Path to 'FIRE': Semiconductor supercycle spurs rush for jobs at Samsung, SK hynix

Home > Business > Industry

Path to 'FIRE': Semiconductor supercycle spurs rush for jobs at Samsung, SK hynix

Published: 15 Apr. 2026, 07:00 Updated: 15 Apr. 2026, 14:06

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

An inspector holds a preliminary call with applicants of corporate entrance exam at Samsung's human resources development center in March. [SAMSUNG]

Korea’s semiconductor industry is experiencing a historic high, and top-tier graduates want to get in on the action. With major chipmakers posting extraordinary profits and dangling the prospect of massive performance bonuses, graduates are increasingly prioritizing immediate employment over further academic pursuits.

Preparatory books for corporate entrance exams for semiconductor companies have become bestsellers, and anonymous chat rooms filled with employee hopefuls sharing information are buzzing, all for the prospect of locking down a coveted position at a chipmaking company.

A recruitment preparation book for SK-related corporations published by private education group Eduwill ranked No. 1 on online bookstore Yes24’s best-seller list in the second week of April, according to the publisher. Sales of preparation books for the Global Samsung Aptitude Test, the entrance exam of Samsung-affiliated corporations, also jumped about 40 percent in the first quarter this year compared to the same period last year.

“The number of job seekers aspiring to work in semiconductor-related fields grew notably as the chip companies offer generous compensation in accordance with their performance,” a representative from Eduwill said.

On Monday, when an online SK Competency Test exam took place, 3,000 participants in an anonymous chat room shared their reflections on the test, asking about the difficulty and potential cutoff score.

"Underclassmen from my university, who had rarely been in touch, reached out and asked about recruitment strategies," a semiconductor engineer said.

Recruitment exam preparatory books for Samsung-related corporations published by private education group Eduwill [EDUWILL]

For some, the recent supercycle has changed the trajectory of their careers. Park, a 26-year-old college student majoring in electrical and electronic engineering, originally planned to continue his education by pursuing a master’s degree. Now, Park dreams of retiring after working in the semiconductor industry for a short period.

“I think if I get a job in the industry now, I could achieve ‘FIRE’ after just five years,” said Park, who recently applied for entry-level positions at Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, referring to the acronym for “Financial Independence, Retire Early,” a life philosophy that encourages saving and investing significant amounts of one’s salary to gain financial independence and opt out of the work force before the age of 40.

“As nobody knows when the supercycle in the semiconductor industry will end, I thought it would be wiser to land a job as soon as possible and accumulate some savings,” Park said.

In hagwon (private education), students now include SK hynix among their most sought-after career paths, alongside more traditionally popular options like medical school, dental school, Korean medicine, pharmacy and veterinary school.

Samsung flag and Korea's national flag are seen in front of Samsung's office building in southern Seoul in April. [NEWS1]

Such fervor in the semiconductor industry appears to be linked to record-high earnings and consequent employee compensation.

Samsung Electronics reported a historic preliminary operating profit of 57.2 trillion won ($38 billion) for the first quarter this year. SK hynix, set to announce its earnings on April 23, is also expected to post an operating profit of around 40 trillion won, according to securities firms such as KB Securities, Kiwoom and Heungguk Securities.

Sydney-based global investment bank Macquarie recently projected that SK hynix’s annual operating profit could reach 447 trillion won next year. If realized, an allocation of 10 percent for bonuses among 34,500 employees would result in a payout of 1.29 billion won each, a payout now possible since the company abolished its upper limit for incentives last year.

While acknowledging the possibility of growth in earnings, a representative from SK hynix said that the operating profit estimation from Macquarie is off-base.

“Considering the difficulty of rapid expansion in production capacity in the short term, a 400 trillion won projection appears somewhat exaggerated,” the representative said.

SK hynix headquarter in Icheon, Gyeonggi, on January [YONHAP]

Yet concerns have grown over whether the lucrative incentive system initiated by SK hynix is sustainable.

The largest labor union at Samsung Electronics recently argued that the company should allocate 40.5 trillion won to performance bonuses with an assumption that its annual operating profit would record 270 trillion won.

The figure suggested by Samsung Electronics' labor group is four times the amount used for shareholder dividends last year. While the company is said to be reviewing means to expand employee bonuses, it is also in a position to duly consider shareholder returns, capital investment and fairness across business divisions, all of which complicates the decision.

Lim Chae-woon, an emeritus professor of business school at Sogang University, pointed out that “the current system of uniformly distributing bonuses per departmental performance has limits.”

“The historic performance of semiconductor companies recently has been driven not only by individual efforts but also by external factors such as the AI boom,” Lim said. “The companies need to move away from lump-sum and division-wide compensation and develop a structure that precisely links rewards to individuals’ specific performance and contributions for a fair bonus system that labor and management can accept."

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY LEE YOUNG-KEUN, KIM SU-MIN [[email protected]]