Korea Tourism Organization Operates Job Experience Program 'Ilta Tourism Class'

Industry-Academia Cooperation to Support MZ Generation Employment and Adaptation in Tourism Sector

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization announced on the 26th that they will operate the job experience program "Ilta Tourism Class" for prospective tourism industry workers, including students from nationwide tourism-specialized high schools and tourism departments of junior colleges.

On-site of the One-Shot Tourism Class held at Jeju High School.
[Photo by Korea Tourism Organization]

Ilta Tourism Class focuses on alleviating the manpower shortage in the tourism industry, which sharply declined due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and improving the perception of the tourism sector among young people such as the MZ generation. The program was planned amid concerns that the vulnerability of the tourism industry?greatly affected by external factors such as infectious diseases, politics, economy, and diplomacy?would lead to a decrease in job seekers and a prolonged manpower shortage in the industry.

The number of workers in the tourism industry, which was 276,447 in 2019, dropped by nearly 30% to 195,280 in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Although travel demand has revived in the recent endemic era, the industry is facing a severe manpower shortage as workers who left the sector are not returning.

Ilta Tourism Class is held once or twice a month on a school basis by prior reservation at the Korea Tourism Organization Seoul Center. Each session accommodates 50 participants, and the program is divided into special lectures by current professionals from hotels, travel agencies, and venture companies, as well as employment competency training such as resume writing. The program also includes exploration visits to sites such as the Korea Tourism Promotion Hall Hiker Ground, Lotte Hotel, The Plaza, and luxury hotels and casinos.

The Korea Tourism Organization stated that although the program is in its early stages, considering the changed career perspectives of the MZ generation, it is a highly rated and satisfactory educational program focused on providing vivid information from the industry and job experience that are difficult to learn at school to enhance understanding of tourism industry jobs. They expect to conduct up to 16 to 18 classes by the end of this year.

Lee Jae-hwan, Vice President of the Korea Tourism Organization, said, “The organization will continue to strive to nurture talent in the tourism field and secure stable manpower for the industry.” He added, “The newly established Tourism Future Talent Education Center will serve as a hub for industry-academia cooperation.”

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