Prof Kim graduated with BEng in Aeronautical Engineering from Seoul National University; MEngSci in Materials Engineering from Monash University, Australia; and PhD in composite materials from Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Sydney. He was an ARC Postdoctoral Research Fellow (1992), then started his faculty career as Lecturer (Assistant Professor) at Australian National University (1993-1994). Prof. Kim joined the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology (HKUST) in November 1994. He was a Visiting Research Scientist at Research Centre for Advanced Science & Technology (RCAST), University of Tokyo, Japan; and a Tan Chin Tuan Exchange Fellow at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore while on a sabbatical leave in 1998. He is currently a tenured professor and Associate Dean of Engineering, and directs the Finetex-HKUST R & D Center.