UCF-INHA Dual Doctoral Degree Program
PI Mohaisen has led ambitious global research initiatives at the University of Central Florida (UCF) that emphasize international collaboration and academic excellence. As part of expanding global research lab effort, sponsored by the National Research Foundation of South Korea, he has helped champion programs like the UCF–INHA Dual Degree Program, which demonstrate UCF’s commitment to fostering cross-border research, education, and innovation. These initiatives strengthen partnerships with leading international institutions and provide students with unparalleled opportunities to engage in collaborative, high-impact research across disciplines and continents.The UCF–INHA Dual Degree Program was established through a formal academic partnership between UCF in the United States and Inha University in South Korea to promote international academic collaboration and expand research opportunities for students. Its primary goal is to create a structured pathway for Inha students to pursue doctoral studies at UCF, enabling them to experience a globally integrated research environment. By combining the academic strengths of both institutions, the program aims to cultivate globally minded scholars who can contribute to cutting-edge research and innovation across disciplines. It embodies a commitment to academic excellence, cultural exchange, and the free pursuit of knowledge, while ensuring that students gain exposure to diverse educational systems, research methodologies, and professional networks.
Under this agreement, qualified students from Inha may pursue a Doctor of Philosophy degree jointly awarded by both UCF and Inha University. Students complete coursework and dissertation research under joint supervision, meeting the academic and accreditation standards of both institutions. Up to 48 graduate credits from Inha can be transferred toward the UCF degree, and a dissertation defense satisfies the requirements of both universities. The program provides research support, access to UCF’s facilities and distance-learning resources, and a globally integrated educational experience preparing graduates for leadership in academia, industry, and research.
Outcomes
The program, over its five-year span, has successfully graduated three doctoral students (all co-advised with DaeHun Nyang):
- Rhoghon Jang (PhD, CS) — Tenure-track Assistant Professor @ Wayne State University (USA)
- Jinchun Choi (PhD, CS) — Senior Research Scientist at ETRI (South Korea)
- Mohamed Abuhamad (PhD, CS) — Assistant Professor at Loyola University Chicago (USA)
Global Research Lab (GRL) Program
The Global Research Lab (GRL) Program, sponsored by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) from 2016 to 2022 with a total budget of approximately $3 million USD, was established to foster high-impact international collaboration between leading researchers in Korea and the United States. Through this program, a principal investigator (PI) from Korea and a PI from the U.S. jointly led a multi-institutional research initiative addressing grand challenges in big data security. The collaboration focused on critical areas such as threat intelligence, distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack detection and mitigation, intelligent network defense systems, and adversarial machine learning. Beyond research, the program was deeply committed to educational and societal impact—supporting ten doctoral students to graduation, producing over fifty peer-reviewed publications (e.g., at CCS, NDSS, S&P, ICDCS, INFOCOM, DSN, TMC, TNET, TDSC, etc.), and organizing numerous joint workshops and academic exchanges hosted at both Inha University and the UCF. The GRL initiative stands as a model of sustained global partnership, advancing cybersecurity research while cultivating the next generation of scholars through a shared vision of innovation, excellence, and international collaboration.
