Gyeonggi Province and the Gyeonggi Job Foundation recently recruited participants for the Gyeonggi Youth Gap Year Program, which supports young people who seek to realize their dreams while taking on the job they want. During the recruitment period, 1,048 people applied for 600 spaces.

From May 12 to 31, Gyeonggi Province and the Gyeonggi Job Foundation recruited 300 participants for the 1st term and 300 participants for the 2nd term of the Gyeonggi Youth Gap Year Program. Applications for various project contents were made (e.g. the ‘Boiled Egg’ web drama project, a youth ‘mind care’ experience project, a general store project for domestic travel blogs and newsletters, an upcycling-instead-of-recycling project, and more), revealing the new mindsets of Gyeonggi youths.

Those finally selected as Gyeonggi Youth Gap Year Program participants can receive a project subsidy of up to KRW 5 million per person and carry out their planned project over a 100-day period. Of particular note, mentoring by experts in relevant fields and capacity-building education will be fully supported so as to ensure smooth project implementation.

In addition, the final outcome of the projects can be included in portfolios when participants seek employment or initiate start-ups in related fields, so the program is expected to provide a practical boost to the careers of young people who are pursuing their dreams and embracing challenges.

For the 1st term participants, the Gyeonggi Job Foundation plans to conduct document reviews from June 7 to June 9 before announcing interviewees on June 14. Final selection results will be announced on June 30 after the interviews in June. The document reviews will see the evaluation of applications and project plans, while the interviews will gauge the values and motivations of the applicants through in-depth questions based on the submitted documents. The 2nd term participants will be selected in July.

Lee In-yong, Director of the Youth Opportunity Division of Gyeonggi Province, said, “We were able to ascertain sincere concerns and various endeavors pertaining to the dreams of young people while recruiting participants for the Gyeonggi Youth Gap Year Program… We will support the dreams and growth of young people through the Gyeonggi Youth Gap Year Program.”