Survey: 76% of South Korean students who delayed graduation cited job insecurity
In short
A 15-year panel survey by the National Youth Policy Institute (한국청소년정책연구원) found that 7.4% of young people who entered university had deferred graduation, and 76.0% of them did so because of employment insecurity. Respondents earned an average of 2,543,300 won a month in their first jobs, working 40.16 hours a week.
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The National Youth Policy Institute (한국청소년정책연구원) said on 22 October that 7.4% of young people who entered university had deferred graduation, and that 76.0% of them did so because of employment insecurity. Yonhap reported that the deferrers said they needed to prepare for jobs or feared they would not find work even after graduating. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
The findings come from a 15-year follow-up survey of the transition to adulthood. It tracked 2,351 people who were first-year middle school students in 2010, up to last year, and 1,139 completed it. Of those, 88.8% (1,011) entered university and 77.1% (878) graduated. The 7.4% who deferred graduation amounts to 75 people. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
The share of respondents who did not enter university was higher among men (15.4%) than women (6.7%), and higher outside the capital region (14.2%) than inside it (7.6%). Among those who attended university, 53.4% (540) took a leave of absence. Military service was the most common reason at 55.9%, followed by preparing for qualification exams (11.7%), preparing for public-sector jobs (11.3%), and earning tuition and living costs (7.2%). Yonhap and Korea Economic Daily also listed internships and other field work experience (5.6%), language study abroad (3.5%), preparing for private-sector jobs (2.6%) and family reasons such as caring for a sick relative (1.1%). [ 1 , 2 ]
Asked what they most wanted in a job, respondents named a high-paying company (21.5%), a job that suits their aptitude (21.1%), stable employment (19.9%) and a good workplace atmosphere (16.9%). Men put more weight on pay and prospects for advancement, and women on job fit and welfare benefits. Young people in the capital region put pay first, while those elsewhere put stability and welfare first. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
On working conditions, young people in their first jobs worked an average of 40.16 hours a week and earned an average of 2,543,300 won a month. Compared with four-year university graduates, those who did not enter university worked 1.66 hours more per week on average but earned 177,000 won less a month. Of non-entrants, 53.1% had changed jobs four or more times, and 22.5% of young people not yet employed said they had no job experience at all. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
The institute's researchers said that "those who did not go to university face an unstable labour-market transition based on frequent job changes and short-term work." They added that among unemployed young people, a "delayed-entry type" and a "repeated short-term-work type" are diverging. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
Why it matters
The findings, released on 22 October, link job-market worries to decisions about when to finish university. The researchers say young people who did not go to university face frequent job changes and short-term work.
Key facts
- The National Youth Policy Institute (한국청소년정책연구원) tracked 2,351 people who were first-year middle school students in 2010 for 15 years until last year; 1,139 completed the survey. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- Of the respondents, 88.8% (1,011) entered university and 77.1% (878) graduated. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- 75 university entrants (7.4%) said they had deferred graduation, and 76.0% of them cited employment insecurity. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- 53.4% (540) of those who attended university took a leave of absence; military service was the most common reason at 55.9%. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- In their first jobs, young people worked an average of 40.16 hours a week and earned an average of 2,543,300 won a month. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- Non-entrants worked 1.66 hours more per week than four-year university graduates but earned 177,000 won less a month on average. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- 53.1% of those who did not go to university had changed jobs four or more times, and 22.5% of young people not yet employed had no job experience. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- The institute reported that 7.4% of university entrants had deferred graduation and that 76.0% of them cited employment insecurity. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- The most preferred job traits were a high-paying company (21.5%), a job that suits one's aptitude (21.1%) and stable employment (19.9%). [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- Men put more weight on pay and prospects for advancement, and women on job fit and welfare benefits. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- The researchers said non-entrants experience an unstable labour-market transition based on frequent job changes and short-term work. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
Still unclear
- How far the results apply to all young people in South Korea. The documents say 1,139 of the 2,351 people originally surveyed responded, and they do not say how the sample was chosen.
- Further detail on what Korea Economic Daily's second article reports about young people's top job-choice criterion. Only the headline of that article was available; it gives a first-month salary of 2.54 million won but no text.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- Yonhap published the survey results. [ 1 ]
- Korea Economic Daily published its report on the graduation deferral figures and first salary. [ 2 ]
- Korea Economic Daily published a second piece on young people's job-choice priorities and first pay. [ 3 ]
- Dong-A Ilbo published its report on the survey. [ 4 ]