This is Part 8 of my “Growing Up in Korea” series. Find the full journey here.
The Birth of an Education Obsession
The intense academic pressure characterizing South Korean education today—children studying until midnight, elementary students tackling advanced mathematics, and an entire nation fixated on college entrance exams—wasn’t always the norm. Koreans have historically valued education, but the hyper-competitive system seen today intensified dramatically following the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis, known locally as the “IMF crisis.” This economic catastrophe fundamentally reshaped Korean society, creating ripple effects still visible in parenting styles and definitions of success.
The South Korea I Remember: Before the IMF Crisis
Before exploring how the IMF crisis transformed Korean society, let me share my personal experience. I was born and lived in Korea until my family moved to Thailand in 1994.
In my childhood memories, education was valued but not oppressive. My parents never pressured me excessively, nor did most of my friends’ parents. We frequently played outside, enjoying simple pleasures without constant academic expectations. Even as studies grew more serious in middle school, we still found ample time to socialize and enjoy our childhood.
When and why did Korean society become synonymous with intense academic pressure?
Among various factors, the 1997 IMF crisis was a pivotal turning point.
The Crisis That Shook a Nation
The IMF crisis, which began in Thailand and rapidly spread across Asia, hit South Korea particularly hard.
By late 1997, South Korea was on the brink of bankruptcy, forcing the government to seek a humiliating $60 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). This bailout came with severe conditions: privatization, deregulation, and mass layoffs.
The economic devastation was swift and brutal:
- GDP per capita dropped dramatically from approximately $10,000 to $6,600 within just one year.
- Unemployment surged from 450,000 to over 1.3 million within months.
- By mid-1998, around 80% of Korean households had experienced significant income losses.
- Those identifying themselves as middle class sharply declined from 60% to under 35%.
Faced with these harsh new economic realities, South Korea’s large family-controlled businesses, known as chaebols (재벌, massive conglomerates like Samsung, LG, and Hyundai), adopted aggressive strategies focused on profitability rather than growth. Previously, chaebols had guaranteed lifetime employment and stable incomes, but after the crisis, these promises disappeared overnight.
Families in Crisis
Suddenly, middle-class security vanished overnight. Workers who had dedicated their lives to chaebols faced layoffs, pay cuts, and job insecurity. Writer Yu Si-min vividly describes this dramatic shift in his book, My Contemporary Korean History: 1959-2014:
This wasn’t merely economic reform—it was a profound social upheaval.
The Survival Mindset: From Security to Anxiety
This vulnerability sparked a significant cultural shift in Korean society, described by scholars as the “philosophy of the beggar” (걸인의 철학). This philosophy emphasizes that material wealth provides the ultimate security against uncertainty.
A common Korean phrase, “Does it feed you?” or “Does that put food on the table?” (그게 밥 먹여주냐?), encapsulates this mindset. After the IMF crisis, stable jobs and national prosperity were no longer guaranteed, making tangible wealth seem like the only reliable safety net.
For many Koreans, the period after the IMF crisis meant embracing new identities shaped by individualism (prioritizing personal goals), materialism (emphasis on wealth and possessions), and pragmatic, goal-oriented thinking. By the early 2000s, studies found these new values rapidly replacing traditional Confucian ideals—such as loyalty, harmony, and community—among Korean youth. The crisis encouraged a society where personal responsibility, competition, and self-management became new guiding principles.
Pressure Cooker Parenting
Witnessing this economic devastation deeply traumatized Korean parents.
Their instinct to protect their children intensified dramatically. Academic excellence—leading to elite universities and secure jobs—came to be seen as the only reliable path to safety and prosperity.
Dorothy Kim explains this clearly:
This shift created today’s paradox: extraordinary academic outcomes alongside alarmingly low student happiness and engagement.
Education turned into a desperate race for survival, rather than a journey of curiosity, discovery, and personal growth.
The Anxiety Generation
Nearly three decades later, the IMF crisis continues to echo deeply. “IMF Kids,” who experienced the crisis as children, are now parents themselves. Their parenting styles reflect anxieties formed during their own formative years.
One Korean parent reflects:
Ahn Eun-byul, author of The Life of IMF Kids, describes how these parents relentlessly push their children academically, believing intense pressure is the best preparation for a harsh and uncertain world.
Today’s Korean children spend countless hours in after-school academies (hagwons), endure severe exam stress, and often sacrifice simple childhood joys for academic success.
For many families, this isn’t mere ambition—it’s a desperate effort to shield their children from the economic uncertainty their parents once faced.
The IMF crisis fundamentally reshaped South Korea’s social fabric, transforming parenting styles, redefining education, and recalibrating what success means for an entire society.
Coming Up Next:
In my next post, I’ll explore another legacy of the IMF crisis: the dramatic shift in Korean career aspirations—from initially seeking stable government positions or teaching careers to today’s singular obsession with becoming doctors.
This change further illustrates how economic trauma continues to shape Korean values and priorities. Stay tuned!
For those who understand Korean—or are open to watching with subtitles—
This short video offers a raw and emotional glimpse into how the 1997 IMF crisis shattered countless Korean families.
It captures the collapse of household stability during one of the most traumatic chapters in South Korea’s recent economic history.
This article refers to the following sources:
- My Contemporary Korean History: 1959–2014, A Record of 55 Years – Yu Si-min, 2014 (『나의 한국 현대사: 1959-2014, 55년의 기록』, 유시민, 2014)
- Trauma and South Korean Society – Kim Dong-chun et al., 2014 (『트라우마로 읽는 대한민국』, 김동춘 외, 2014)
- Who Are the 80s-Born Parents? – Lee Eun-kyung, 2022 (『80년대생 학부모, 당신은 누구십니까』, 이은경, 2022)
- The Origin and Formation of Korean Neoliberalism – Ji Ju-hyung, 2012 (『한국 신자유주의의 기원과 형성』, 지주형, 2012)
- I Started Being Deceived as Soon as I Was Born – Oh Chan-ho, 2018 (『나는 태어나자마자 속기 시작했다』, 오찬호, 2018)
- The Life of IMF Kids – Ahn Eun-byul, 2017 (『IMF 키즈의 생애』, 안은별, 2017)
- The Neoliberal Strategy of South Korean Conglomerates – Kyung-Pil Kim, 2022 (『IMF 키즈의 생애』, 안은별, 2017)
- Formation of Neoliberal Identities Among South Korean Youth – Robert F. Delaney, 2015
- The Race for the Perfect Score: The Detrimental Effects of the South Korean Education System – Dorothy Kim, 2021
- Living with Rhetoric, Living against Rhetoric: Korean Families and the IMF Economic Crisis – Seung-kyung Kim & John Finch, 2002
- Korea’s Dwindling Middle Class – Seong-Min Hong, 1999
