While leading Western study destinations like Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom are slowing or even reversing the growth of their foreign enrollment, several Asian countries are taking a different approach by implementing policies to significantly boost international student numbers.
Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan, and South Korea have all set ambitious targets for increasing international enrollment:
- Japan:400,000 by 2033
- Malaysia:250,000 by 2025
- Taiwan:320,000 by 2030
- South Korea:300,000 by 2027
Here’s the current progress for these four destinations:
- Japan:279,275 international students as of May 2023 (+21% over 2022).
- Malaysia:Estimates range between 115,000 and 170,000 international students. Malaysian institutions received 58,285 applications in 2023, marking a 14% increase over 2022 following a 28% increase the previous year, with most growth coming from Asia, particularly East Asia (+22% over 2022).
- Taiwan:116,040 international students in 2023, a 90% recovery from pandemic losses. 61% of Taiwan’s international students are from "New Southbound Policy" (NSP) countries, including Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam.
- South Korea:207,125 international students as of June 2023 (+24% over 2022).
South Korea is rapidly approaching Japan’s current foreign enrollment figures through its Study Korea 300K Project, which aims to position the country as one of the top 10 study abroad destinations by 2027.
How is South Korea working toward its goal?
Here are key tactics and policies central to the Study Korea 300K Project:
- In 2023, the part-time work allowance for international students in language and bachelor’s programs increased from 20 to 25 hours per week. Master’s and doctoral students can now work 35 hours during weekdays, and all international students can work unlimited hours on weekends and holidays.
- The financial requirement for obtaining a D-2 visa (for degree studies) was reduced from US$20,000 to 20 million won (just under US$15,400), with an even lower threshold of 16 million won for students applying to universities outside Seoul.
- Starting in 2025, international students will be allowed to stay in South Korea for up to 3 years to search for a job, an increase from the current 6-month allowance, which can be extended up to 2 years.
- The types of jobs that international students can apply for and the time they can remain in the country after securing a job will also be expanded.
- The Global Korea Scholarship (GKS) program will double the number of scholarships available for STEM students to 2,700 and increase scholarships for non-STEM students to 6,000 from 4,500.
- STEM graduates will be fast-tracked for permanent residency, and the residency requirement for graduates from Korean universities will be reduced from 6 to 3 years.
- Korean universities are now accepting a wider range of tests to prove Korean-language proficiency, with a proposal to lower the required level on the Test of Proficiency in Korean (TOPIK) for international students under consideration.
Balancing ambition with quality concerns
Some South Korean academics have expressed concerns that the aggressive pursuit of international student enrollment, such as easing language requirements, may put undue pressure on universities to maintain educational quality.
However, the South Korean government is actively working to uphold quality standards. Following an annual evaluation of colleges and universities' capacity to manage international students, 20 degree programs and 20 language-training programs were stripped of the right to issue visas to international students for one year starting in the second semester of 2024. At the same time, 14 more degree-granting institutions (now 134) and 15 more language programs (now 90) were certified based on the evaluation results.
Strengthening support for international students
South Korea has traditionally been a challenging job market for international graduates, with only 8.2% of international graduates from 2023 finding jobs in the country. The government is aware of the competition from other ambitious Asian countries working to retain their international students. For instance:
- Japan aims to have 60% of international student graduates remain in the country by 2033. The Japanese government recently allowed foreign graduates of vocational schools and colleges to seek employment without the need to find work related to their field of study.
- Hong Kong extended the post-graduation stay allowance to 2 years in 2022, followed by Taiwan in 2024.
- Malaysia introduced the "Social Visit Pass" in 2024, allowing graduates from certain countries to remain in Malaysia for up to a year to search for employment.
South Korea’s plans to extend the job-seekers permit duration, broaden job eligibility for international students, and lengthen the time job holders can remain in the country will be implemented in 2025.