Spring-semester showcase held for 'Seoul Young Careers' Stage 2 program
87 teams applied for 8 spots, a competition ratio of 14.5 to 1
Program covers career exploration, skills training and internships for current students
Participation to grow from 1,750 this year to 5,600 by 2030
Mayor Oh says youth growth is foundation for Seoul's rise as global top-3 city
![Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon (front row, third from left) poses with participants at the Seoul Young Careers Challenge spring-semester showcase held at Seoul Global Center on Saturday. [Seoul Metropolitan Government]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/06/08/news-p.v1.20260606.668ad0337e7c481aadfc5f7ed0222ea3_P1.jpg)
Interest in "Seoul Young Careers" — the Seoul Metropolitan Government's flagship youth development policy offering career exploration, job skills training and internship opportunities to students still in university — is growing, and so is the number of applicants. The city plans to expand annual participation from 1,750 this year to 5,600 by 2030.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government said it held the spring-semester showcase for the "Challenge" program — Stage 2 of the five-stage Seoul Young Careers initiative — on Saturday at the international conference hall of Seoul Global Center.
Mayor Oh Se-hoon attended in person, listening to participants describe the experiences and results they gained while working on real corporate assignments and offering words of encouragement to young people preparing for their futures.
Seoul Young Careers is the city's integrated work-experience policy, designed to support university students through career exploration, job skills development and internships. The program addresses a mismatch in the labor market: companies prefer candidates who can contribute immediately, while young people lack opportunities to gain hands-on experience. Starting this year, the program shifted its focus from recent graduates to current university students.
Seoul Young Careers consists of five stages: Camp, Challenge, Internship I, Internship II and Jump Up. Saturday's showcase presented the results of Stage 2, the Challenge, in which teams of young participants identify and solve real problems facing actual companies through project-based, hands-on work.
The Challenge spring semester drew 87 teams (930 applicants) competing for 8 spots (64 participants), a ratio of roughly 14.5 to 1, reflecting strong interest among young people.
Stage 1, Camp — which helps participants explore career paths and job roles before serious career-building begins — drew 1,093 applicants for 200 spots, a ratio of about 5.5 to 1. Applications for the Camp summer semester are open until 6 p.m. on June 19. Stage 3, Internship — which lets participants gain real workplace experience while earning academic credit through a field-practice semester system — also proved highly competitive for its summer semester, with 1,505 applicants vying for 150 spots, a ratio of roughly 10.0 to 1.
The 64 participants (8 teams) selected for the Challenge spring semester spent 11 weeks from March carrying out projects in production quality, marketing and sales.
At Saturday's showcase, participants shared their 11-week journey through videos documenting their project processes and outcomes. Outstanding teams selected through a panel evaluation received the Seoul Mayor's Award.
The city plans to more than triple Seoul Young Careers participation — from 1,750 this year to 5,600 by 2030. It also plans to invest the city's resources strategically in youth development to strengthen Seoul's long-term competitiveness, with a goal of completing its vision of a "Special City for Youth Growth" by 2030.
"The growth of young people will be the greatest competitive advantage and foundation for Seoul's rise to become a global top-3 city," Mayor Oh said. "We will continue to expand support policies that young people can truly feel, so they can grow even further."
ikson@heraldcorp.com
