Korea Employment Information Service, outlook for 196 vocations after 10 years
Decreasing population due to the low birth rate, increasing demand for welfare due to aging

 

The immovable number one dream occupation for the youth in Korea turned out to be a middle school teacher when 180,000 elementary, middle, and high school students were asked what they wanted to be in the future in a survey done by Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education and Training. The reason is that it is stable compared to other jobs and also enables work and life balance. However, it is predicted that the demand for school teachers will decrease in a decade.  Because of the continuing low birth rate, the population between the age of 6 to 21 is shrinking, causing the number of school teachers needed at school to be reduced in turn. Meanwhile, the demand for nurses and social workers will increase as we move along into an aging society.

Korea Employment Information Service made the above prediction in <<2015 Korea Occupational

Outlook>> published on April, 21. According to the analysis in this report, 13 occupations that will grow in number in a decade are: events planner, clinical psychologist, counsellor, marketing and PR staff, law office clerk, environmental engineer, delivery person, industrial safety manager, care worker, nurse, social worker, physical/occupational therapist, vocational counselor, etc.

Also, vocations that are anticipated to slightly increase include: mechanical engineer, application software developer, management consultant, doctor, labor consultant, pet stylist, wedding planner, nutritionist, finance and accounting clerk, child care teacher, hair stylist, controller, preschool teacher.

As industrial and technological development accelerates, most of professions and office jobs are thought to be increasing as well as public service personnel such as police and firefighter and medical related occupations. Upgraded lifestyle and aging place higher demand for service providers in preventive medicine and senior health care.

The recent Sewol Ferry incident and other major accidents like collapsed building and fire called people’s attention towards importance of safety control. Accordingly, new recruitment in public safety service areas seems likely to follow in the future. The expansion in double-income family and single family bring the expansion in personal service providers such as a wedding planner. Some of these services are becoming more specialized and professionalized than in the past.

Despite the decreasing trend in birth rate, new employment of preschool teachers is anticipated rather to increase. Increase in women employment combined with parents’ urge for early childhood education and government subsidy in child care and preschools is boosting the rate of preschool enrollment.

68 vocations including visual designer, secretary, news reporter, curator, telecommunication engineer, investment and credit analyst, certified public appraiser will remain in status quo. Most of the designers stayed in this group due to the shrinking of domestic economy. Transportation related jobs except air transport are predicted to experience hardly any increase. So will engine drivers and operators now that more families own an automobile.

 

Meanwhile, the occupations that will become fewer in number include: stockbroker, welder, photographer, solicitor, elementary and middle school teacher, college professor, taxi driver, dairy farmer, paper hanger, etc.

Most of those jobs belong in manufacturing and construction business which is sensitive to economic recession and demographic changes. Securities and finance related occupations as well as construction related ones are predicted to diminish due to the long downturn and the recent restructuring in the market. The decrease will be seen in agriculture and fishing industry where the problems of aging and Free Trade Agreements have weakened the competitiveness.

The ever increasing online trade and exchange will bring a power shift in the job market. Korea Employment Information Service expects a decrease of demand for solicitors, commodity brokers, and stockbrokers as opposed to an increase of demand for computer security specialists and multimedia directors in the next 10 years.

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