyeon Yi is South Korea’s first and only astronaut. She was selected as an astronaut in December 2006, out of 36,000 contestants. On April 8, 2008, she launched into space on-board Soyuz TMA-12. During her 11-day mission at the International Space Station (ISS), Dr. Yi completed an aggressive number of experiments contributing to South Korea’s science textbooks and science channel television lectures.
Dr. Yi received her Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering(2001), Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering(2002), and her Ph.D. in BioSystems(2008) from KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology). In May 2014, Dr. Yi received her MBA with emphasis on Technology and Global Leadership at the Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley.
Dr. Yi has been working with various startups as an engineer and entrepreneur. Currently, Dr. Yi is working with Biotechnology startup, Noul Co., Ltd. as the Managing Director, Business Development and Partnership. Dr. Yi is passionate about nurturing the next generation of leaders in the STEM field.