(image: Flickr/ Republic of Korea Armed Forces)
SEOUL, Aug. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — The Republic of Korea Army (ROKA) said on August 27 that the first recruitment for long-term Non-Commissioned Officers(NCOs) drew 2,155 applicants for 255 vacancies – each applicant having an average of 8.5 competitors.
According to army officials, the longer service period coupled with the worsening job market have boosted the popularity of employment in the standing army, which is thought to be a stable job.
This is the army’ s first trial to recruit NCOs for long-term service, with the minimum set at ten years.
Thus far the ROKA has only recruited NCOs for short-term service, four years for men and three for women; and only those who successfully completed their short-term commitment were eligible to sign up for the long-term.
The recruitment competition ratio for NCOs last year came in at 3.6 to 1.
Sorted by Military Operational Specialty, Maneuvering Drones and UAVs attracted the most applicants, with 28.8 competitors for each applicant. This was followed by Special Duty (6.9 to 1) and Cyber & Information Warfare (6.6 to 1).
Females submitted 563 applications, marking 26 percent of the applications received. Of the female applicants, 404 signed up for Special Duty, of which only 10 will be selected.
Special Duty NCOs serve in Special Forces regiments or Scout battalions; both are known for their punishing training.
“This year, we are only hiring NCOs for three Military Operational Specialties,” said the ROKA officer responsible for this round of hiring.
“But we may expand it to other specialties next year, subject to discussion with more ROKA agencies. Such a change will allow the army to welcome more skilled combat experts.”
By Joey Yoo (joeyyoo@koreabizwire.com)
