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Korea¡¯s unemployment crisis to resolved by startups

Our generation is confronting a crisis in our daily lives: it is getting more and more challenging for us to find jobs. By ¡°our generation¡±, I would like to define it as people who are preparing themselves to start off as a member of the society — who are responsible for themselves, both physically and economically. The older generations of South Korea sometimes attribute unemployment to the lack of effort of the younger generation or to other various reasons. Whatever the reason might be, it is true that this current unemployment crisis is forcing the younger generation to look for alternative options, such as startups. However, is this really true? Also, are the policies the government proposed really effective? First of all, I feel it's unavoidable for me to discuss why our generation is suffering so much.

The most important question that we must ask ourselves is why our generation is having such a hard time getting employed. There are several reasons. First of all, especially in South Korea, there is an overabundant amount of competitive amount of people looking for jobs. Every year, more than 70 percent of South Korean students get accepted into a variety of universities. This is an incredibly high percentage compared to those of other countries. This directly connects to Korea¡¯s unemployment rate because the demand of jobseekers overwhelms the supply of the jobs. Next, because there are many people who received a high-quality education when they were undergraduates, those people expect to be employed in so-called ¡°major companies¡±, such as Samsung or LG. Thirdly, it is highly likely that when one gets into a company, one would be doing work unrelated to what they had learned in university. Because there is an oversupply of people who are highly educated in Korean society as I mentioned above, many people desire to actually put their majors into practical use. Lastly, some people just want to shed the burdens Korean society puts on them. Because of these reasons, most people in their 20s and 30s are forced to find a substitution — a startup business.

To overcome this situation, the South Korean government came out with some policies to encourage people to start startups. First of all, according to the website —www.k-startup.go.kr (an official website of the government related to startups) — the government offers different kinds of education regarding startups. From creating business models through university connections to actual practical education, this website provides information about a myriad of education that the government offers us. Next, after assessing one¡¯s business models and plans, if the person or the company is qualified, the government loans up to a hundred million won with only a 2.0 % interest rate per year, fixed. Apart from these policies, the government steadily opens seminars for people who are interested in starting start ups. In addition, if you go here — www.sbiz.or.k — this website provides information about startups, managed by a department funded by the government. As I have mentioned in this paragraph, it is clear that the government is attempting to encourage young people to challenge themselves. However, are these policies actually effective? I would like to dig in more.

The policies that the government offers are generally divided into two different categories: ones that prepare people and others that actually aids them financially. First of all, going to seminars and learning about the information one needs in order to start a business for free is actually really helpful, because everything needs adequate preparation in every process. Also, due to the fact that the government provides mentoring, one can build a business model with the experienced person¡¯s perspective. However, it is a fact that one needs at least some money in order to actually start a business. So after one prepares oneself with the government¡¯s aid, one can now look forward to getting financial aid. This is where the problem comes up. Because the government is ¡°loaning¡± the money, one has to pay it back to the government. Therefore, the risk of starting a startup does not just vanish, it just delays itself for a few years. Because of this, a profound amount of consideration is required before the action.

To go further, I would now like to depict how usually a business ends up becoming a failure. Most of the businesses that fail have some things in common. Firstly, people who are thinking of starting a business tend to be very unrealistic about their own ideas which makes it difficult for them to assess the quality of their business models. It is critical for one to view one¡¯s own ideas with others¡¯ perspectives. Second, it is evident that before starting a business, an adequate amount of investigation and studying is necessary. However, some people who fail with the startups tend to neglect this fact. This is the part where the government¡¯s policies come in handy. However, most people don't even know about the existence of the government¡¯s support, such as the ones that I have mentioned above. This is why the government¡¯s policies need to be changed a little. For example, I believe lowering the qualification walls would be a help because it is very challenging for people to be accepted to get the aid from the government. Also, I believe simplifying the procedures would be a help.

*Appendix*

Today, I would like to introduce Bonggoo¡¯s Rice Burger as an epitome of a successful startup business. There are several reasons why this ordinary idea turned into a million-dollar idea. First of all, its familiarity appealed to its customers. The name ¡°Bonggoo¡± is a name that can even seem obsolete to most Koreans, because it is old-fashioned. However, that is the part where Serin Oh, the founder of the Bonggoo¡¯s Rice Burger, came in. Next, this brand launched after an adequate amount of preparation. The place where it started was in front of a school which was famous for its poor quality of food. So after some students started eating lunch in his restaurant, it was only a matter of time before his riceburgers became famous. After some time passed, Bonggoo¡¯s even started the franchise business the same year.

Just as I have mentioned above, whatever the reason might be, it is an unavoidable fact that many people who are unemployed are considering alternatives to traditional jobs. Due to this, hundreds of new startups begin and hundreds of businesses fail everyday. Isn¡¯t it a little strange that one can easily spot a successful startup business while failed ones are hard to find? This is because there are an abundant amount of businesses that have failed to make ends meet. If so, would it be appropriate to say that the government¡¯s policies regarding startups has been successful? For the younger generation, especially for undergraduates, it is likely for them to desire a successful startup business of their own, after a lot of unsuccessful attempts to get employed. However, it is also clear that the alternative is as challenging as getting a job, maybe even more. This undesirable situation just leaves the younger generation to be stuck in a stalemate, where the government¡¯s more active and effective support seems to be needed.

Lee Taehwi  xognl1124@gmail.com

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