Gyeonggi-do Provides Overseas University Study Opportunities to Youth and Adolescents

Gyeonggi Province is expanding the opportunity for overseas university training from 'youth' to 'adolescents.' This project is one of Governor Kim Dong-yeon's key initiatives.

Gyeonggi Province announced that from the 8th to the 23rd of this month, it will publicly recruit 95 participants for the ‘Gyeonggi Youth Ladder’ program, which offers adolescents the chance to study abroad at overseas universities.

The Gyeonggi Youth Ladder program is designed to provide economically disadvantaged adolescents with opportunities for overseas training and local cultural experiences to help them explore career paths and develop themselves.

Gyeonggi Province expanded the Gyeonggi Youth Ladder program, which was conducted for young adults last year, to include adolescents this year.

Participants in the Gyeonggi Youth Ladder program will visit North American countries such as Detroit, USA, and Toronto, Canada, for three weeks from July 22 to August 11 during the summer vacation period, where they will engage in language training and various local experiences.

Participants will receive full support for all program costs, including airfare, accommodation, meals, education program fees, as well as pre-training and post-management.

Gyeonggi Youth Ladder Project Information Poster

Gyeonggi Province will conduct a 3-night, 4-day pre-training camp in June to help participants adapt to the local environment and ensure a safe overseas training experience.

After the overseas training, Gyeonggi Province will hold a performance sharing session and career consulting to provide a platform for sharing experiences. Additionally, it will link with ‘1318ON Coaching,’ which supports one-on-one online learning after the overseas training, to offer continuous learning opportunities. This will help adolescents participating in the ladder program achieve systematic growth according to a step-by-step roadmap.

The eligibility for this overseas training application is adolescents registered as residents in Gyeonggi Province who are basic livelihood security recipients, legally designated low-income groups, or from legally designated single-parent families, and are in grades 9 through 11 (middle school 3rd year to high school 2nd year) or adolescents of the same age (born between 2007 and 2009). However, applicants must have no disqualifications for visa issuance or overseas training.

Gyeonggi Province will accept applications through the Gyeonggi Lifelong Education Promotion Institute website (https://www.gill.or.kr), and after document and interview screening, will announce the final candidates on May 17.

Jo Tae-hoon, Director of Lifelong Education at Gyeonggi Province, stated, "Through the Gyeonggi Youth Ladder program, we will strive to provide adolescents with more opportunities to broaden their horizons for the future and to challenge and grow toward their dreams."

Meanwhile, Gyeonggi Province relaxed the age criteria and expanded the number of participants for the ‘Youth Ladder’ program from 200 participants aged 19 to 34 last year to 270 participants aged 19 to 39 this year. The application period closed on the 1st of this month, with 7,971 applicants, resulting in a competition ratio of 29.5 to 1.

The final participants will be selected through personality tests and interviews by the 22nd of this month, and starting in July, they will embark on approximately four weeks of training at nine overseas universities in the USA, Europe, Australia, China, and other locations.