This study utilizes a critical phenomenological approach and adopts concepts of linguistic hegemony and linguistic capital, to explore the life course stages of former Korean college student-athletes who dropped out of athletic programs and who faced vocational challenge but obtained successful careers in their ideal career fields through improving their English proficiency. The three primary scholarly themes include: (a) typical English level and vocational challenges due to the lack of English proficiency; (b) the journey to gain English proficiency; and (c) English proficiency as a vehicle for entering desired career fields. Although this study identified the ways in which participants found avenues through gaining linguistic capital, linguistic hegemony is deeply ingrained into the Korean social structures and into their education systems, society, and culture. Therefore, this study critiques these ongoing structural problems to promote positive social change in the future.
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