The government plans to significantly expand AI vocational training for young people as concerns over job security grow amid the rapid spread of artificial intelligence.
The initiative will strengthen practical, industry-focused education using real company data, while covering full tuition costs and providing a monthly training allowance of up to 800,000 won ($522) to develop the core talent needed to lead the AI industry.
The Ministry of Employment and Labor said Wednesday that Minister Kim Young-hoon held an on-site roundtable with youth AI vocational training participants at the KG ICT training center in Jongno-gu, Seoul, to review plans for expanding youth vocational training in the AI era. The event comes as accelerating AI adoption across industries has heightened employment anxiety among young people, with the government aiming to create new opportunities through vocational training.
This year, the ministry added an "AI Campus" track to its K-Digital Training (KDT) program to develop specialists including AI engineers and AI application developers. It is also running an "AI Worker" course that teaches participants to use AI tools in existing fields such as web design and video production.
KG ICT, which hosted Wednesday's roundtable, has participated in the KDT program since 2023 and was selected this year as an AI Campus operator. It currently runs programs including a physical AI manufacturing transformation campus and an AI future battery campus, with 121 trainees enrolled across four courses at the time of the event.
Trainees at the roundtable called for greater government support. "Even after graduating from university, not many of my friends have found jobs where they wanted," one trainee said, urging the government to "strengthen support further so we can focus on training without financial burden." Another trainee said they had beaten a three-to-one acceptance ratio to join the AI Campus, adding that "the biggest advantage is being able to learn practical skills using real industrial data from companies."
A graduate success story was also shared. One program completer, who had majored in arts and physical education, completed the KDT robotics course and joined KG ICT, where he now works in AI and digital transformation project planning. "The experience of working on actual company projects became the decisive competitive edge in landing a job," he said.
The government plans to invest 133.8 billion won in the AI Campus program this year to train 10,000 AI professionals. Trainees receive full tuition coverage along with a monthly allowance of 400,000 won in the Greater Seoul area and 600,000 won outside it. Those also enrolled in the National Employment Support Program and similar schemes can receive up to 800,000 won per month. A total of 44 institutions are currently participating, including SK Group AX, CJ Olive Networks, KG ICT, universities and private training providers.
"In the AI era, the ability to define problems and solve them with skilled use of AI matters more than years of experience," Minister Kim said. "We will continue to expand the KDT AI Campus program so that young people can lead the transition to an AI-driven industry."
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