Scores of Written Exams for Recruitment at 340 Public Institutions Released... Introduction of Leave System for University Students Giving Birth

Government Reviews and Approves '2nd Youth Life Improvement Plan' Containing 43 Tasks Across 5 Sectors

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwangho Lee] From now on, the written test scores for recruitment at 340 public institutions will be disclosed. In addition, when a university student or their spouse gives birth, it will be recognized as an excused absence rather than an absence.

On the 18th, the government held the 1st Youth Policy Coordination Committee chaired by Prime Minister Jeong Seyeon to review and approve the "2nd Youth Life Improvement Plan," which includes these measures. This improvement plan contains 43 tasks across five areas: employment, housing, education, daily life, and participation/rights.

First, to facilitate examinees, the government plans to recommend that a total of 340 public institutions?including 36 public enterprises, 95 quasi-governmental agencies, and 209 other public institutions?disclose the passing scores and individual test results of recruitment written exams. Additionally, it will recommend that all universities establish related regulations so that when a university student or their spouse gives birth, it is recognized as an excused absence rather than an absence.

Furthermore, to expand youth employment, the government will increase support for the Youth Additional Employment Incentive for small and medium-sized enterprises and mid-sized companies that hire youth as regular employees. The number of supported youths will increase from 290,000 (KRW 991.9 billion) this year to 380,000 (KRW 1.2018 trillion) next year, an increase of 90,000. The operation method of the Youth Job-Seeking Activity Support Fund, which can be received only once in a lifetime, will be improved so that after three years from receiving support, it can be received again. However, it will provide KRW 500,000 per month for up to six months to youths within two years after graduation or dropout and whose household income is below 120% of the median income.

To alleviate the burden on youths struggling to prepare for jeonse (long-term lease) deposits, the loan limit for the "Youth-Exclusive Buttress Jeonse Fund" will be raised to KRW 70 million, and the loan interest rate will be lowered to 1.5?2.1%. The refinancing loan from the secondary financial sector to the Buttress Jeonse Fund will be expanded from the current youth single household to youth general household heads.

Along with this, to ease the economic burden of university students whose social entry is delayed due to employment difficulties, the student loan interest rate will be further reduced from 1.85% to 1.70%. Also, if the student themselves becomes unemployed or their business closes, the repayment of student loans will be deferred for three years to ease repayment burdens.

In addition, to reduce the tuition burden for low-income university students and support various work experiences, the number of recipients for off-campus work-study scholarships will be significantly expanded to 60,000. To help working youth from near-poverty households settle more easily in society through asset formation, the scale of support for youth savings accounts will increase from the existing 5,000 to 13,400. The Youth Savings Account is a product where if a youth saves KRW 100,000 monthly, the government adds KRW 300,000 in support funds, allowing them to receive KRW 14.4 million after three years. The application conditions are youths aged 15 to 39 who are working and whose household income is below 50% of the median income.

Moreover, the "Soldier Military Group Insurance" will be implemented to provide partial support for health insurance premiums for soldiers who use private medical institutions other than military hospitals, upon request. The scale and scope of insurance premium support will be decided after the revision of the "Military Health Care Act Enforcement Decree" next month.

Moon Seung-wook, head of the Youth Policy Promotion Team at the Office for Government Policy Coordination (Deputy Minister), said, "This improvement plan was prepared through the review and approval of the Youth Policy Coordination Committee, which was held for the first time since the enforcement of the Youth Basic Act on the 5th of last month, making its significance even greater." He added, "The difficulties faced by youth are not individual problems but socio-economic issues, and government interest and support are more urgently needed than ever."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.