South Korean universities are seeing strong demand for company-linked contract departments that provide financial support and pathways to jobs at major companies, including Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, before students graduate. In the 2026 regular-admission cycle, applications to Samsung-linked departments rose 6.5%, while SK Hynix-linked programs recorded a 12.7% increase. In a separate 2027 early-admissions cycle, a record 8,994 students applied to 13 corporate-sponsored departments linked to seven major companies, up 18.2% from 7,607 a year earlier, according to Jongro Academy data released on the 15th. The average competition rate rose from 20.67-to-1 to 23.48-to-1. Semiconductor departments received 5,992 applications, or 66.6% of the total, and accounted for about 70% of the overall increase. Their competition rate climbed from 23.90-to-1 to 28.53-to-1. SK Hynix-linked programs posted the strongest company-level growth in that cycle, while Samsung Electronics, LG Uplus and Hyundai Motor programs also gained applicants. Sogang University's SK Hynix-linked System Semiconductor Engineering department recorded 1,323 applicants for 20 places, a 66.15-to-1 ratio. Demand weakened in batteries, mobile, telecommunications, artificial intelligence and display, underscoring how corporate performance, industry prospects and hiring conditions influence applications to these programs.