There are some reasons for this: 1) military service for young men 2)study abroad 3)taking a semester/year off for work, rest, or to study something such as English 4) Korean age - the way in which Koreans determine a person's age which results in everyone being 1 or 2 years 'older' than they would be in other countries.
One thing that I find interesting is that Koreans seem to think there's nothing wrong with students taking their time to get through college. In the US when I was in college students were encouraged to go through in four years. They could study abroad or intern, usually for a semester, but still finishing in four years was still considered better than 4 1/2, 5 or more. There was strong discouragement towards taking time off, taking a year off to work, and so on because many students didn't return to college after doing so. Again, I find it really interesting that Koreans seem to have no problem with this. Those students who took so long to finish college were looked at as being slackers, underachievers, being without motivation, etc. In some cases it was okay but it was still looked at so much more positively to 'finish in four years.' Doing it sooner was even better. Finishing in three years was considered great.
The reality is that most good jobs in Korea go to men. And they have until age 29 (Korean age) to secure their first good job. But after one turns 30 it becomes much harder. To put it plainly many companies simply won't hire someone aged 30 or over. Someone with work experience has a chance, but someone who's 29 without work experience is considered perfectly normal. In America we don't see such a difference between 29 and 30. Also if there are applicants say aged 25 and 26 who have similar qualifications, the younger one will be chosen. In the US there's no case where being one year older makes such a great difference in terms of gaining employment.
Young women can finish college earlier than men because there's no required military service. (Most young men take time off college for it while a few perform it before or after.) I have a young female student who's a senior in university. Her age is 23 in Korea, or 21/22 elsewhere. With the school year in Korea going from March - February and graduation in February, when she graduates this February she'll be a year older, 24. (In Korea everyone turns a year older on January 1st.) She went straight through college in four years. 24 is the youngest one can finish college in Korea, except for some students born early in the year, who can finish at age 23. These students who are 23 or 24 in Korea would be age 22 in other countries.
I want to write about one young man I know who's also a senior in college. He's aged 28 in Korea, or 27 in other countries as he's had his birthday this year, 2010. The freshman are all, almost all, aged 20 in Korea or 18/19 elsewhere. It's a problem for this student because he's bothered by what he sees as a huge age difference between himself and the younger students. He first entered university eight years ago. He feels as though he's been in college for eight years, even though he took time off for work and for military service.
These two students, now in their last semester, are no longer attending classes as regular students. Both live at home, work, and are looking towards the future, work or graduate school. In the US students are allowed to do this. They could be called non-attending students. Many Korean students do this their last year or semester of college. They tell the professors. In some cases the professors simply ask them to take the midterm and final exams or to do an assignment. Then they get credit and some grade which is usually lower than it would be if they were regular students.
Young Koreans who don't finish college until their late 20s have a short time to find a job before they turn age 30. Also they are expected to marry at this time. That's another story. I think it would be better for young people in Korea if they were encouraged to get through college a little faster so that they have more time to look for jobs and think about marriage.
Also abolishing Korean age would help. Job applicants can be passed over for others who are even one year younger. After a certain age it becomes very hard or even impossible to find a job. Also getting married becomes more difficult(especially for women)as young people grow older. Adopting international age would make everyone in the country a year or two younger right away. For older people this doesn't mean a lot, but for younger people it can mean a lot! Getting a job and getting married are two of the most important things in one's life.
