Samsung Withdraws Controversial University Quota Policy in South Korea
A recruitment and information session in South Korea for Samsung. Uploaded by Flickr User Samsungtomorrow (CC BY NC SA 2.0)
South Korea isn't notoriously nicknamed “The Republic of Samsung” for nothing.
Amid harsh criticism, Samsung has withdrawn a new hiring policy [ko] that would have allowed applicants recommended by their university's presidents to skip ahead in the recruiting process. The change would have also put a cap on the number of students from each university using that recommendation.
Although the recommendation does not guarantee a position in Samsung, it gives a significant head start by allowing students to skip the résumé screening process – a big deal in a country where Samsung, one of the most coveted employers, receives several hundred thousand applications each year. There is even a market for books and costly crash courses [ko] on how to get high scores on Samsung's standard exam.
Pointing out the quota was given disproportionately against [ko] women and colleges in certain provinces, net users on Samsung's home turf lashed out not only at the corporation, but also at universities, which were either elated or depressed by the quota dictated to them by Samsung. Two tweets below may best reflect one of the most frequently seen reactions from South Korea's Twittersphere about the Samsung's university quota:
기업이 대학의 상전 노릇을 하며 ‘추천인원 배정'따위의 건방진 짓거리를 할 수 있을 만큼 우리 사회가 자본에 목줄 잡힌 독점적 경제 구조가 완성 되었다는 뜻이고, 그만큼 희망이 사라졌다는 반증이기도 하다.
— 金氷三 (@PresidentVSKim) January 25, 2014
The company are now acting as if they were the university's overlord and can do such an arrogant thing like “setting a quota for a university”. This shows that a monopolistic economic system has formed, prevailed and held a tight grip on our society. Additionally, it also reflects that hope is scarce in our current situation.
@PresidentVSKim @cjkcsek 이 제안을 받아들이는 순간… 이제… 대학은 학문을 연구 하는곳이 아닙니다… 단지, 말잘듣는… 회사의 소모품을 만드는곳 입니다.
— [투표한 곳에서 바로 수개표!] (@jehyang) January 26, 2014
The moment that universities accept Samsung's proposal, the universities are no longer the place for academia, but they will have become a docile supplier manufacturing disposable goods for the company.
