Earticle

초록

영어

This study comparatively examines the employment preparation experiences of Korean and Japanese university students through a qualitative comparative case study. Although both countries share common structural conditions, including the massification of higher education and prolonged economic stagnation, the processes through which students prepare for employment and transition into the labor market differ according to their institutional arrangements and sociocultural contexts. Based on in-depth interviews with Korean and Japanese university students, this study explores how they experience and construct their career pathways within these differing contexts. The findings reveal that in Japan, the mass simultaneous recruitment system (Shinsotsu Ikkatsu Saiy?) institutionalizes employment before graduation as the normative career pathway, while also generating anxiety about deviating from standardized career trajectories. In contrast, South Korean students experience prolonged employment preparation under rolling recruitment systems and an unstable labor market, resulting in intensified competition centered on achievement, continuous self-development, and anxiety arising from repeated rejection. These findings suggest that career decision-making is not merely an individual choice but a socially and institutionally constructed process shaped by labor market structures, educational systems, and sociocultural contexts. By qualitatively comparing the employment preparation experiences of Korean and Japanese university students, this study contributes to a deeper understanding of how different institutional and cultural environments influence career formation and provides implications for university career education and youth employment policy.

저자

• 김연희
• 吉田羽夏弥

참고문헌

발행기관

간행물

표지보기 관심저널 등록

• 간행물명

  동북아 문화연구 [Journal of North-east Asian Cultures]

• 간기

  계간

• pISSN

  1598-3692

• 수록기간

  2001~2026

• 등재여부

  KCI 등재

• 십진분류

  KDC 910 DDC 950