The number of job fairs on campus decreased by 65 percent in March this year, compared to last year in March.
The reduction in job fairs at Ewha is part of a nationwide contraction in recruiting. According to research provided by Incruit (www.incruit.com) on March 23, 635 listed companies reduced the recruitment of regular employees from graduates of four-year colleges by about 40 percent. These companies employed a total of 21,961 people last year; however, they announced that they plan to recruit only 13,800 employees this year. Among them, Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) canceled its job fair entirely because it planned to recruit no new employees in the first half of 2009. Likewise, Samsung recruited only 5,500 employees, which is 2,000 less than last year.
    The reduced recruiting plans of companies have affected university students nationwide. Yonsei University also has only a half its number of job fairs compared to last year.
    The cutback in recruiting has affected the plans of many Ewha students. There is even a newly popular term in circulation, “Unemployed Person-To-Be,” that refers to undergraduates in their last term in university with no definite career.
    “I heard that some of the campus recruiting events were canceled due to the changed employment plans of companies. I often participated in campus recruiting and got information on companies, but I’m worried about the job market because even job fairs on campus were canceled,” said Kim Kei-young (Sociology, 4).
    The Ewha Career Development Center (CDC) has tried to help students by providing job information and sponsoring programs such as a career club (to prepare students for employment), and retraining programs (including an internship program, an education program, and a one-on-one coaching program). However, not all students are convinced that these programs do enough.
    “I participate in a study group for recruitment and sincerely adhere to advice provided by the CDC. However, it is an inevitable part of reality that I have to look for job opportunities and information by myself, rather than just wait for job fairs to come to campus. Even more so this year,” said Park Ji-young (Public Administration, 4).
    An increasing number of students are also doing internships rather than searching for a regular job.
“Companies have increased their number of interns instead of decreasing the number of regular employees. Thus, students may have to serve in internships while waiting for a change in the current situation,” said Jang Shin-hae, a researcher at the CDC.
    Other students choose options such as attending law school or taking a national examination. “My friends got tired of suffering from job market. In fact, one of them applied to Ewha law school, and some other friends who failed to be hired in the second half of 2008 came back to prepare for the National Administrative Examination after taking a temporary leave of absence from school,” said Park.
    Not being obsessed with employment at a large company and thinking about what you really want to do are suggestions from the CDC. According to an annual report 2009 by the Small and Medium Business Administration, small and medium sized companies create 87.5 percent of the country’s total employment. And although the future seems obscure, CDC advises students to try their best and have a positive attitude.
    “Compared to the present, the situation in the future can change. No one knows what the economy and job market will be,” said Jang.

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