Economic Development and Vocational Education
6. Introduction of the Employment First-Advancement to University Later Policy and Vocational Education (since 2009)
The education policy of the Lee Myung-bak administration, which was launched in 2009, was focused on general universities and secondary vocational education, without any special attention for junior colleges or tertiary vocational education. Some of the changes seen in tertiary-level vocational education were that junior colleges could now be called universities and started producing bachelor’s degree holders through intensive study programs in 2011, and nursing courses were expanded to four-year courses in 2011, allowing students to earn bachelor’s degrees.
The Lee Myung-bak administration launched the High School Diversification 300 Project (hereinafter, the high school diversification project) in order to allow students to choose high schools based on their aptitude and ability. As a result of the high school
100 autonomous private schools were newly established. Those high schools not included in the project were encouraged to develop and run unique education programs according to the High School Differentiation Plan. The government sought to satisfy the various demands of students and their parents by providing differentiated education programs through the diversification of secondary education which included the strengthening of education competitiveness and the widening of the range of school choice through improvements in education productivity.
The Lee Myung-bak administration’s Meister high schools in the field of vocational education and autonomous private high schools in the field of general education are both seen as secondary education policies intended to strengthen educational excellence. In particular, Meister high schools are considered to be the most successful education policy of the Lee Myung-bak administration and still exist under the current administration since its inauguration in 201314). The basic direction of the Lee Myung-bak administration’s secondary vocational education policy can be summarized as the advancement and the specialization of vocational education high schools (specialized high schools and Meister high schools), the expansion of employment after high school, and the promotion of the advancement to university later policy.
Due to the surplus of manpower with university education, which was estimated at a maximum of 42%, young people’s entrance to the labor market was delayed. Since 2009, the contribution of labor input to economic growth dropped below zero. The opportunity cost of young people’s delayed entrance to the labor market was estimated at a maximum of 19 trillion won per annum due to the high university entrance rate.
14) As for autonomous private high schools, they are required to be evaluated by the Office of Education five years after their establishment. However, at the superintendent of education elections in 2014, which was the first year of autonomous private high school evaluation, many of the newly elected superintendents of education had negative perceptions of autonomous private high schools and, therefore, the continued existence of autonomous private high schools has become a pending issue. Liberal superintendents of education are more interested in innovation schools, which were introduced by the Roh Moo-hyun administration.
The extremely high cost of private education for university entrance aggravated the socioeconomic costs. Due to the excessive expansion of tertiary education, the university entrance rate exceeded 80% and the ratio of unemployed people with university education and higher continued to increase, turning youth unemployment into a serious social problem.
As highly qualified workers entered the labor market in large numbers, the whole of society began to recognize the high social cost of the manpower supply-demand mismatch. The ‘employment first-advancement to university later’ policy which involves getting a job after high school graduation and then continuing to advancement to university later by entering university or studying while working instead of entering an institute of higher education immediately after high school graduation was adopted by the Lee Myung-bak administration.
The employment after high school graduation and advancement to university later policy was implemented as a key agenda of the Lee Myung-bak administration’s high school vocational education policy (see <Table 3-15>). This policy aimed to establish a system where high school students could become successful industrial and technical manpower without having to go to university, thus lowering the high university entrance rate, which had been identified as a cause of large youth unemployment, and to solve the problem of labor shortage caused by low birth rates and the aging population.
The employment after high school and advancement to university later promotion policy focused on reorganizing employment-oriented specialized high schools and Meister high schools15) as high schools of vocational education. In order to strengthen
15) The Meister High School system attempted to improve the image of vocational education through the establishment of quality vocational high schools. The government selected a few elite schools (42 Meister high schools in the country, distributed by region) that provided employment first-advancement to university later vocational education. The schools
field-oriented vocational education, the government introduced the basic vocational skills evaluation system, strengthened industry-specific professional and technical education, implemented the school entrance on employment contract system and the employment internship system, and implemented the nationally authorized private qualifications system. In order to strengthen the employment competency of specialized high schools, the employment support function was strengthened and various associated programs were expanded. To expand employment after high school graduation, the culture for hiring high school graduates was expanded and various policies related to military service were implemented. To complement the advancement to university later opportunity and create conducive conditions, special admissions of incumbent workers into universities were promoted, and policies for encouraging universities to adopt the advancement to university later program were implemented. To lay the foundations for the expansion of employment after high school graduaton, various policies for strengthening the industry-academic cooperation system were implemented.
The employment after high school and advancement to university later policy was implemented with the primary goal of solving the problems surrounding high school vocational education policies previously implemented by the Kim Dae-jung administration and the Roh Moo-hyun administration, which did not produce satisfying or tangible results, but in fact caused the university entrance rate to increase continuously. The employment first-advancement to university later policy, as seen in the performance analysis results, produced visible results and suggests that the policy should
with opportunities for stable employment after graduation, to complete military service, when most beneficial for career development, and to enter colleges and the workforce with three years of work experience. As of 2014, Meister high school students numbered 12,944 in 42 schools. A KRIVET survey of the first graduates of Meister high schools (3,341 graduates from 21 schools) who graduated in February 2013 revealed that the employment rate was 90.3%;
78.1% are doing jobs equivalent to those of university graduates; 82.5% are planning further study; 78.4% are planning to study while working; 71.4% are satisfied with their school education; 70.1% are finding their school education useful for work; more than 80% are finding jobs through school recommendations or open competition, proving that enterprise need-based education is useful; 84.3% are satisfied with their relationships with co-workers and 76.8% are satisfied with their employment stability.
be continued and improved so that high school vocational education is perceived as an attractive path.
<Table 3-15> Secondary Vocational Education Policy of the Lee Myung-bak Administration Policy direction Policy content Enforced policy Responsible ministry
Reforming
Promoting the culture of employment after high school
High school diversification 300 project (2008) as one of the 100 top national agenda: the basic plan for development of Meister high schools (July 2008)
Ministry of Education, Science and
Technology
Plan for the advancement of high school vocational education (2010)
National Employment Strategy Council Implementation of Hope Ladder
for Education (2010)
People’s Economic Measures Council Plan for implementing an
education system that allows simultaneous study and employment (2011)
National Competitiveness Reinforcement Council Plan for the implementation of
a society of open employment for symbiotic development (2011)
Collaboration by relevant ministries
At the secondary education level, scholarships were expanded, and the quality of education was improved by strengthening field education, recruiting capable industry instructors, and expanding customized courses. In the employment first-advancement to university later system of global field education, opportunities were given and an employment support system was implemented through collaboration between the Office of Education and schools (see [Figure 3-7]). To promote the employment of high school graduates, a talent recommendation system was introduced for the selection of civil servants, an employment target system was implemented for public organizations, those who started working after high school graduation were designated as industrial technical
businesses. As a means of promoting continuing education after employment, special admissions of incumbent workers to universities were expanded, on-contract courses were set up, and education by third-party industries was promoted.
[Figure 3-7] Support System for Employment First-Advancement to University Later Policy
As a result of a government-wide effort, the employment rate of high school graduates is increasing, and social awareness of the employment of high school graduates is also changing. The employment rate of vocational high school graduates rose from 16.7% in April 2009 to 25.9% in April 2011, and to 37.8% in April 2013.
Public organizations, large corporations, and banks, which are attractive workplaces even for university graduates, hired 38,327 new high school graduates (2,508 in public organizations, 34,320 in large corporations, and 1,050 in banks) in 2012. In 2013, when the recruitment of students was difficult, there were 1.14 applicants for each opening in
specialized high schools, and nearly 20,000 young people were not able to attend specialized high schools.
However, in 2013, at the start of the Park Geun-hye administration, the employment of new high school graduates was currently on a decline. The employment of high school graduates in financial institutions fell by about 30% and is also falling for public corporations. In 2013, the ratio of high school graduates advancing to tertiary education dropped by 7.1 percentage points to 70.7% and employment increased by 2.6 percentage points compared to 2009. However, the number of unemployed people increased by 3.9 percentage points, indicating the ineffectiveness of the government policy.
As students and parents still prefer uniform and single-track career paths based on university education, an effective policy is required to promote employment first-advancement to university later policy. About 66.8% of middle school and high school students believe that ‘university education is absolutely required to accomplish one’s goals in life’ (2012 School Career Education Indicators). They agreed with the importance of education in the order of elementary school (92.2%), middle school (83.4%), general high school (79.2%), and vocational high school (76.4%) (Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, 2012). High school students think that ‘high school graduates are socially more disadvantaged than university graduates’ (68.8%), and that
‘it is more difficult for high school graduates to be employed in large corporations than university graduates’ (61.9%). Korean parents (73%) also regard salary and stability as the most important factors in their children’s job selection (Ministry of Education, 2012).
The secondary vocational education goals of the Park Geun-hye administration, which was inaugurated in 2013, were to provide a wide range of career-oriented vocational education opportunities for unleashing dreams and talents, to strengthen the
employment-allow incumbent workers with high school education to earn degrees and develop their careers, so that students would no longer be bound to the single-track career path of university entrance after high school graduation.
In contrast to the Lee Myung-bak administration’s policy of promoting the employment of high school graduates through the employment first-advancement to university later system, the Park Geun-hye administration’s secondary vocational education policy is characterized by the strengthening of education in line with the National Competency Standards (NCS) for developing field-oriented vocational manpower.
Detailed plans for secondary vocational education of the Park Geun-hye administration include: fostering specialized high schools for strategic vocational manpower development according to various industries and policy areas of relevant ministries and regions; designating and expanding Meister high schools in various fields including nationally and regionally strategic industries and core industries to be developed for the FTA era; improving public confidence in secondary vocational education by designing and running the curricula according to the NCS as required by industrial fields;
expanding the specialized high school entrance system to embrace the talent, aptitude, and desire for employment of students; expanding vocational education by third-party agencies and diversifying areas of vocational education for general high school students seeking employment; continuously expanding competence-centered open employment;
implementing the infrastructure for continuing the education of incumbent workers;
recognizing career experiences as school credits; and granting skilled workers with opportunities for overseas training and studies (see <Table 3-16>).
<Table 3-16> Park Geun-hye Administration’s Major Policies on VE:
Specialized High Schools
Development of specialized high schools linked to related ministries, local gov’t and industry - Government ministry-linked specialized high schools: 123 schools (2012) 201 schools (2013) Expansion of Meister high schools
- Designating and expanding Meister high schools in various fields including nationally and regionally strategic industries and core industries to be developed for the FTA era
Development and implementation of curriculum oriented towards National Competency Standards (NCS) - Development of NCS and learning modules based on a cooperative work system between the Ministry
of Education and the Ministry of Employment and Labor
Development of 254 NCS and 55 NCS learning modules for 2013 and further development in following years
Reform of curricula in specialized high schools and junior colleges based on NCS
Expansion of vocational education opportunities for students with talent, aptitude and willingness to work - School transfers between general high schools and specialized high schools for career change
Increased VE opportunities for general high school students
Expansion of commissioned VE providers, and designation and operation of VE-centered schools Continued expansion of employment among high school graduates
and the establishment of degree-earning system for workers
- Expansion of university entrance with special admission system for workers, and designation of university admissions for late entrance into specialized and uncommon fields
Special selection for specialized high school students opting for work: 2.1% of the quota (2013) 10.9% (2014)
Seven schools and four fields, including agriculture and horse farming
National scholarship-supported overseas study and training system for specialized high school graduates working in industry as skilled technicians and craftsmen
Unlike the Lee Myung-bak administration, the Park Geun-hye administration plans to focus on the development of junior colleges as central institutes of tertiary vocational education to produce core professional workers (see <Table 3-17>). Through concentrated investment in the strengths of each university and each course, the government plans to support only 100 of the 137 junior colleges according to the junior college specialization policy for the development of core manpower for the creative economy. Course length in junior colleges will be diversified to anywhere between one year and four years according to the NCS and industry demands (see [Figure 3-8]). Non-degree courses and
graduate schools that would systematically produce master craftsmen and by developing fully job-oriented modularized curricula for adults based on the NCS. The government also plans to strengthen support for the global expansion of junior colleges and students.
<Table 3-17> Park Geun-hye Administration’s Major Policies on VE: Junior Colleges
Development of 100 specialized junior colleges
- Generation of 150,000 entrants to the core industrial manpower per annum for the knowledge-based industry and creative economy
Approx. 70 schools (2014) approx. 80 schools (2015) approx. 90 schools (2016) 100 schools (2017)
Diversification of study years and degree programs in junior colleges
- Diversification of course length to 1-4 years in junior colleges based on NCS and industry demand Establishment and development of Meister graduate schools for industrial technology
- Establishment of special graduate schools for highly skilled people in specialized fields including World Skills Competition winners and meisters
Establishment and authorization of one school in each four regions (25 students/school, 100 graduates/annum)
Development of lifelong vocational education university
- Development of lifelong VE university providing NCS-based module-type curricula for adults, workers and the unemployed
Development of 16 schools in total, including eight schools in 2014 and eight schools in 2015 Promotion of globalization project
- Reinforcement of global employability of junior college students and development and supply of talented manpower for Korean industry in overseas markets
Target of 600 or more people per annum sent abroad from 20 projects
[Figure 3-8] Conceptual Model of National Competency Standards (NCS)
Source: Ministry of Employment and Labor and Human Resources Development Services of Korea (2013)
In Korea, educational attainment can no longer be used as a criterion for identifying talent in the labor market. However, young people and parents still prefer to enter universities at all costs. The labor market, too, is yet to find an adequate way to identify and utilize talent instead of educational attainment. This has led to the co-existence of job shortages and labor shortages, represented by the mismatch of the labor market and serious youth unemployment. Recognizing such a distortion of reality, the Park Geun-hye administration proposed a national agenda to implement a competence-centered society. One of the detailed action plans is to implement the NCS system. Knowing and doing are two different things. The government intends to create a system which values practicality over knowledge. The NCS will provide a foundation for the creation of an open labor market where competency is favored over educational attainment or academic cliques. Once the learning modules are utilized efficiently, education and training in specialized high schools and junior colleges will become more field-oriented than theoretical and become more demander-oriented than provider-centered. The education system is also expected to change gradually to try and improve the employment competency of graduates in four-year universities.
The success of this vocational education and training policy depends on the development of National Competency Standards (NCS) and learning modules based on the NCS (see [Figure 3-9]). In particular, the introduction of the NCS is expected to help solve the problem of manpower development, which is estranged from industry demands, inadequate education training programs, and the lack of a quality control system for the manpower produced.
[Figure 3-9] Role and Dissemination of NCS Learning Modules
<Appendix 3-1> Status of Elementary Schools (1945-2013)
(Unit: no., persons)
Year Schools Teachers Students
1945 3,037 13,064 1,372,883
1950 3,942 47,248 2,658,420
1955 4,205 47,020 2,947,436
1960 4,496 61,749 3,621,269
1965 5,125 79,164 4,941,345
1970 5,961 101,095 5,749,301
1975 6,367 108,126 5,599,074
1980 6,487 119,064 5,658,002
1985 6,519 126,785 4,856,752
1990 6,335 136,800 4,868,520
1995 5,772 138,369 3,905,163
2000 5,267 140,000 4,019,991
2005 5,646 160,143 4,022,801
2010 5,854 176,754 3,299,094
2013 5,913 181,585 2,784,000
Source: Korea Educational Development Institute (2005)
Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and Korea Educational Development Institute (2013)
<Appendix 3-2> Status of Middle Schools (1945-2013)
(Unit: no., persons)
Year Schools Teachers Students
1945 297 1,225 9,846
1950 395 9,100 380,829
1955 949 10,594 480,295
1960 1,053 13,053 528,593
1965 1,208 19,067 751,341
1970 1,608 31,207 1,318,808
1975 1,967 46,917 2,026,823
<Continued>
<Appendix 3-3> Status of High Schools (1945-2013)
(Unit: no., persons)
Year Schools Teachers Students
1945 - -
-1950 279 -
-1955 578 7,049 267,915
1960 645 10,022 273,434
1965 701 7,894 426,531
1970 889 9,845 590,382
1975 1,152 20,415 1,123,017
1980 1,353 27,480 1,696,792
1985 1,602 40,040 2,152,802
1990 1,683 58,074 2,283,806
1995 1,830 56,411 2,157,880
2000 1,957 63,374 2,071,468
2005 2,095 79,158 1,762,896
2010 2,253 126,423 1,962,356
2013 2,157 122,906 1,743,543
Note: 2013 data includes general high schools, special-purposed high schools, and specialized high schools.
Source: Korea Educational Development Institute (2005)
Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and Korea Educational Development Institute (2013)
Year Schools Teachers Students
1980 2,100 54,853 2,471,997
1985 2,371 69,553 2,782,173
1990 2,474 89,719 2,275,751
1995 2,683 99,931 2,481,848
2000 2,731 92,589 1,860,539
2005 2,935 103,835 2,010,704
2010 3,130 108,781 1,974,798
2013 3,173 112,690 1,804,189
Source: Korea Educational Development Institute (2005)
Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and Korea Educational Development Institute (2013)
<Appendix 3-4> Higher Education Institution Students by Ownership (1970-2013)
(Unit: person)
Total National Public Private
Total Female Total Female Total Female Total Female
1970 146,414 32,641 35,393 4,103 645 29 110,376 28,509
1975 208,986 55,439 56,270 8,620 560 40 152,156 46,779
1980 402,979 90,634 112,502 19,453 2,184 135 288,293 71,046
1985 931,884 250,088 238,343 63,576 5,035 710 688,506 185,802
1990 1,040,166 396,129 249,026 69,115 5,722 787 785,418 226,227
1995 1,187,735 378,418 280,183 84,331 15,758 3,521 891,794 290,566 2000 1,665,398 596,389 352,733 119,306 19,345 5,302 1,293,320 471,781 2001 1,729,638 626,982 361,678 124,401 20,115 5,568 1,347,845 497,013 2002 1,771,738 647,651 366,900 126,955 20,399 5,658 1,384,439 515,038 2003 1,808,539 665,259 372,605 129,039 20,565 5,784 1,415,369 530,436 2004 1,836,649 675,493 376,413 128,936 20,939 5,797 1,439,297 540,760 2005 1,859,639 684,238 379,254 128,463 21,414 5,888 1,458,971 549,887 2006 1,888,436 696,434 383,267 128,426 21,989 6,207 1,483,180 561,801 2007 1,919,504 712,735 386,149 128,690 22,312 6,430 1,511,043 577,615 2008 1,943,437 727,178 388,767 129,004 22,908 6,737 1,531,762 591,437 2009 1,984,043 749,329 397,244 130,390 23,700 7,194 1,563,099 611,745 2010 2,028,842 778,186 402,955 133,808 25,218 7,939 1,600,668 636,439 2011 2,065,451 802,075 412,923 137,948 29,023 9,353 1,623,505 654,774 2012 2,103,958 821,875 427,232 143,342 31,939 10,374 1,644,787 668,159 2013 2,120,296 835,703 458,081 155,607 13,287 3,894 1,648,928 676,202 Source: Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and Korea Educational Development Institute (each year).
<Appendix 3-5> Advancement Rate by Education Level (1970-2013) Total Female Total Female Total Female Total Female Total Female
1970 66.1 56.5 70.1 68.8 26.9 28.6 40.2 37.7 9.6 7.3
1975 77.2 69.7 74.7 72.3 25.8 24.9 41.5 37.5 8.8 7.3
1980 95.8 94.1 84.5 80.8 27.2 22.9 39.2 35.4 11.4 5.0
1985 99.2 99.1 90.7 88.2 36.4 34.1 53.8 53.5 13.3 9.9
1990 99.8 99.8 95.7 95.0 33.2 32.4 47.2 49.8 8.3 6.3
1995 99.9 99.9 98.5 98.4 51.4 49.8 72.8 75.8 19.2 17.2
2000 99.9 99.9 99.6 99.6 68.0 65.4 83.9 84.6 42.0 35.7
2001 99.9 99.9 99.6 99.6 70.5 67.6 85.3 85.0 44.9 38.9
2002 99.9 99.9 99.5 99.5 74.2 72.4 87.0 87.5 49.8 44.6
2003 99.9 99.9 99.7 99.7 79.7 77.8 90.2 90.5 57.6 51.5
2004 99.9 99.9 99.7 99.7 81.3 79.7 89.8 89.8 62.3 57.3
2005 99.9 99.9 99.7 99.8 82.1 80.8 88.3 88.8 67.6 62.0
2006 99.9 99.9 99.8 99.8 82.1 81.1 87.5 88.1 68.6 63.3
2007 99.9 99.9 99.6 99.7 82.8 82.2 87.1 88.0 71.5 66.6
2008 99.9 99.9 99.7 99.7 83.8 83.5 87.9 88.6 72.9 69.5
2009 99.9 - 99.6 - 77.8 - 84.9 - 73.5
-2010 99.9 - 99.7 - 75.4 - 81.5 - 71.1
-2011 99.9 - 99.7 - 72.5 - 75.2 - 63.7
-2012 99.9 - 99.7 - 71.3 - 76.2 - 54.4
-2013 99.9 99.9 99.7 99.7 70.7 74.5 76.8 81.0 48.0 51.0
Note: 1) Advancement Rate = (No. of students continuing to higher education / No. of graduates) x 100 2) Middle school includes middle schools and other schools at an equivalent level
3) High school includes high schools and other schools at an equivalent level
3) High school includes high schools and other schools at an equivalent level