Young South Koreans looking for work spend an average of 580,000 won ($400) a month on their job searches, and seven in 10 say the cost is a burden.
The Federation of Korean Industries said on the 19th that a survey of 1,000 men and women aged 19 to 34 who are currently job hunting found monthly spending on job preparation averaged about 580,000 won over the past three months. The survey was conducted by Mono Research on behalf of the business lobby. Of those surveyed, 69.3% said the cost was a burden, while only 7.3% said it was not.
Spending varied sharply by age, field of study and target employer. Those aged 30 to 34 spent the most at 600,000 won a month, followed by those aged 25 to 29 at 580,000 won and those aged 19 to 24 at 560,000 won. By field of study, those in education, pharmacy and health spent the most at 740,000 won, followed by arts and athletics at 690,000 won, natural sciences and engineering at 550,000 won, and humanities and social sciences at 520,000 won.
Those aiming for jobs at large companies spent 700,000 won a month, more than those targeting mid-sized firms at 630,000 won or smaller companies at 590,000 won. The burden also grew as searches dragged on. Those who had been preparing for three years or more spent an average of 800,000 won a month, far above the 560,000 won spent by those searching for less than six months and the 520,000 won spent by those searching for six months to a year.
Exam and Tutoring Fees Account for Half of Spending
Fees for certification and language tests made up the largest share of spending at 30.7%. Tutoring and education fees followed at 22.6%, along with textbooks and study materials at 16.1%, transportation at 12.4%, and fees for cafes and study cafes at 7.3%. Test fees and direct study costs together accounted for more than half of the total.
Their financial footing is also weak. Of those surveyed, 70.8% live with their parents, and support from parents and family was the most common way of covering job search costs at 32.8%. Part-time work income followed at 29.5%, personal savings at 27.3% and government subsidies at 7.9%.
The policy support young people wanted most was help with certification and language test fees, cited by 25.9%, followed by housing cost support at 16.7%, job preparation vouchers at 16.1% and transportation subsidies at 11.4%. The Federation of Korean Industries said support for language and certification test fees and course tuition should be expanded to ease the financial burden on young people from low-income households.