The Unification Ministry and eight foreign embassies in Seoul agreed Thursday to cooperate on developing a program that will help middle school students explore their career options, government officials said.

The education ministry, the institute for vocational training and foreign embassies, including the British Embassy, inked a deal to cooperate on ways to facilitate the "free semester" program, a key pillar of President Park Geun-hye's education policy, the ministry said.

The free semester program allows students to join discussions, field trips and other on-the-job training without taking midterm or final exams in schools.

The deal calls for foreign embassies to provide culture-exchange programs and other experiences to middle school students who choose to use the free semester system.

The program is one of Park's key pledges for education reform that allows middle school students to have a chance to explore what they want to be in the future at least during one semester. (Yonhap)