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AI disruption has led several prominent entrepreneurs to question the value of traditional college graduate programs. But top South Korean tech companies continue to ascribe value to degrees.
In fact, they are helping craft university courses that fast-track entry into the AI sector, with some offering guaranteed jobs to graduates.
Jung Chae-rin is a second-year student at Sogang University's Department of System Semiconductor Engineering, a four-year degree established in partnership with memory-chip maker SK Hynix.
Her course comes with a guarantee of employment in SK Hynix upon graduation.
At Sungkyunkwan University, or SKKU, third-year student Kim Tae-rin is at the Department of Intelligent Software, a five-year integrated bachelor's and master's program in AI software, created in partnership with Samsung Electronics.
Her route also increases the chances of employment, but she must first clear a separate Samsung hiring process.
The corporate programs belong to a category within South Korea's university system known as "contract departments." Companies help universities develop courses, provide financial support and create pathways through which qualifying students can join them.
SK Hynix has partnerships with several South Korean universities including Korea University and Hanyang University.
Rival Samsung Electronics collaborates with institutes such as Yonsei University, the Korea Advanced Institute for Science and Technology, as well as the Ulsan Institute of Science and Technology.
Kim and Jung told CNBC that these programs offered them financial support and greater certainty of securing a job. For the companies, the programs create a pipeline of skilled workers.
Data from Seoul-based Jongro Academy showed that the number of applicants to contract departments with tie-ups to large companies increased by more than 38% from a year earlier, which also include courses linked to companies such as automaker Hyundai Motor and mobile network operator LG Uplus.
For those looking to ride the AI boom, these programs are particularly lucrative, as Samsung and SK Hynix offer its workers massive pay packets .
The competition to secure a place is intense. SKKU's Kim said that "Juniors from my alma mater keep enrolling in our department every year, and I really feel it when I see that the students coming in tend to have higher and higher grades," adding, "I don't think I would have been able to get in with my grades if I were applying now."
Jongro Academy data revealed that applications to Samsung Electronics contract departments increased by 6.5% in the 2026 academic year, while for SK Hynix-linked contract departments, they increased by 12.7%.
Overall, for all Samsung Electronics contract courses, there were 13.44 applicants for every spot, and for SK Hynix contract department courses, 9.14 applicants were competing for each available seat.
Sogang University's Jung said that the competition rate and admission cutoffs were higher for the 2026 academic year than for 2025.
At the Sogang program, every admitted student automatically gets a SK Hynix scholarship . The scholars who meet the required academic conditions are also guaranteed employment. The department has sch…