[CBC News] It has been confirmed that the number of applicants for the Industrial Safety Engineer certification exam exceeded 200,000 for the first time last year. Following the enforcement of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act, demand for safety management personnel has surged, establishing the Industrial Safety Engineer certification as the most valuable credential in the youth labor market.

■ Applicants More Than Double in Four Years According to the '2026 National Technical Qualifications Statistical Yearbook' published by the Human Resources Development Service of Korea, the number of applicants for the Industrial Safety Engineer certification exam last year totaled 202,799, combining both written and practical exams. Applicants showed a sharp upward trend starting from the enforcement of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act. The number of applicants, which was 93,439 in 2021, jumped to 121,714 in 2022 (a 30.3% increase) and then surged to 184,760 in 2023 (a 51.8% increase). The upward trend continued with 196,411 in 2024 (a 6.3% increase) and 202,799 last year (a 3.3% increase). There was also a change in the ranking of applicants by certification type for engineer-level exams. In 2021, Information Processing Engineer (140,170 applicants) ranked first, but Industrial Safety Engineer rose to second place in 2022 before overtaking Information Processing Engineer to claim the top spot in 2023. The number of successful candidates also steadily increased. The number of final certification holders was recorded at 15,310 in 2021, 15,681 in 2022 (2.4%), 28,636 in 2023 (82.6%), 31,191 in 2024 (8.9%), and 31,247 last year (0.2%).

■ Ranked First in Value Assessment for Manufacturing Sector Certifications According to a research study published in 'Employment Issues' by the Korea Employment Information Service, an analysis of the national technical qualifications acquired by young job seekers who joined Korea's top 500 companies in 2024, along with their industries of employment, occupations, wages, and certification difficulty levels, found that among manufacturing sector engineer certifications, the Industrial Safety Engineer received the highest value score of 0.7741. Electrical Engineer (0.6138), Information Processing Engineer (0.5178), and General Mechanical Engineer (0.4881) followed. In the non-manufacturing sector, Information Processing Engineer ranked first (0.8637), with Electrical Engineer (0.7112) and Industrial Safety Engineer (0.6188) placing second and third, respectively.