In South Korea, the dream of a PhD is colliding with a harsh economic reality, as new figures reveal that nearly three out of 10 doctoral graduates are struggling to find work.
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According to a recent government survey involving 10,442 respondents who completed their degrees between August and February, 29.6 per cent of fresh PhD holders are now unemployed.
The figures mark the highest unemployment rate since the survey’s inception in 2014, when 24.5 per cent of new doctoral graduates faced a similar fate. Last year, the rate stood at 25.8 per cent, indicating a troubling upwards trend.
Among the hardest hit were young scholars under 30, with 47.7 per cent unable to secure employment. The crisis was particularly pronounced in the arts and humanities, where joblessness exceeded 40 per cent. By contrast, graduates in health and welfare, education, business and law reported significantly better employment prospects.
An report in the Korean-language Youth Daily newspaper said the survey results showed a growing scarcity of high quality, well-paid positions for highly educated youth amid an economic slowdown.
“[These figures], coupled with the decline in the number of employed youth across the country, suggest that even highly educated people are not free from the youth employment crisis,” it said.