ABSTRACT
In an increasingly volatile global job market, students’ career development is shaped by both personal capacities and structural barriers. This study examined how academic marginalization—particularly related to educational background—influences the mental well-being of South Korean college students, with attention to the mediating roles of vocational identity and occupational engagement. Using a conceptual model informed by career development and sociocultural perspectives, we surveyed 330 students and recent graduates navigating the school-to-work transition. The findings revealed that while marginalization was negatively associated with vocational identity and mental well-being, it did not directly influence occupational engagement. However, vocational identity served as a partial mediator between marginalization and well-being, and a sequential mediation pathway was identified through which vocational identity affected occupational engagement, which in turn influenced mental well-being. These results highlight the importance of fostering vocational identity and proactive career engagement to buffer the psychological effects of structural disadvantage. Although situated in the South Korean context, the study offers transferable insights for higher education systems globally—particularly in the United States—where students from nontraditional or marginalized academic backgrounds face similar inequities. Implications for institutional support, career development programming, and student mental health services are discussed.