"Even With a 90 Million Won Salary and Bonuses, It Doesn’t Feel Like Much"... A Latecomer Rookie Who Beat 70 to 1 Odds [Scientists Are Disappearing] ③

First Stable Job at 35

"While My Friends Are Senior Managers, I'm Just Starting Out"

Government Research Institute Hiring: Like Passing Through the Eye of a Needle

Facing an Uncertain Future, "I'm Afraid to Recommend a Ph.D. to My Stu

Editor's NoteThe assertion that “scientists are disappearing” may sound exaggerated. After all, the number of graduate students in science and engineering and investment in research and development (R&D) are statistically being maintained. However, the reality at research sites is quite different, with unfilled graduate programs, prolonged postdoctoral researcher (postdoc) periods, and silent, stagnant laboratories in regional areas. Through this series, The Asia Business Daily explores the question, “Why are scientists disappearing?” and seeks solutions for how policy and field practices need to change to ensure scientists can continue their research careers for the long term in South Korea.

"I am actually one of the lucky ones."

Park Sung-Hoon (38, alias), who works at K Research Institute, a government-funded institution in Daejeon, spoke calmly. Born in 1988, he completed his master's and doctoral programs and, after two years as a postdoctoral researcher, only managed to secure his first stable job at the age of 35. Now in his fourth year as a researcher, he recalls a time when, instead of fully focusing on research during his most productive years, he first had to worry about “survival.”

Park's case is not the worst. As he put it, he is "one of the relatively fortunate ones." Many of his peers who pursued doctoral programs around the same time have switched to the industrial sector, while others have spent more than five years as postdocs and are still waiting for the “next contract.”

A Basic Competition Ratio of 30:1, Up to 70:1 for Certain Positions... Government Research Institutes Have Become a Needle's Eye

The process of securing a regular position was truly “like passing through the eye of a needle.” The bar for recruitment at government-funded research institutes has risen to levels incomparable to the past.

According to the National Research Council of Science & Technology (NST), with the recent trend of integrated recruitment, each hiring cycle sees thousands of doctoral-level applicants. In the joint recruitment for government-funded research institutes in the first half of 2025, around 5,800 candidates applied, but only 186 were selected for regular positions. The average competition ratio reached 31:1.

Park remarked, "Considering that all applicants hold doctoral degrees, that's an astonishing figure," adding, "In some popular fields with a high number of specialized applicants, the competition ratio can feel as high as 70:1."

With the job market growing ever tighter, even going abroad as a postdoc has become a risky move. Park explained, “In the past, two to three years as a postdoc in the United States was considered essential, but now many juniors are afraid that domestic positions will disappear while they are away, so they stay in Korea, moving from one short-term contract to another.”

“The Longest Years of Study, Yet the Latest Start in Life”

Doctoral-level researchers experience a sense of deprivation not only due to differences in financial compensation but also because of the “gap in time.” Even after finally landing a position at a government-funded institute, compared to friends who entered the workforce earlier, their life trajectory lags by nearly a decade. It is a structure where those who study the longest are also the last to become socially independent.

At age 38, Park's annual salary, including bonuses, is around 90 million won. While this may seem high compared to the average office worker, he said, “When you consider the opportunity cost, it hardly feels like a lot.”

"My friends who joined large corporations are already at the deputy general manager or general manager level, and they’ve secured the foundations of their lives, such as their children’s education and home ownership. I’ve only just reached the starting line with a stable monthly paycheck, and when I compare myself to them, it feels like I traded the golden years of my life for uncertainty in the lab."

“The Virtuous Research Cycle is Breaking... 'A Path I Can No Longer Recommend to My Students'”

A laboratory at a regional university. As the number of doctoral program enrollments decreases and there is a concentration in the industry sector, some laboratories are finding it difficult to recruit graduate students altogether. Photo by Kim Joungho

The bigger issue is that this sense of insecurity is now being passed on to the next generation. Park, who supervises master's students at the University of Science and Technology (UST), finds himself unable to recommend pursuing a doctorate to his students.

"In the past, you could say, 'If you endure, a position will open up.' But now, even I can't guarantee what kind of future awaits my students after five to seven years in a doctoral program."

In reality, more students are choosing to go directly into industry — to companies such as Samsung Electronics or SK hynix, where they can earn a high salary immediately after graduation — rather than pursuing a doctorate, which requires years of long-term research. The virtuous cycle of laboratory personnel has already stopped. Park noted, "Two years ago, we accepted a new researcher, but last year we couldn’t recruit anyone," adding, "A lab that can’t bring in juniors will eventually lose its vitality."

Beyond Individual Hardship, A Fracture in the Research Ecosystem

While the movement of talent into industry cannot be seen as entirely negative, there are growing calls to address the situation where basic research personnel, who should be retained by universities and government-funded institutes, are being pushed out by insecurity.

Kim Chugang, head of the Career Growth Division at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology Human Resources Development (KIRD), observed, “The extension of the postdoc period and the delayed entry into society are not just issues of individual treatment, but signals that threaten the sustainability of the research ecosystem.” If this trend — where talent leaves or avoids entering the research field altogether — becomes entrenched, the very foundation of the nation’s basic sciences will inevitably weaken.

Park added with a hint of bitterness,

"In the past, a doctoral degree was a badge of stability as a researcher, but now it feels more like the starting point for an even longer period of uncertainty."

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