TVET in KOREA
Toward Relevance and Competency-based Skill
Formation
August of 2014
Ho Young Oh
(hyoh@krivet.re.kr)
© Ho Young Oh
Contents
1. Overview
2. Key Economic & Social Priorities in TVET
3. Enablers & Barriers to Investment in TVET
4. Evidence-based Research
© Ho Young Oh
1. Overview
Korea’s GNP Per Capita
25,000
(US$)
22,708
20,000
15,000
10,000
Semi-conductors
Textiles
Automobiles
Mobile phones,
DTV, shipbuildings, etc.
5,000
1970
1972
1974
1976
1978
1980
1982
1984
1986
1988
1990
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
-
255
(Source : Bank of Korea)
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1. Overview
College Enrollment Rate & Youth Employment Rate
College enrollment rate(%)
Youth employment rate(%)
90.0
49.0
80.0
47.0
70.0
45.0
60.0
43.0
50.0
41.0
college enrollment rate
youth employment rate
40.0
39.0
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2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
35.0
1993
20.0
1992
37.0
1991
30.0
1. Overview
Widening Discrepancy between Education & Industry
 Skill mismatch
: Supply-driven system with emphasis on education and training
institutions such as vocational education confined within the
school classroom & low engagement in vocational education
within industry
 Quantity mismatch
: College enrollment rate is too high. Young people are competing
to pad their resumes with qualifications that are irrelevant to
their jobs.
Low youth employment, longer period of school-to-work transition
and skill mismatch.
Companies have to pay for reeducation for newly hired graduates.
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2. Key Economic & Social Priorities for TVET
1) Enhancing Industry Relevance of TVET
 Development and dissemination of National Competency
Standards(NCS)
: NCS standardizes the knowledge, skills and attitudes
required to perform a job in the workplace by industry
sector and competency levels.
: NCS provides a job specifications and guidelines to foster
the talent needed by industry.
 Goal : Make irrelevant TVET relevant to industrial needs and
client-oriented TVET
 Improve students & trainees employability; higher labour
productivity & company satisfaction with TVET
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2. Key Economic & Social Priorities for TVET
1) Enhancing Industry Relevance of TVET
 Complete the development of NCS for all job areas by 2014.
: Apply NCS to vocational high school curricula (pilot operation in
three schools). The new curriculum model will be spread to other
schools.
: NCS will be reflected in vocational training courses by 2015.
: Qualification system will be reformed in line with NCS
: Help companies’ personnel management systems transform into
NCS-based ones that are suitable for individual companies
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2. Key Economic & Social Priorities for TVET
2) Introducing the Work-Study Dual System
 Demand Driven VET System = Work-Study Dual System
: Companies are responsible for teaching their new recruits
necessary job skills.
: Schools and training institutions complement these skills with
theoretical education.
 Companies are invited to apply for participation in the system;
successful applicants are supplied with necessary OJT programs
and instructors.
 The government is trying to institutionalize measures to evaluate,
and provide qualifications to those who have completed training.
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2. Key Economic & Social Priorities for TVET
2) Introducing the Work-Study Dual System
 Individual benefits
: Young job seekers are employed early without
having to acquire unnecessary qualifications, which
saves considerable time and cost in school-to-work
transition.
: Companies are able to encourage longer service and
save large sums of money spent for retraining new
employees.
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2. Key economic & social priorities for TVET
3) Region and Industry-led TVET
 Change the key TVET actor by transforming the centralized,
supply-driven TVET into a region- and industry-led one.
 Region- and Industry-led HRD was introduced in 2013, and
industrial circles, such as workers’ and employers’
organizations, local government, regional employment and
labour office, office of education, etc., set up local HRD
councils jointly in 14 local areas.
: Conducted training-demand surveys for employers and job
seekers.
: Selected 27 joint education and training institutions to
provide training to 38,000 people.
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3. Enablers and Barriers to Investment in TVET
Enablers





Employment Insurance (EI)
System
Barriers

Entry Barriers into TVET

Manufacturing-centered TVET

Unstable industrial relation

Low recognition for TVET

Wage differentials between
large & SMEs, labor mobility
Meister high school
Job crisis among youth
Retirement of baby boomers
Rapidly changing industry
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4. Evidence-based Research
 National think tanks under prime minister’s office
: KRIVET(Korea Research Institute for Vocational
Education & Training), KLI(Korea Labour Institute),
KDI(Korea Development Institute), etc.
 Surveys
: Graduates Occupational Mobility Survey
: Training Demand Survey
: Economically Active Population Survey
 Disclosure of Information
: Information service of “Higher Education in KOREA”
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Thank you!!
© Ho Young Oh