The effects of English training abroad on labor market outcomes in Korea

•I examine the effects of English training abroad on labor market outcomes in Korea.•ETA has substantive positive effects on getting a good job and earning higher wages.•ETA is particularly beneficial for graduates from non-elite schools.•ETA helps more affluent students successfully transition into the labor market.

This study examines the effects of English training abroad (hereafter ETA) on labor market outcomes in South Korea. ETA has become increasingly popular in many non-English speaking countries and refers to short-term language study training abroad where students spend anywhere from 6 months to 2 years taking language courses at an educational institutions. In this article, I conduct survival analysis and quantile regression using data from the 2007 Korea Employment Information Service's Graduate Occupational Mobility Survey. This study finds that although the average effects of ETA seem to be modest as most prior research has indicated, ETA does appear to have substantial positive effects on getting a good job and earning higher wages. ETA proved especially helpful for those who did not attend elite colleges. That is, ETA is a useful tool for students with weaker formal education (often non-elite students) to supplement their educational credentials. Based on these findings, I conclude that ETA has a substantial impact on labor market outcomes in South Korea. This means that labor market opportunities are strongly determined by an individual's socioeconomic background, as the cost of participation in ETA presents a barrier to entry for individuals from lower socioeconomic backgrounds.