"What influences Indian students to embrace South Korea's academia?"
With lucrative scholarship options, South Korea has evolved as a major destination for Indian and other foreign students in the last few years.
The Republic of Korea—popularly known as South Korea—has been gradually becoming a global education destination with an increasing number of foreign students enrolling every year. From less than 15,000 students two decades ago to approximately 152,000 international students last year, the South Korean education system is slowly witnessing growth.
According to official data released by the Ministry of External Affairs, approximately 1,364 Indians have been studying in Korea since 2022 and while the numbers are minimal at best when compared to other top education destinations such as Australia, the USA and the UK, it does give an indication of increased Indians choosing South Korea when compared to previous years figure.
South Korea’s culture gained popularity through K dramas and K-pop, which may also have played a role in shaping this upward trend. Since 2018, there has been a rise in the number of Indians consuming Korean content.
Moreover, in a bid to attract international students, the South Korean government also provides lucrative scholarship opportunities in almost all fields of study.
“During my search for countries with the best scholarships and research facilities, I stumbled upon South Korea. I got a 100% scholarship in Sungkyunkwan University with a fixed monthly stipend so I decided to take admission here as opposed to other countries”, said Muskan Zakirhusen Sande, a Master in Physics student, who moved to South Korea in February 2022. Sande says that when she got into the university of her choice, she learned the Korean language by watching K dramas and is also a fan of their dance style.
South Korea’s lucrative scholarships also prompted Dr Shahkar Falak, a student at Inje University, to pursue a PhD in Nanoscience and Engineering. “South Korea provides 80-100% scholarships along with $8001,000 of monthly stipend”, Falak told The Free Press Journal (FPJ).
Sayantani Majumder, currently enrolled in a language school and planning to pursue a master's in Intermediate Arts in South Korea, says that K-pop helped her find out about the scholarships available at South Korean universities.
“I found out about the Global Korea Scholarship (GKS) through a K-pop song during quarantine. I liked the song and because I searched it on social media, the algorithm was showing me videos related to Korea and one fine day I stumbled upon a video that talked about the GKS scholarship”, she told the FPJ, adding that she believes countries like the USA and Canada are already very
saturated with the high demand and influx of foreign students.
GKS provides Indian students with an opportunity to pursue graduation in Korea for free. Qualified students will also get a monthly allowance of Rs 56,000 along with insurance and return flight tickets.
For Khushboo Sihag, however, BTS, a popular band in South Korea, was the only reason for moving to Korea.
“I was so fascinated by them that I decided to stay in Korea”, Sihag said. She is also currently studying a language course in the country.
Fayaz Shifa, a student at Sogang University, told the FPJ that she moved to Korea because of its culture and language. “Scholarships offered in Korean universities were also a major factor for me”, Shifa added, claiming she is a big BTS fan.
South Korea is also a popular destination for students who are interested in the fields of science, research and technology, because of its fame in the world as a leading hub of digital advancements and high technology.
Dr Shweta Borkar, majoring in plasma medicine from Kwangwoon University said, “I selected South Korea for my higher studies due to the opportunity of experiencing advanced research and technology.” She added that the cost of education at national universities was also more economical when compared to other countries.
Another student, Ravindra Patil, pursuing nanotechnology at Kyung Hee University, considers Korea better in nanotech than others.
The South Korean government also hopes to attract more Indian students in the coming years and will soon look into several academic collaborations with the country according to Minister Lim Sang Woo. The Ministry of Education in Korea has introduced the Study Korea 300K Project in Seoul, to transform the experience for international students, as per media reports. This initiative seeks to establish Korea as a leading force in global education, specifically focusing on attracting 300,000 international students by 2027.
Lim also mentioned to a media house that as part of a fiveyear plan, South Korea is revamping its visa policies and permanent residency regulations in response to a declining birth rate and an increasing elderly population, which is driving the need for international workers and students.