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Korea's Exponent in Career Consultation: Woon Young Park
(상략)
Q: Wasn't career consulting an unfamiliar career during that time in Korea?
A: You're right. There were no consultation firms. Because of that, I joined a headhunting company, which would know the future of the employment market the best. That company is Nterway. I worked there and helped workers find employment as a headhunter, and in 2003 I went through research and study at the University of Wisconsin and obtained the first Korean GCDF (Global Career Development Facilitator) certificate and then jumped straight into career consulting. I provided consulting for career paths for middle and high school students, job preparation for college, first job, job relocation, planning retirement for people in 40's-50's and did about 2,000 individual consultations, which is quite a lot. I was the vice-president so during the day I'd manage the company and supervise the staff, and used the evening and the holidays to do the consulting. Then I became pretty well known, and universities, government facilities and some of the media contacted me so I did quite a bit of lectures too. I got my GCDF instructor's certificate in 2008 and I'd say that through the last 10 years I worked as a career consultant continually.
Q: It's been said that the company Nterway is a relatively well known in the headhunting fields – why did you choose to study abroad for doctorate in your 40's?
A: I've thought many times that I wasn't prepared enough. Especially now that the Jobless Growth has fully materialized I felt my limits giving career improvement advice to workers in 40's - 50's. So I wanted to look for myself what it was like in the States, where the age discrimination isn't as bad in the job market. And I also wanted to learn something that's new and organizational. Another worry was whether I could keep competitive 10 or 20 years later. Without the self-improvement to produce new information, I wasn't confident about after the 60's, since I planned to work in the information industry for the rest of my career.
There were people that tried to stop me. I've even heard people ask if I was crazy. But my family accepted and understood me. My co-workers also knew my interests and supported me. Of course, my memory isn't as good now so studying for TOEFL and GRE was tough. (Laugh)
(하략)
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※ 본 자료는 2010년 07월 11일 CU Korean Times에 보도 되었습니다.
