By Kim Tong-hyung
Staff Reporter


The number of Koreans who took the TOEIC English proficiency test last year was the highest among the 60 countries that have adopted the exam, reflecting the continuing English-learning boom at local companies.

TOEIC, which stands for the Test of English for International Communication, is accepted widely as a uniform test of English communicative skills in Korean schools and businesses.

According to the Institute for International Business Communication (IIBC), which organizes the TOEIC tests in Japan, the number of Korean TOEIC takers reached 1.83 million in 2004, higher than the 1.43 million TOEIC takers in Japan, where the test first originated.

The number of TOEIC takers in Korea has been climbing steadily in the past few years, growing 49 percent year-on-year in 2003 when it reached 1.69 million, first outnumbering Japan’s TOEIC applicants which stood at 1.42 million during the same period.

``The key determinant was the influx of foreign companies due to the policy of economic liberalization from 1997, following the nation’s acceptance of a bailout package from the International Monetary Fund to deal with the financial crisis’’ said an official from YBM/Sisa, which manages TOEIC tests in Korea.

``The wave of foreign firms accelerated the globalization of the Korean economy and dramatically increased the need for English. Korean companies are becoming increasingly international and more of them are requiring their employees to strengthen their practical English skills,’’ he said.

The TOEIC test, first developed by the Educational Testing Service (ETS) of the United States, was first implemented in Japan in 1979. TOEIC has been adopted internationally since, with 4.5 million people in 60 countries taking the test last year. The test was first implemented in Korea in 1982.

According to YBM/Sisa, more than 1,000 companies in Korea use TOEIC as an evaluation standard in hiring or training employees.

TOEIC is also widely accepted as the English test of choice for public servants, along with the U.S.-originated TOEFL (Test of English as Foreign Language).

Korea also has its own English proficiency test called TEPS (Test of English Proficiency), developed by Seoul National University in 1999, which is gaining popularity.

Other Asian countries such as Taiwan and Thailand have a high number of TOEIC participants, averaging about 50,000 people annually.

Interest in TOEIC is also increasing in China, with the approaching 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing. Chinese TOEIC takers reached 30,000 last year, a threefold increase from 2002’s 10,000.

thkim@koreatimes.co.kr