As Gen Z wrestles with AI upending the traditional career ladder, a growing number of South Korean teenagers are skipping college and choosing vocational semiconductor schools instead—putting them on track for six-figure careers before they’re even old enough to vote.
Rather than spending their final years of high school preparing for university entrance exams, students learn skills like electronic-circuit design, clean-room protocols, and contamination control alongside calculus and chemistry—the technical foundation needed to work in the country’s multibillion-dollar chip industry.
