EMPLOYMENT TRENDS KOREA
Korea - Koreans who majored in French language are finding it difficult to land a job after graduation.
According to a survey by state-run research organisation Korean Educational Development Institute, only 114 out of 763 French majors managed to find jobs related to their degree after their graduation in 2009. Similarly, Koreans who studied arts and sciences such as history and philosophy found it difficult to find work with only 26.5% and 28.6% polled respectively managing to do so. Most successful respondents started their career as private school lecturers. This is a wide disparity when compared to 99.9% of pharmaceutical graduates or and 99.5% of those who majored in healthcare gaining employment in their chosen fields of studies.
Uhm Jeong-hye, who majored in French but transferred to another university's business school, told The Korean Herald that there are very few companies in Korea which require employees to be proficient in French. Language majors would only be able to find employment in "trading companies, embassies, schools or private institutions". He added, "Some French companies require English proficiency, rather than French ability."
Prof. Jeon Sung-ki of Korea University, also president of the Korean Society for French Language and Literature, explained that employers these days want recruits to have practical knowledge that can be used from day one on the job. But schools have failed to meet that changing demand. "We are now trying to streamline our curriculum and help students."
But there is one French major who felt learning a foreign language has been useful and life-enriching. Cho Min-hee, a major in French literature who currently works at a bank, said, "Romanticism and abundant cultural assets opened my eyes and heart to new things. It gave me confidence and a sense of relaxation."
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