Korean Job Discussion Forums

[The Great Toad]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-15662324

(unrelated but the author, bbc journalist Lucy Williamson, looks the charming reporter lass - anyone know her in Seoul? I would like to meet up with her at Taco Bell there - and she can interview me on my amazing teachings of greetings and foods while we walk around the island park and later drink copppeee)

According to the article a male cook is a strange thing - but I have seen male bakers and cooks before in Korea... It is a bit depressing to me though that all those old grandparents are bowing day after day for two hours to a golden idol to get their grandkids to pass a test.

In American schools they have a sort of vocational option -well at my school- where you could opt to do 'work studies and leave school early your senior year to go to a work place - obviously I did not do that since I planned to become a peerless Crusading Knight of thee Devil Dogs. But I guess in England they have these labor style vocation options - according to my brit friends - where you can opt to be a welder or chimney sweep and then you do not have to do the sort of stressful college exams like in Korea. Maybe it would be a good option for Korean kids to just say - hey I am going to be a rough neck cop / boat maker / car welder and then they could work at a local company - that would be great for companies as they could save cash on their underpaid illegal African / Thai / Philippine workers. - Well actually I only met one fellow who said he was working at a car plant illegally - maybe illegal immigrant work is rarely then the US. You can go out to the center US to Mainstreet USA and find 100s of illegal workers who hack up chickens at conglomeration slaughterhouses.

A roughneck/white collar system might be nice but I doubt most parents would accept their kid will not go to college no matter how much more the president encourages that.

[Jake_Kim]

There's a millennium-old social hierarchy (or a caste system, in another way of putting it) called '사농공상(士農工商)' that underlies Korean mentality, except that the respective orders of farmers and merchants/businessmen have replaced each other in this modern, Westernised era.
Get this clue, then a lot of things about Koreans can be explained.

[nero]

It is a route that was not open for Ms Ju-sung in her day.

"I'm over 70," she cackles.

Love it. I can imagine this fiesty old b*#ch - "My grandchild WILL be successful! A doctor, an engineer, a chemist!"
There is so little realisation that success can be had in the arts...or as a chef. When Koreans realise this, their art scene will explode.

[SeoulNate]

Personally, the article comes up a little on the vanilla side for me.

I would rather see something done that focuses not on the unemployment rate of college grads, but on the actually employment those grads are getting. As in, how many are working in coffee shops, fast food chains and retain shops after graduating with a good degree.

Also, I would like to see some hard hitting journalism on how the 3D jobs in Korea are virtually ignored by Korean citizens but are clamoring for more workers, as the article vaguely alluded to.

[ThingsComeAround]

[swinewho]

[jvalmer]

I'll admit I'd rather have a bunch of over-educated arrogant young people roaming around than a bunch of under-educated arrogant young adults roaming the streets. That's were Korea and Japan really excel, producing a country of well educated unemployed youth.

[eamo]

[UknowsI]

I think this is a problem in many western countries, even though it is a bit more extreme in Korea. The problem in Korea is that traditional trades will not be in demand for another few decades because there still are a lot of older men who are still excellent plumbers, carpenters, mechanics and so on. What can become a problem is that it seems like very few from the new generation picks up these trades. This is already a problem in the west (at least in northern Europe where I am from) that sleeping trough a BA is more respected than being a skilled craftsman and only drop outs chose to become craftsmen. It will probably take another 20-30 years before it becomes a problem in Korea because the older generations still have these skills, but then it may come a very sharp scarcity of these skills when the older generation pass away.

[eamo]

[bekinseki]

This is a big issue the country's been dealing with for a while now, and I agree it's somewhat an issue back home. How many of us are here because our university degrees couldn't get us relevant jobs back home?

[swinewho]

[bekinseki]

[The Great Toad]

cool a lot of deep replies - and I do not have anything helpful to add... I am just at the cafe acting cool here... but that is a good question too you wrote-

How many Korean Uni grads live at home with mama and dada rent free and work at cafe / emart / clerk while going for a big corporate job or attempting to pass a police / government office / teacher / monkey trainer job test? I meet a lot of these Korean young persons sometimes hear 30 or so who have no job and live at home or do some kind of entry level grunt job like a movie usher while dreaming/testing/interviewing for a cool job that takes their uni degree and works the knowledge gained...

I am sorry the Brit system is not so good... I thoght it was a good idea but sounds like all the punks get into the shop classes - just like the usa where all the slackers who do not quite drop out of high school take the bear requirements for Math/science/English/history and then load up on print shop/ auto repair / ceramics class / and music appreciation class (my favorite which consisted of watching Andrew Loyd Weber movies and had a lame multiple choice test that a five year who watched the movie could ace - good for the dope heads in it - NOT ME I was in it because I hated homework and rather spend my time in High School sports and reading - Did I mention I was cool in high school as a sporty dood?)

[The Floating World]