Korean Job Interview Language: -으로서, -을 따름이다, -이며
Korean interviews lean on formal grammar: -으로서 states your role (지원자로서 최선을 다하겠습니다 — as an applicant I'll do my best), -을 따름이다 sounds humble (감사할 따름입니다 — I'm simply grateful), and -이며 lists qualities in writing (성실하며 책임감이 강합니다 — I'm diligent and have a strong sense of responsibility).
Published:
Written by Alvin Lim Certified Korean Language Teacher (Level 2)
A Korean job interview runs on formal grammar. -(으)로서 states the role you’re speaking from (지원자로서 최선을 다하겠습니다 — as an applicant, I’ll do my best). -을 따름이다 keeps you humble (뽑아 주신다면 감사할 따름입니다 — if you choose me, I’ll simply be grateful). And -(으)며 lists your strengths in clean written style (성실하며 책임감이 강합니다 — I’m diligent and have a strong sense of responsibility). This is Chapter 7, where Grade 4 steps onto the formal stage.
Chapter 7 is about register — the polished, formal Korean of interviews, presentations, and written essays. You’ve spent Chapter 6 in casual banmal and real talk; now we swing all the way to the other end. The interview is the perfect place to start, because every sentence comes from a role. Begin with the words that fill the room.
Twelve words for the interview
These run any 면접 — from the 자기소개서 to the final handshake.
In the capacity of — -(으)로서
To speak from a role or status — “as / in the capacity of” — attach -(으)로서 to a noun. It’s the backbone of interview answers, because you’re always presenting yourself as something.
지원자로서 최선을 다하겠습니다 = as an applicant, I’ll do my best 사회인으로서 책임감을 가지고 있습니다 = as a working adult, I have a sense of responsibility 팀의 리더로서 갈등을 조율했습니다 = as the team’s leader, I mediated conflicts 한 사람의 직업인으로서 자부심을 느낍니다 = as a professional, I feel pride
Attachment is simple: vowel-final nouns take 로서 (지원자로서), consonant-final nouns take 으로서 (사회인으로서). Keep it apart from 처럼 (“like, similar to”) — 로서 is the role you actually hold, not a comparison.
I can only ~ — -을 따름이다
To sound humble and formal — “I can only / nothing but” — use -(으)ㄹ 따름이다. It politely downplays yourself, which is exactly the tone an interview wants when you accept praise or express thanks.
최선을 다할 따름입니다 = I can only do my best 뽑아 주신다면 감사할 따름입니다 = if you choose me, I’ll simply be grateful 맡은 일을 해낼 따름입니다 = I’ll just see my duties through 부족한 점은 배워 나갈 따름입니다 = I can only keep learning where I fall short
It’s the formal cousin of -을 뿐이다 (“only”). In everyday speech you’d say 제 일을 했을 뿐이에요 (I just did my job); in an interview or a speech, 따름입니다 lands with the right note of modesty.
Listing it formally — -(으)며
To list qualities or facts in written, formal style — “and” — use -(으)며. It’s the connector of the 자기소개서: composed, literate, cleaner than spoken -고.
저는 성실하며 책임감이 강합니다 = I am diligent and have a strong sense of responsibility 경영을 전공했으며 인턴 경험이 있습니다 = I majored in management and have internship experience 꼼꼼하며 끈기가 있는 편입니다 = I’m meticulous and rather persistent 맡은 일에 집중하며 결과로 보여 드리겠습니다 = I’ll focus on my work and show results
Attach it to the stem: 강하다 → 강하며, 있다 → 있으며 (consonant stems take 으며). -(으)며 also carries a “while / simultaneously” sense for actions (음악을 들으며 공부합니다 = I study while listening to music), which echoes -(으)면서.
-(으)로서 or -(으)로써?
One letter apart, opposite meanings — and interviews use both. -(으)로서 is the role (“as a ___”); -(으)로써 is the means (“by means of ___”). 지원자로서 = as an applicant; 노력으로써 = through effort. If “as a ___” fits, it’s 로서; if “by using ___” fits, it’s 로써. You’ll drill 로써 fully in the next lesson on presentations.
A mock interview
A short formal exchange — every Chapter 7 pattern, in register:
Notice the register hold steady: 전공했으며 lists experience, 직업인으로서 names the role, 따름입니다 closes with humility — all in 합니다체. That’s an interview answer that sounds prepared and professional.
FAQ
What’s the difference between -(으)로서 and -(으)로써? They look almost identical but do opposite jobs. -(으)로서 marks a role, position, or status — ‘as / in the capacity of’: 지원자로서 최선을 다하겠습니다 (as an applicant, I’ll do my best), 부모로서 (as a parent), 친구로서 (as a friend). -(으)로써 marks a means or method — ‘by means of / with’: 대화로써 문제를 해결합니다 (we solve it by means of dialogue), 노력으로써 (through effort). A quick test: if you can swap in ‘as a ___,’ it’s 로서; if you can swap in ‘by using ___,’ it’s 로써. Interviews need 로서 constantly because you’re always speaking from a role — 지원자로서, 사회인으로서. You’ll drill 로써 fully in the next lesson on presentations.
When do I use -을 따름이다 instead of just -을 뿐이다? Both mean ‘only / nothing but,’ but the register differs. -을 따름이다 is more formal and humble, almost ceremonial — it’s the phrase for interviews, speeches, and written thanks: 최선을 다할 따름입니다 (I can only do my best), 감사할 따름입니다 (I’m simply / deeply grateful). -을 뿐이다 is the everyday equivalent and works in normal speech: 저는 제 일을 했을 뿐이에요 (I just did my job). In an interview, 따름입니다 sounds appropriately modest and polished; 뿐이에요 would feel a touch too casual. Reserve 따름이다 for moments where you’re humbly downplaying yourself in a formal setting.
Is -(으)며 the same as -고 for ‘and’? They overlap — both connect clauses with ‘and’ — but -(으)며 is the formal, written-register choice, while -고 is the neutral spoken default. 성실하고 책임감이 강해요 (spoken: I’m diligent and responsible) becomes 성실하며 책임감이 강합니다 in a 자기소개서. -(으)며 also carries a ‘simultaneously / while’ sense for actions (음악을 들으며 공부해요 = I study while listening to music), which you’ll see again with -(으)면서. For self-introductions and reports, reach for -(으)며 to sound composed and literate; for casual conversation, -고 is more natural. Attach it to the stem: 강하다 → 강하며, 있다 → 있으며.
Next: giving presentations — -으며, -으로써. Previous: resolutions & chiding — banmal ②. Full path: curriculum hub.