Samsung sticks with science for 85% of hires

Science and engineering majors account for about 85 percent of the newly recruited employees at Samsung Group, according to officials at the company.

On Monday, Samsung notified applicants of the result of its biannual college graduate recruitment process. In the latest round of recruitment, which started in March, about 100,000 college seniors or graduates applied to work at the country’s largest and most competitive business group, and 4,000 were reportedly hired.

Samsung Group does not make the figures public, but according to officials, after recruitment more than 85 percent of those hired to work for Samsung Electronics, the group’s flagship company, were university students or graduates majoring in science or engineering.

The world’s largest smartphone, memory chip and TV producer looks for new employees in seven departments - R&D, facility management, technology management, marketing, management support, software development and design.

Other ICT-related affiliates of Samsung Group, such as Samsung Electro-Mechanics, Samsung SDI and Samsung SDS, filled more than 80 percent of their available positions with science and engineering majors. At Samsung Heavy Industries, the figure is more than 90 percent.

Samsung C&T filled about 80 percent of its open positions with science or engineering majors, but its trade unit, which is much smaller than the company’s construction business, chose people who did not major in science or engineering for at least 80 percent of its positions.

There is speculation that Samsung hires a high percentage of science and engineering majors in order to strengthen its technological prowess in the face of growing global competition, but the group denies it.

“The group has recruited many science and engineering majors for a long time,” said a Samsung official.

In the latest round of hiring, Samsung said it abided by a quota that it has applied since the 2012 recruitment process.

Under the quota, the group gives at least 35 percent of the openings to graduates of colleges located outside the greater Seoul metropolitan area, at least 30 percent to women and at least 5 percent to people from low-income families.

Samsung recruits new college graduates through a three-stage process: resume screening, the Samsung Aptitude Test and interviews with executives.

BY moon gwang-lip [joe@joongang.co.kr]