Growing numbers find work in business of death

Rows of coffins line a university classroom in the South Korean port city of Busan, ready for use in training the funeral directors of the future in a rapidly ageing country.

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Growing numbers are finding work in the business of death as South Korea undergoes massive demographic change, with birth rates among the lowest in the world and almost half the population aged 50 or older.

Students at the Busan Institute of Science and Technology carefully draped a mannequin in traditional Korean funeral cloth, smoothing the fabric as if over real skin, before gently lowering it into a coffin.

"With our society ageing, I thought the demand for this kind of work would only grow," said Jang Jin-yeong, 27, a funeral administration student.

Another student, 23-year-old Im Sae-jin, decided to enter the field after his grandmother died.

"At her funeral, I saw how beautifully the directors had prepared her for the final farewell," he said.