Higher professional education
Associate degree
Higher professional education can be taken at junior colleges (전문대학, Jeonmun Daehak). These
colleges were created in 1979 and provide professional programmes with a theoretical and a practical
component, initially primarily in technical specializations, but later they expanded to include a wider
range of programmes. Most programmes take 2 years, however some last 3 years, including nursing,
clinical pathology, radiation, fishing, navigation and engineering.
The entrance requirement is a high school certificate (or equivalent), as well as successful completion
of the CSAT and an entrance examination for the college itself. The target group includes graduates
from vocational high schools who have studied a relevant specialization, professionals from secondary
vocational education and technical staff.
Eighty credits are required to complete the 2-year programmes and obtain the Associate Degree
(called the Junior College Certificate/Diploma until 1997). This diploma allows students to continue on
to the third year of a related bachelor's programme, although most graduates decide to look for a job.
There are currently around 150 junior colleges. Many of these institutions dropped the word ‘junior’ in
1998, or changed their name in some other way.
In terms of level, the Associate Degree is comparable to 2 years of higher professional education
(HBO) in a similar specialization in the Netherlands.
Since March 2008, junior colleges have offered a 1-year Advanced Course leading to a bachelor’s
degree. A total of 140 credits are required to obtain a bachelor’s degree, to which credits earned
previously at a junior college count. The admission requirements are 1 year of relevant work
experience and graduation from a junior college.
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