A slowdown in economic growth is prolonging the transition from school to work for many young Koreans. The youth employment rate stands well below the OECD average and youth unemployment surpasses the OECD average since 2017. Rather than accepting a low-paid or temporary job in a highly segmented labour market, many young people prefer to continue investing in formal and informal education or spend a long time preparing for company entry exams. Korean youth are amongst the most educated and skilled in the OECD area, but the financial costs of education for the government and parents are high, as is the personal investment of young people in terms of time and energy devoted to studying. In addition, their skills do not always match labour market needs and many small and medium-sized enterprises struggle to fill positions as they are unable to offer the same working conditions as larger firms.