Asia Small| Essentials of Econ 103S | November 24, 2015

The South Korean Education System and

EconomyTOO MUCH EDUCATION, VERY LITTLE JOBS

IntroductionThe education of the youth is highly important to the development of a country

politically, socially, and definitely economically. In this report we would like to focus

mainly on the economic impact. As college students ourselves, we wanted to look into

the effects of education on an economy. If thought about simply, there is a very basic

equation that relates education and great economic development. Students attend school,

thus receive higher education, which leads to high paying jobs; these jobs lead to great

discoveries and work production, which then leads to revenue and low unemployment,

making the economy grow and prosper in the end. There is definitely more details and

conflicts that go along with this scenario but simply put education is the key to a

successful economy. After doing research we realized that South Korea is a country that

has definitely recognized this scenario and has made education the center of South

Korean culture. Their huge investment in education has resulted in an astonishing

economic growth rate since the end of the war with North Korea over 60 years ago. South

Korean education has been rivaled by other countries for years. Producing the most high

school graduates than any other country in the world. Their rigorous education system is

one to be rivaled and is definitely not similar to the educational systems seen in the West.

The Structure of South Korean EducationFor the public school system and some private schools, the basic amount of time

in school are six years of primary education, three years of middle school education, and

three years of high school education. The nine essential principal subjects consist of:

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moral education, Korean language, social studies, mathematics, science, physical

education, music, fine arts, and practical arts. There is also year round preparation for the

final CSAT (College Scholastic Ability Test) which basically determines the rank of

school you will attend or if you will get into college at all. This is the basic equivalent of

the SAT OR ACT in the U.S. For high schools, there are academic ones and some

vocational schools. 85% of high school students are enrolled in academic high schools

while 15% are at vocational and alternative schools. There are academic high schools that

even have main focuses such as foreign language schools or science schools. Now the

school year consist of two semesters from March to July and from September to

February. Students in every grade level are required to attend a minimum of 220 days of

schools (which is a very high minimum compared to the total 180 days students attend

school in the U.S.). An Average Korean High Schooler begins school around 8:00 am

and finishes classes around 4:40 pm; this does not include clean up after their last class.

After this a high majority of students attend Hagwons or study on their own after their

normal school day. Hagwons are private crammers that mainly focus on preparation for

the CSAT but help with other topics as well. Hagwons go on all the way till Midnight,

which means many students do not reach home until 1:00 or 2:00 a.m. The amount of

time spent studying and preparing for the future is basically their entire day every day.

The South Korean education system is monstrous compared to its global counterparts but

highly successful considering their 97% high school graduation rate.

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Main ArgumentThe South Korean education system is structured and strenuous in every way.

Because of this continuous rigor, South Korea produces immense amounts of well-

educated youth ready to join the work force. But this has actually become a problem

recently. There are so many high school students attending college but the jobs that

require college education are now in short supply; Korea is in need of more vocationally

educated students. There are too many educated graduates and not enough jobs to

occupy this growing number.

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The StatisticsThe Labor Force has increased every year on an average of 1.5% and is predicted

to grow over the next decade if action is not taken. Statically this can seem very small but

it is the personal conflict that will truly change the economy of South Korea, the citizens

see the change but the statistics have just simply not caught up yet.

2010 2011 2012 2013 201424,000,00024,500,00025,000,00025,500,00026,000,00026,500,000

The Labor Force of South Korea

Column1

The amount of educated Koreans in the work force is at an all-time high. 60 % of

Koreans ages 25 to 34 have higher education which is immensely high especially

compared to the 40 % of U.S. ages 25 to 34 that have higher education. This education

has not come cheap either. It is said that the average family in Seoul spends about 16% of

their income on Hagwons or private schooling in order to get their child into these highly

ranked universities. Hagwons continue to thrive even with the government limitations on

how much Hagwons can charge and on how long they can stay open.

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The Argument brought to LightIt has been said in the past year that 40 % of college graduates last year could not

find work at an internship or entry-level position, despite the well-doing of the economy.

The government is aware of this growing issue and has begun to come up with more

solutions to this soon to be problem. President Lee Myung has made many statements

pertaining to this economically strenuous issue on education:

“Professional footballers just need to be good at kicking balls … They do not need to

graduate from Seoul National University”

“Reckless entrance into college [is] bringing huge losses to households and the country

alike”

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Students and their parents are beginning to believe their hard work was all for nothing.

These prime Universities that were put on a pedestal since birth are leading to

unemployment and/or jobs that are below their qualifications.

SolutionsPresident Lee has suggested that employers hire more high school graduates. He

believes that their high school qualifications are more than enough to qualify them for the

many jobs in South Korea. The government has also put more funding into vocational

schools. Instead of sending students to spend hours in lectures the government is

encouraging students to follow a vocational track that will train them to do a certain form

of labor to decrease the amount of students getting an education only to face a jobless

future. Another solution that we personally came up with is for employers to create more

departments that allow working abroad. Still working for a Korean company while

bringing in foreign currency is a great solution to this problem. Now the students with

these competitive degrees can utilize language and communication skills abroad to bring

more revenue for the South Korean Economy.

If Action Is Not Taken?If this issue is not addressed, we could see a rise in the unemployment rate by 2%

in the next decade because college graduates cannot continue to get degrees only to

become unemployed in the end. We could also see a decrease in the South Korean

population due to citizens leaving the country to find work. If the citizens cannot find

work in their own country then they will have to travel somewhere else to find work,

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which can also cause problems for other countries who may receive a possible wave of

migration. The population of South Korea is already falling due to the lack of births so

any negative change to population will be very detrimental. And for those who stay, a

loss of respect for the government might occur. Government involvement in education is

vital and expected in South Korea. Their influence and regulations keep schools running

and if they cannot provide solutions for the lack of jobs for students with Higher

education, people may begin to distrust the government they so long supported.

Final StatementI do not want to use this presentation to make this a “Code Red” issue in a sense.

South Korea’s economy is not in severe trouble but it is early action that truly stops big

issues from happening (for example China). If action is taken from now to produce

higher entry- level jobs then the state of the economy in the long run will continue to

prosper and the light shined upon South Korean education will continue to flourish.

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2015.

"In South Korea, Too Many College Grads, Too Few Jobs." Washington Post. The

Washington Post, 24 Oct. 2011. Web. 27 Nov. 2015.

Lynch, David. "USA Could Learn from Korean Schools." ABC News. ABC News

Network. Web. 28 Nov. 2015.

"South Korea: Economy." GlobalEDGE: Your Source for Global Business Knowledge.

Michigan State University, 2015. Web. 28 Nov. 2015.

Pham, Peter. "South Korea: The Seoul Of The World's Economy." Forbes. Forbes

Magazine, 9 Sept. 2015. Web. 30 Nov. 2015.

Chakrabarti, Reeta. "South Korea's Schools: Long Days, High Results - BBC News."

BBC News. BBC News, 23 Dec. 2013. Web.

Diem, Richard, Tedd Levy, and Ronald VanSickle. "South Korean Education." Asia

Society. Asia Society, 2015. Web.

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