Source: Korea e-Sports Association

The Korea e-Sports Association and the Mapo Career and Vocational Experience Support Center are partnering to expand opportunities for youth in Mapo-gu to explore e-sports as a career path.

The Korea e-Sports Association (President Kim Young-man, hereinafter the Association) announced on the 14th that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Mapo Career and Vocational Experience Support Center (Director Eom Jun-sik) to expand e-sports career education and experience opportunities for youth. The signing ceremony was held on July 31 at the e-Sports Hall of Fame in Mapo, Seoul, with representatives from both organizations in attendance, including Association Secretary General Kim Cheol-hak and Center Director Eom Jun-sik.

This agreement was established to systematize e-sports career education and broaden hands-on opportunities, building on the two organizations' history of collaboration through career experience programs and the Mapo Career Fair. Under the agreement, both sides will continuously operate e-sports experience programs for Mapo-gu youth and increase on-site vocational training opportunities to support career exploration. They also plan to jointly promote career education and activities, such as running e-sports-related career programs at the Mapo Career Fair.

Mapo Career and Vocational Experience Support Center Director Eom Jun-sik said, "Through this MOU, we hope Mapo youth will gain a broader understanding of e-sports as a career field and discover various possibilities within this future industry. We will continue to expand career education in partnership with local communities and professional institutions to actively support youth in pursuing bigger dreams."

Association Secretary General Kim Cheol-hak stated, "Through this agreement, we will actively support Mapo youth in experiencing e-sports in diverse ways and exploring their career paths in a healthy and enjoyable manner. Building on our success in winning the Minister of Education Award last year for a community-linked career experience program conducted with the Mapo Career and Vocational Experience Support Center, we will establish a more systematic and sustainable cooperation framework to lead the way in youth e-sports career education."

The Association has been operating the 'Mapo-gu e-Sports Career Experience Program' for two years in collaboration with the Mapo Career and Vocational Experience Support Center, DRX, and SOOP to support youth e-sports career development. The program provides students in Mapo-gu with opportunities to experience various professions in e-sports—such as administration, team management, broadcasting, and tournament operations—through tours of the e-Sports Hall of Fame, the DRX headquarters, and the Sangam SOOP Colosseum.