The competition ratio for Korea's Grade 7 national civil service open recruitment examination fell to 38.4-to-1 this year, the lowest level in the past five years. While the number of positions increased, applicants declined, confirming a renewed downturn in the appeal of public service, analysts said.
The Ministry of Personnel Management said Thursday that a total of 25,650 candidates applied for 668 positions in the "2026 Grade 7 National Civil Service Open Recruitment Examination," with applications accepted from the 11th through the 15th.
The average competition ratio stood at 38.4-to-1, down 6.2 points from 44.6-to-1 a year earlier. Over the past five years, the ratio was 42.7-to-1 in 2022, 40.4-to-1 in 2023, 40.6-to-1 in 2024, and 44.6-to-1 last year.
Although this year's recruitment size increased from 595 positions last year, the number of applicants declined. The number of applications submitted fell by 861 from a year earlier. Some observers say the appeal of public service is no longer what it used to be, as concerns persist over civil service pay levels and workload.
However, some predict that the popularity of civil service jobs may have hit bottom and could rebound. Kim Sun-tae, a civil servant in the public relations office of Chungju City in North Chungcheong Province who is known as "Chungju Man," recently appeared on the YouTube channel "Mimimnu" and drew attention by saying, "I will make my own children become civil servants," and "Now is the time to buy at the bottom."
By job category, the competition ratio was 40.9-to-1 for the administrative track and 31.0-to-1 for the science and technology track.
Among detailed recruitment categories, the education administration position recorded the highest competition ratio at 188.5-to-1. In the science and technology track, the general agriculture position was the highest at 69.3-to-1.
Among job series with large recruitment sizes, general administration drew 7,711 applicants for 179 positions, a ratio of 43.1-to-1. The employment and labor position recorded 18.6-to-1, with 1,731 applicants for 93 positions.
Preference for science and engineering positions also continued. The computing (software development) position drew 1,197 applicants for 24 positions, a ratio of 49.9-to-1. The facilities (architecture) position recorded 17.0-to-1, with 426 applicants for 25 positions.
The average age of applicants was 30.7, similar to 30.6 last year. By age group, those in their 20s numbered 13,473, accounting for 52.6% of the total. They were followed by those in their 30s with 9,299 (36.3%), those in their 40s with 2,471 (9.6%), those aged 50 or older with 371 (1.4%), and those under 20 with 36 (0.1%).
The gender breakdown was similar, with 13,221 men (50.5%) and 12,685 women (49.5%).
The government is accelerating efforts to improve treatment in order to ease the recent trend of avoiding civil service jobs. The civil service pay raise rate this year is 3.5%, the highest level in nine years since 2017. In particular, with additional increases pursued for junior-level civil servants, the pay raise rate for Grade 9 first-step employees reached 6.6%.
The Ministry of Personnel Management also unveiled plans to gradually raise the starting salary for Grade 9 civil servants, currently at 2.69 million won including allowances, to 2.84 million won next year and 3 million won in 2027. In line with the salary increase, holiday bonuses for Lunar New Year and Chuseok are also expected to rise from about 1.2 million won to 1.27 million won for entry-level Grade 9 employees.
The government is also expanding the recruitment scale once again. The number of national civil service open recruits this year stood at 5,351, marking the first increase in five years. Since the launch of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, the size of national civil service open recruitment had continued to decline, from 6,819 in 2022 to 6,396 in 2023, 5,751 in 2024, and 5,272 last year, but rebounded this year.
Meanwhile, the first round of this year's Grade 7 national civil service open recruitment exam will be held on July 18 across 17 cities and provinces nationwide. Test locations will be announced on July 10 through the national civil service recruitment system.
