Seoul to Hire 393 New Kindergarten, Elementary and Special-School Teachers, Up 23% From Last Year

[Financial News] Seoul will significantly increase the number of kindergarten, elementary and special-school teachers it hires, with the total rising by more than 20% from last year. Despite the decline in the school-age population, teacher supply conditions and demand for tailored special education are expected to lower the barrier to entry for new recruits to some extent.
The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education (SMOE) announced on its website on the 9th its plan for the 2027 academic-year teacher appointment examinations for public, national and private kindergartens, elementary schools and special schools. It said it would hire 393 new teachers in total—73 more than last year's 320, representing a 22.8% increase.
Elementary and special-school teachers are driving the increase in recruitment. Public schools, which account for most of the total, will hire 370 teachers, up 72, or 24.2%, from 298 a year earlier. In particular, the number of public elementary-school teachers to be hired rose by 55 to 267, a 25.9% increase from 212 the previous year. Public special elementary schools, which educate students with disabilities, will also hire 53 teachers, a sharp 76.7% increase from 30 a year earlier. By contrast, the number of public kindergarten teachers will fall slightly to 43, while seven special-kindergarten teachers will be hired, also slightly fewer than last year.
A total of 23 teachers will be jointly recruited through the education office for national and private schools. National schools—including Seoul National University-affiliated Elementary School, Seoul National School for the Deaf and Korea Woojin School—will hire six teachers in total: two for elementary education and four for special elementary education. For private schools, 11 school foundations will entrust the first-stage examination to the education office and plan to hire 17 teachers: eight elementary-school teachers, eight special elementary-school teachers and one special-kindergarten teacher.
The rules at examination sites have been tightened further to prevent cheating with advanced devices. Starting with this examination, SMOE has explicitly designated smart glasses as a prohibited item for the first time. The measure is intended to prevent attempts to cheat covertly using the communication functions or miniature cameras built into the latest digital devices and to ensure a fair examination.
Applications will be accepted online through the Online Teacher Recruitment System for five days, from the 28th through the 2nd of next month. The first-stage examination will be held on November 7, with successful candidates announced on December 9. After the second-stage examination, including a teaching demonstration and interviews, takes place from January 6 to 7 next year, the final successful candidates will be announced on January 27.

[email protected] Man-ki Kim Reporter