Deadline for Second Half Resident Recruitment Today... "Almost No Applicants"

7645 Recruited from 126 Medical Institutions
Despite Government Training Special Measures, Residents' Response Remains Cynical

As the recruitment for second-half residents (fall turn) starting training in September closes on the 31st, the number of applicants is extremely low, forecasting a significant disruption in resident hiring. Although the government has decided to apply special provisions to ensure that obtaining specialist qualifications will not be delayed for those who apply for this fall turn training, the response from residents has been cynical.

According to the medical community on the 31st, 126 medical institutions recruiting interns and residents for the second half will close application submissions at 5 p.m. that day.

The total number of residents these institutions are recruiting is 7,645, categorized as 2,525 interns, 1,446 first-year residents, and 3,674 senior residents (2nd to 4th year).

On the 8th, the government withdrew administrative sanctions against all residents regardless of their return status and promised to grant 'training special provisions' to residents who return and those who resign and reapply for the second-half recruitment.

This means lifting restrictions on applying for the same year and specialty and allowing additional specialist exams to enable residents to complete their training as much as possible. However, the special provisions are limited to residents who reapply for training in September, and those who do not return in September will not be eligible.

However, the actual number of applicants is expected to be very small. The 'Big 5' hospitals in Seoul?Seoul Asan, Samsung Seoul, Severance, Seoul St. Mary’s, and Seoul National University Hospital?are recruiting a total of 2,864 residents, including 777 interns and 2,087 residents, but as of the 30th, the day before the deadline, almost no residents had applied.

A representative from one of the Big 5 hospitals said, "So far, not a single application for the second-half resident recruitment has been received," adding, "I heard that other hospitals are also experiencing a lack of applicants." Another hospital official said, "It seems residents have no intention of returning to the medical field," and "Among professors, there are movements to boycott resident training participation, so residents are likely hesitant to apply due to peer pressure."

The government also recognizes that almost no residents are returning through the second-half recruitment. Cho Kyu-hong, Minister of Health and Welfare, said at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) meeting on the previous day, "We plan to apply training special provisions to quickly normalize the medical field and training process, but the number of applicants for the second-half resident recruitment is not high," and urged, "Residents who are hesitating to return after resignation should find courage for the sake of patients and themselves."

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