Linkage between Education and Training, Qualifications and Work The KSS is a document that systematically describes knowledge, skills and attitude required for jobs at the national level. The KSS enables efficient human resources development, as it is broadly applied to education programs, and training and testing standards. In some advanced countries, unified standards for job competencies are prepared at the national level with leaders from each industry participating in the process in order to establish a vocational education and training system that takes into account of industry demands and establishes linkage between qualifications.
KRIVET is currently developing the KSS according to a phased development plan. If implemented, the KSS will become the first of its kind in Korea and it will have far reaching policy implications. In order to increase the desired impact of the KSS, it should be based on industry demands, developed by industry leaders, and should reach a social consensus on the utilization of the appropriate standards.
Establishment of the Korean Qualification Framework
The Korean Qualification Framework (KQF) manages the level of qualifications, through which the quality of the KSS’s development units is managed. Hence, qualification levels must be properly organized before introducing the KSS. The level of qualification is indicative of the differences existing between individuals in their competencies as assessed by the qualifications, and such differences are translated as differences in roles and responsibilities in the world of work. The level of qualifications should be organized in accordance with the skill level required to perform specific duties and responsibility at workplace.
In addition, the differences in duties and responsibilities between the qualification level system and the labor market should be examined.
Determining the number of levels is required in each qualification is particularly important. This is because the level of qualification should be linked not only with the skill level but also with the workforce structure.
Improving the organization of qualification levels makes it possible to establish the standard of manpower needed and the degree of required knowledge and skills, as well as the standards for testing services. It will also solve the problem of quantity mismatch and skill mismatch in the supply of manpower.
Promotion of Industry Participation
If qualifications are to promote the development of vocational competencies, and to lead a competency-based society, industry leaders (consisting of for example, a group of business owners or an association formed by businesses) should be encouraged to take an active part in the management and operation of the qualification system.
Companies are wasting a large amount of money providing additional education to new employees, who have already completed relevant education at school. Industry should more explicitly express what they look for in graduates so that schools can provide more practical education.
Currently, the Sectoral Human Resource Development Council, which is composed of industry leaders related with human resources development, has the potential to serve as the most powerful channel encouraging participation of industry. It should therefore be provided with human resources, financial and technological support, enabling it to act as an important decision making body in the management and operation of the qualifications system.
Establishment of a Social Partnership
If qualifications are to be utilized in a more effective way, workers’
representatives should actively participate in the management and operation of the qualification system. The qualification system should be managed and operated with the aim of developing workers’ competencies and improving their skill levels, which may be achieved with the participation of trade unions.
Development of workers’ vocational competencies can take place in an organized and systematic way if trade union is able to exercise considerable power. Also, the skill level of workers can influence the wage system if the trade union effectively exercises its power. In countries with a high degree of utilization of qualifications such as Germany and Australia, trade unions play a major role in the management and operation of qualification systems.
Establishment of Qualification Information System
A database (DB) of people who acquired qualifications is an important form of infrastructure for the performance analysis of qualifications. In other words, the degree of utilization of a certain qualification in a particular industry field can be measured by analyzing the database of qualification acquirers.
Qualifications with low utilization should be improved to become more
practical. Given the importance of the qualification acquirers DB, the existing DB should be managed more systematically.
The Human Resources Development Service of Korea provides qualification information (mainly on testing) through the Q-net. However, there is growing demand for more qualitative information, including wage levels and working conditions of qualification acquirers. Thus, efforts should be made to create and provide such detailed information.
In addition, research organizations like KRIVET should set up a new information network such as a National Qualification System (tentatively named NQS-net), broadly covering the information on vocational qualifications, departments responsible for certain qualification fields, graduates, curriculums and the KSS.
Diversification of Management and Operation Entities
The current number of national technical qualification items is 575 and the operation of similar qualification testing by private institutions is prohibited.
However, the government should manage as small a number of essential testing as possible and commission the testing for the rest of the qualifications to the private sector.
So far, the Human Resources Development Service of Korea has been the only organization providing testing services for national technical qualifications commissioned by the Ministry of Labor. However, testing services should be commissioned to a wider range of private institutions. In other words, private organizations or institutions with expertise and public responsibility for representing specific fields of qualifications should be encouraged to participate in testing services so that qualifications may respond to external changes more flexibly. To achieve this, reasonable standards for commissioning, regular assessment of commissioned organizations and technical support for commissioned organizations should be put into place.
6
T
CHAPTER
Career Guidance: Taking a Lifelong Career Development Perspective
Eon Lim Mi-Sug Jin