Foreign Ministry Cancels Selection of Former Prosecutor General Shim Woo-jung's Daughter for Job Opening; All Applicants to Be Re-evaluated

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has notified Shim, the daughter of former Prosecutor General Shim Woo-jung, of the cancellation of her selection as a prospective hire on May 29, following allegations of preferential hiring, SBS has confirmed.

The Foreign Ministry previously concluded through an internal audit that Shim was an applicant who did not meet the requirements specified in the job posting and should not have passed the document screening stage in the first place.

The ministry also determined that three of its employees had handled the hiring process improperly and should be held accountable for their negligence, subsequently requesting the Central Disciplinary Committee to deliberate on disciplinary actions against them.

● Cancellation of 'Prospective Hire' Status Held for Over a Year

Shim had been a prospective hire awaiting official employment after passing the document screening, written exam, and interview for a public service researcher position at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Diplomatic Information Division 1 in February of last year.

However, her hiring was put on hold after allegations of failing to meet qualification requirements were raised at the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee in March of last year.

At the time, Representative Han Jeoung-ae of the Democratic Party of Korea pointed out regarding Shim's relevant experience, "Her only practical experience is an eight-month stint at the Korea National Diplomatic Academy," adding, "This does not constitute practical experience in the relevant field."

Although she did not actually begin working, Shim's status as a prospective hire was maintained for over a year.

Ultimately, following an internal audit and review, the Foreign Ministry notified her of the cancellation of her selection on May 29.

Multiple Foreign Ministry officials told SBS, "We notified her of the cancellation after determining that Shim did not meet the eligibility requirements."

The ministry sent the notification via email after failing to reach her by phone, and it is reported that Shim's side did not provide any particular response.

● "Requirement of '2 Years of Experience After Master's Degree' Was Clear... Should Not Have Passed Document Screening"

The Foreign Ministry considers the job posting as the primary principle for determining eligibility and evaluation criteria.

The posting at the time required "a master's degree in international politics and at least two years of practical experience in the relevant field."

The internal document screening score sheet specified the criteria even more clearly as "two years of practical experience after obtaining a master's degree."

However, it is reported that the officials in charge at the time recognized Shim's activities, such as working as a teaching assistant or research assistant before she obtained her master's degree, as practical experience.

While the officials explained that they had determined that experience gained before obtaining a master's degree could be included as practical experience, the Foreign Ministry reportedly deemed this an act of negligence.

● Repeated Qualification Controversies During Previous Hiring at the Korea National Diplomatic Academy

Shim had previously been selected as a fixed-term researcher at the Korea National Diplomatic Academy, which is under the Foreign Ministry, and worked there for about eight months in 2024.

The job posting at that time set the eligibility criteria as holders of a master's degree in a relevant field or those who had worked for a certain period after obtaining a bachelor's degree.

A government official stated that it was determined that Shim did not meet the qualification requirements in that instance as well.

Although there was a procedural issue where career verification documents were received after the application period had closed, the official explained that the fundamental problem was that Shim did not meet the eligibility requirements from the start.

Meanwhile, the change in the major requirement from "economics-related master's" in the initial posting to "international politics master's" in the re-posting also caused controversy. While the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) viewed this as a problem in the hiring process, the Foreign Ministry reportedly considered it a matter of discretion for the department in charge when there were few applicants.

● Internal Audit Conducted by Foreign Ministry After Board of Audit and Inspection Could Not Initiate Public Interest Audit Due to CIO Investigation

The Foreign Ministry requested a public interest audit from the Board of Audit and Inspection in April of last year, but the audit could not be initiated for a long time due to regulations because an investigation by the CIO was underway.

As Shim's status as a prospective hire continued to be maintained, the Foreign Ministry reportedly decided it could no longer delay the conclusion and launched an internal audit at the end of last year.

Through this, the Foreign Ministry confirmed issues with eligibility and procedures, requested the hiring department to cancel the selection, and the department notified Shim after following administrative procedures.

● Hiring Process Resumed; All Previous Applicants to Be Re-evaluated from Document Screening

After canceling Shim's selection, the Foreign Ministry did not immediately hire the existing reserve candidate.

This was because the flaws in the initial hiring process occurred as early as the document screening stage.

Consequently, instead of a new recruitment drive, the Foreign Ministry re-evaluated the documents of all applicants who had applied for the position last year.

Following a re-evaluation by external judges, five candidates were newly selected to pass the document screening, and subsequent stages, including written exams and interviews, are currently underway for them.

The Foreign Ministry could not confirm whether there was any intent on the part of the hiring officials at the time.

However, it deemed that passing an unqualified applicant despite having clear criteria constituted negligence, and requested the Central Disciplinary Committee to deliberate on disciplinary actions for three employees.

The Central Disciplinary Committee's deliberation is expected to be held as early as the end of this month or early next month.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.