In 1982, he received his Ph.D. degree in public administration from New York University in the United States.

[citation needed] From 1983 to 2010, he was a professor at school of public policy, Seoul National University.

From 2000 to 2004, he was dean of the graduate school of public administration at the same university.

[3] From 2014 to 2015, he was the Koret Fellow at Stanford University Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center.

[5] In 2005, Oh was awarded the Order of Service Merit for the development of information technology in South Korea.