“I NEVER thought that the year 2020 would be this hard for me. I wonder when my time as a chi-jun-saeng* will end.” For Park Hye-min, who graduated from university last year, the search for employment has been anything but easy; new openings are dwindling, and major companies have pushed back their recruiting schedules as COVID-19 continues to repress global economic activity. Park is one of many new graduates struggling to adapt to a job market mired in what the Korean Herald has dubbed an “unprecedented unemployment crisis**”. Since April, the youth unemployment rate has increased to 10.7%, the highest number on record since June 1999***. What’s more, it is uncertain when COVID-19 will be over leaving new and recent graduates in the lurch****.

Test date TBD

   COVID-19 has brought recruitment in South Korea to a screeching halt. Civil servant exams, which are usually held in March, were postponed for two to three months. For instance, the Busan Transportation Corporation, pushed back its recruitment test which was originally scheduled in February, to July. These initial delays were followed by the nation’s second major outbreak at a rally on Independence Day leading to a further suspension of the National Competency Standards, an exam that students applying for state-owned companies are required to take. National employment statistics provide a stark reflection of the consequences of these measures. This year, the number of newly employed workers at state-owned companies plummeted to 708, down from 11,283 just last year*****. Similar patterns have emerged in the private sector with Job Korea reporting that only 29.3% of the 147 conglomerates currently in Korea plan to open job recruitment in the latter half of the year. Even then, those companies which replied in the affirmative have not announced any concrete timelines for posting recruitment notices. Also, the work-related certification exams have been postponed as well. In this year alone, TOEIC was suspended four times and other exams such as HSK and the Professional Engineer Exam have been cancelled.

Difficulties of chi-jun-saeng

   Students who have to get a certificate within a certain period of time either to prepare for job recruitment or to enroll in graduate school have been forced to adjust their academic and career plans. Many are worried that if the situation continues, it will get harder for them to achieve their individual goals******. Meanwhile, the competition for coveted corporate positions continues to increase in response to the overall decrease in available work, even as those jobs present new obstacles in the form of online exams and interviews. Applicants who took the Global Samsung Aptitude Test admitted that it was difficult to look at the problems through small laptop screens and others complained that they were unable to write solutions for the problems as there were not given paper*******. The present conditions have driven some students to take an “uncomfortable break” from job hunting to continue studying until the situation improves. But further studying presents its own challenges with many public libraries temporarily closed and social distancing guidelines making it difficult to find appropriate study spaces.

   All of these complications have taken a toll on upcoming and recent graduates. A joint survey by Job Korea and Albamon revealed that out of 5,294 students preparing for employment, 38.9% felt they were under extreme stress and were exhibiting symptoms similar to depression********. The feeling of helplessness stemming from these circumstances led to the coining of “Corona blue” as a term to capture the depression that people are suffering through during the pandemic. But with a solution to these problems still seeming far away, this sentiment has begun morphing into “Corona red,” as people have begun expressing their anger and dissatisfaction with the present situation.

New fundamental competencies

   COVID-19 has created a “new normal” both in terms of available opportunities and also in the qualifications an employer is searching for. Students need to be prepared for these changes in order to be successful in their job search. The biggest change is “untact,” a concept aimed at reducing direct contact between people in their day-to-day environment. As the number of people working from home increases, qualities such as “remote leadership” are growing in importance. There is also an additional emphasis being placed on so-called “soft skills” such as interpersonal relations and effective communication. An untact environment makes these traits more valuable than ever as evidenced by the growth in industries that deal with online services or that is done without contact like the online game industry and online platform industry. There is currently also greater emphasis on digital competency and technology savviness across all industries. Students who are looking for job opportunities should know how to make use of online platforms and tech tools to find information and communicate. In particular, 14 personnel of conglomerates, including SK and LG, mentioned computer coding as a required competency *********.

Where to get help?

   Navigating all of these setbacks and new requirements can undoubtedly be daunting. However, there are numerous programs in place to aid students seeking job opportunities and students can make the most out of programs that are open to them. Students can get a lot of help from their university’s career center in preparing for employment; most provide a variety of programs ranging from lectures on writing a good resume to a meeting with professional consultants. Online job fairs held by universities including Korea University and Yonsei University have been offering students free online consultations and job briefings where they can get useful tips and information. At Yonsei University, the Career Development Center provides a Free Employment Support Program for students who are hoping to enter state-owned companies and conglomerates where they can learn how to write cover letters and how to prepare for the civil servant exams. Also, considering the pandemic situation, the center provides Untact Career Talk allowing students to freely contact with managers from diverse companies like Heineken and SSG in online as well as VR mock interviews with conglomerates and state-owned companies. The government and even some private companies have also been providing various forms of assistance. The Ministry of Employment and Labor is currently conducting programs ranging from online job briefings to interview clinics. There is an app called “I AM GROUND” created by private company Saramin with which students can take mock interviews conducted by an AI. Once the interview is done, the AI uses big data to instantly analyze the interviewees responses based on eight standards such as speed, eye contact, and pronunciation. It then provides individuals with personalized solutions they could apply.

*                *                 *

  In the midst of a pandemic, “dreams are also practicing social distancing**********.” Students who have prepared rigorously to get job opportunities are suddenly finding it much harder to achieve their personal career goals. The nature of work itself is changing in response to COVID-19 as companies have shifted much of their everyday work schedules online. This is unquestionably a difficult time for new and upcoming graduates seeking employment, but students should keep in mind that that there will be an end to this pandemic and the job market situation will get better.

*A person who is preparing to get a job

**Korea Herald

***the Statistics Korea

****National Geographic

*****All Public Information In-One

******KBS

*******Edaily

******** Survey done by Job Korea and Albamon

*********Hankyung

**********KBS