[Planning] Full-scale Battle to Attract 'International Students' in University Areas, from Dedicated Dormitories to Housing Cost Support

As the number of foreign students residing in the country exceeds 200,000, marking the arrival of the 'era of 200,000 international students', universities and local governments are putting their all into housing support policies to attract talented individuals. With the crisis in universities due to a declining school-age population and the issue of regional extinction, attracting foreign students has emerged as an essential survival strategy, making the resolution of the 'housing issue', which is the biggest obstacle to their settlement in the country, a core competitive advantage.

Universities are actively expanding 'dedicated dormitories for international students' by remodeling existing dormitory facilities or utilising newly constructed buildings. This is to help international students, who come from different language and cultural backgrounds, quickly adapt to life in Korea and to minimise conflicts with domestic students that may arise from differences in living patterns. Major universities are enhancing their admission competitiveness by providing a pleasant living environment for international students through the construction of global houses, and these dedicated spaces are being used as community hubs where Korean mentoring and cultural experience programmes take place, going beyond mere accommodation.

Local governments are also collaborating with regional universities to introduce remarkable housing cost support policies. Local governments such as Jeonbuk Special Self-Governing Province and Gyeongsangbuk-do, which are actively attracting international students, are enacting ordinances or operating pilot projects to provide a monthly housing allowance or settlement support funds to foreign students who enrol in local universities. This financial support alleviates the high rent burden on international students while also creating policy synergies linked to 'region-specific visa projects' that lead to employment in local companies and settlement after graduation.

Experts in education and local communities analyse that the expansion of these housing supports is an essential investment for securing global talent that goes beyond simple welfare. In the past, tuition reductions or scholarship provisions were the main means of attracting international students, but due to recent concerns over rental fraud and soaring monthly rents caused by high inflation, securing 'safe and affordable housing' has a decisive impact on international students' choice of university. A university official stated, "Without a guaranteed stable living environment, it is difficult to attract excellent international students," and emphasised that "the expansion of dormitories and local government housing cost support are the most effective safeguards to prevent mid-course dropouts and allow students to focus on their studies."

In the future, the collaboration model between universities and local governments is expected to become more sophisticated. Beyond simply providing on-campus dormitories, various housing welfare models are being discussed, such as the construction of public dormitories in the form of share houses operated by local governments and support for purchased rental housing through cooperation with the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH). As attracting international students plays a role in not only the survival of universities but also in revitalising the local economy, the policy cooperation among the private sector, government, and academia for building a housing stability network is expected to accelerate further in the future.