ScholarWorks@숙명여자대학교

초록

Despite the rise in NEET (Not in Employment, Education, or Training) youth in South Korea, they have received little scholarly and political attention. To address this gap, this study examines how high-school graduate NEETs perceive and interpret their experiences with government-led youth career-support policies and programs. programs for youth. Employing a descriptive qualitative approach, we conducted multiple in-depth interviews with nine participants. Guided by the structural vulnerability framework, our analysis identified three challenges to participants’ engagement with policies and programs: accessibility issues, limited applicability of curricula, and operational limitations. Specifically, participants described difficulties related to information searches, program locations, age restrictions, and financial barriers. They also highlighted that many courses lacked practical relevance, while a lack of staff support undermined program quality and satisfaction. These intersecting constraints reveal the unique realities of this subgroup, which are often overlooked by broad categorizations of youth, and underscore the urgent need for tailored policy support. The findings call for a structural (re)examination of government-led policies and programs that consider the specific characteristics of different youth groups, and future research exploring additional barriers. Thereby, this study seeks to contribute to more effective and inclusive nationwide youth policy design and implementation.

키워드