South Korea: 3 out of 10 PhDs are... unemployed!

South Korea's doctoral unemployment rate has hit a record high, with nearly 30 percent out of work, showing that even highly skilled workers are finding it difficult to find work.

Even highly educated people suffer from unemployment in South Korea - Photo: YONHAP

According to data released by Statistics Korea on March 2, three out of 10 PhDs in Korea are unemployed, and the rate is even up to 50% for PhDs under 30 years old, the Korea Times reported.

The unemployment rate for PhD holders in the country is also at its highest since the agency began collecting data in 2014, reflecting a shortage of quality jobs and the growing impact of the labor market downturn on highly educated workers.

Specifically, of the 10,442 PhDs who received their degrees last year, 70.4% said they had found jobs. Meanwhile, 26.6% were unable to find jobs, and the remaining 3% were classified as not participating in the labor force.

The unemployment rate – including both those looking for work and those not participating in the labour market – remained around 24.5–25.9% from 2014 to 2018, but increased to 29.3% in 2019 and reached a record 29.6% in 2024.

In terms of age group, among the 537 PhDs under 30 years old, 47.7% were unemployed - marking the highest level in the survey's history.

Unemployment rates also vary by sector, with the arts and humanities group recording the highest rate at 40.1%.

This is followed by natural sciences, mathematics and statistics (37.7%), social sciences, journalism and information (33.1%). In contrast, the health and welfare, education, business, management and law sectors have lower unemployment rates.

According to the Korea Times , this trend shows that even highly qualified workers in South Korea are having difficulty finding quality jobs with attractive salaries. The country's job market is currently weakened by increasing economic uncertainty, causing companies to prioritize hiring people with previous experience over new workers.

These concerns are growing in South Korea. In 2023, a report by the Bank of Korea warned: "Artificial intelligence (AI) is capable of performing non-repetitive cognitive analysis tasks, increasing the risk of automation of high-skilled and high-income jobs."

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/han-quoc-cu-10-tien-si-thi-co-3-nguoi-that-nghiep-20250303110659475.htm