By Min Seong-jae
I’ve spent a bit more than two decades in the United States, first as a student and then as a professor. During that time, I noticed a striking trend among Korean students studying abroad: their numbers have dropped sharply. There used to be at least a couple of Korean students in almost every class I attended, and many U.S. college campuses boasted lively Korean student associations. Not anymore. These days, I need to look carefully to spot a Korean student on campus.
My observation aligns with statistics from Korea’s Ministry of Education. According to their recent survey, the number of Korean students enrolled in overseas postsecondary institutions was 124,320 in 2022, a precipitous drop from a peak of approximately 330,000 in 2010.
Multiple factors seem to be contributing to this decline in Korean students studying abroad. The country’s low birthrate and the overall decrease in the student-age population may be one big reason. Stricter U.S. regulations on student visas could be another. The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent restrictions on travel and studying abroad likely played a role as well. But I suspect there’s a more fundamental shift at play, one that has been evolving over the past decade.
The primary reason Koreans are no longer as eager to study abroad may be that they simply don’t feel they need to anymore — or at least, not as much. In the past, studying abroad, particularly in advanced Western nations, carried high prestige and was seen as a ticket to upward mobility. This premium, however, appears to have diminished. While the Western hegemony seems to be slowly declining, Korea’s national power and international reputation have grown significantly, reducing the allure of Western credentials. Sure, the educational system in Korea is too competitive and ridden with problems, but it still provides robust education at a lower cost, and thus the need to go overseas, often with a high cost, isn’t as compelling as it once was. Foreign diplomas, once viewed as gateways to success, no longer hold the same cachet. And many young Koreans who used to mockingly call their country “Hell Joseon,” or a hellish place with high stress, social pressure and inequalities, now take at least some pride in the nation’s “hot” K-culture, which has gained worldwide acclaim.
In an interesting reversal, the decrease in Korean students going abroad is mirrored by a growing influx of foreign students into Korean universities. I spent the past year teaching at a Korean university, and I noticed that 20 to 30 percent of my students were from other countries; in one graduate class, the majority were foreign students who spoke almost perfect Korean. The campus was bustling with students from every continent. Statistics confirm this upward trend. According to the Ministry of Education, the number of foreign students studying in Korea exceeded 200,000 this year, more than double the figure from a decade ago. This figure is expected to continue growing in the coming years.
Korean culture — encompassing K-pop, K-beauty and K-cuisine — has captivated the world, and from Academy Award-winning films to a recent Nobel Prize in literature, Korea has earned global recognition that extends well beyond entertainment. Korea’s soft power is clearly a major draw and thus students from all over the globe are now coming to Korea, some to study Korean pop culture, others to delve into Korean literature or politics.
This shift in the flow of students tells us something significant about Korea’s evolving place in the world. The decreased number of Korean students abroad reflects a nation that has found strength and pride in its identity, while the influx of foreign students points to Korea’s rise as a global cultural hub. As Korea continues to grow in influence, this reversal of roles may signal a new era — one where students from all over the world look to Korea not just for its pop culture, but for the rich educational and cultural experiences it has to offer.
Min Seong-jae ([email protected]) is a professor of communication and media studies at Pace University in New York. He was a 2023-24 Fulbright U.S. Scholar to Korea.
English (United States) ·