Rising Value of Meister High Schools... Popularity Soars Due to High Employment Rates

This year, four third-year students from Daegu Software Meister High School were finally accepted in Shinhan Bank's '2023 ICT Specialized High School Early Recruitment.' It is remarkable that high school students secured jobs at a major bank where even college graduates find it difficult to enter. Despite having fewer than 60 students annually, this school has leveraged its capabilities as a software (SW) specialized high school to produce 24 new employees in the financial sector, including Shinhan, Woori, Daegu Banks, HancomWITH, and Toss, since 2018. Additionally, it has maintained a high employment rate of over 95% since its establishment in 2016. A Shinhan Bank official stated, "Graduates from Meister High Schools perform excellently and receive favorable evaluations within the bank."

Recently, as the employment crisis deepens due to the global economic downturn and other factors, the popularity of Meister High Schools (industry-demand customized high schools) is increasing. The government and local governments are moving to designate new Meister High Schools or convert existing schools into Meister High Schools.

Students programming robot movements

Meister High Schools operate industry-demand customized curricula and support students to grow into skilled professionals and technical masters after graduation. All enrolled students are exempt from tuition fees, admission fees, and school operation support fees. Meister High Schools are designated through evaluations by the Ministry of Education's 'Special Purpose High School Designation Committee,' composed of experts from academia, education, and industry. Currently, there are 54 such schools nationwide, and each year new emerging industry fields are identified, such as international trade, gaming, and firefighting in 2020; software in 2021; smart factories in 2022; and smart marine fisheries this year.

Meister High Schools focus on employment rather than university admission. They are evaluated to have higher levels of specialized knowledge among graduates compared to other specialized high schools aiming for university entrance. Since the first graduates in 2013, schools have reported employment rates of 80-90% based on their own statistics, and even after switching to nationally approved statistics in 2020, they have maintained rates of 70-77.5%, about 20 percentage points higher than overall vocational high schools.

Thanks to these advantages, the number of students wishing to enter Meister High Schools is also increasing. Recently, the average admission competition rate for four Meister High Schools in the Seoul area has steadily risen: 1.36:1 in 2020, 1.59:1 in 2021, and 1.63:1 last year.

Companies also prefer graduates from Meister High Schools. Woowa Brothers Corp., operator of the delivery app 'Baedal Minjok,' signed a 'Business Agreement for IT Industry Talent Development' with seven specialized and Meister High Schools specialized in IT education, including Sunrin Internet High School and Mirim Girls' Information Science High School. The Embedded Software System Industry Association (KESSIA) signed agreements last year with Busan Software Meister High School, Daedeok Software Meister High School, Daegu Software Meister High School, and Gwangju Software Meister High School to facilitate employment matching between member companies and graduates.

As demand for Meister High School graduates increases, the number of newly designated schools continues to grow. The government announced last year in its plan to nurture one million digital talents that it would designate one or two additional IT and software Meister High Schools in each city and province. Accordingly, Busan Software Meister High School opened last year. Recently, the Ministry of Education newly designated three schools?Daegu Electronics Technical High School, Yesan Electronics Technical High School, and Gyeongbuk Software High School?as Meister High Schools in the digital semiconductor talent field. The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education has decided to convert specialized high schools in the Seoul area into 'Seoul-type Meister High Schools' by 2025. Currently, many schools in other regions, such as Incheon Information High School, Gyeongbuk Gyeongju Technical High School, and Inje Sinnam High School, are also aiming for conversion to Meister High Schools.

Professor Sung Tae-yoon of Yonsei University's Department of Economics said, "The popularity of Meister High Schools is a trend arising from the increasing number of companies seeking to secure specialized technical talent early," adding, "This is a positive change where talent recruitment and employment are not determined by academic background."