Minister of Justice Jung Sung-ho (fifth from left in front row) on March 26 poses for a photo at the plaque presentation ceremony for universities selected to receive a development-type specialized technical department at the main conference room of Government Complex-Gwacheon in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi-do Province. (Ministry of Justice)
By Lee Dasom
The Ministry of Justice has launched a development-type specialized technical department at select junior colleges to cultivate international students as key personnel for regional manufacturing.
The ministry on March 26 presented plaques and certificates of designation to six vocational schools in the Seoul metropolitan area and 10 in the provinces picked for the project at the main conference room of Government Complex-Gwacheon in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi-do Province.
The new department targets international students with intermediate fluency in Korean, academic qualifications and technical skills that meet the demands of regional industries.
Such students can expect expanded benefits. If they meet the Korean-language requirements (Level 3 in the Test of Proficiency in Korean), they are exempt from submitting documents confirming financial viability for obtaining a student visa and can get their work hours raised to 35 per week. If they get jobs in their majors after graduation, they qualify for preferential treatment in obtaining a resident (F-2) visa as well as a work visa (E-7-M).
The ministry said this project could see as many as 800 technical personnel from abroad getting jobs at regional small and medium enterprises.
Minister of Justice Jung Sung-ho said, "We must move away from the approach of directly bringing labor from abroad in favor of a virtuous cycle structure of allowing outstanding personnel educated at our universities to settle in regions."
dlektha0319@korea.kr