Foreign students choosing to settle in South Korea nearly double in five years

As more foreign students earn more than 3 million won a month after finding work, the share hoping to stay in South Korea has surged to 63%, with stark differences by nationality.

The number of foreign students graduating from South Korean universities who want to settle in the country has nearly doubled in five years, as rising post-graduation pay has pushed the share hoping to remain to 63%.

As more foreign students earn more than 3 million won a month, the share hoping to stay in South Korea has surged to 63%.

In a report dated the 9th by the Korea Educational Development Institute (KEDI), 'Analysis of the Employment Status and Issues of Foreign Students', the number of foreign students in South Korea rose from 98,602 in 2017 to 187,856 in 2023, nearly doubling in five years from 2017 to 2023.

The students' countries of origin have shifted markedly. The share of Chinese students, which was almost half (48.5%) in 2017, fell to below 30% by 2023, while the proportion from Vietnam rose to around 40%. Students from Uzbekistan also emerged as a new major source country, accounting for about 6%.

Across all levels of study, graduates' pay rose overall. Among those with an associate degree, 41.8% earned 3 million won or more per month in 2023 — the highest proportion by level of study. The share of PhD graduates earning 3 million won or more also climbed sharply, from 62.5% in 2019 to 77.9% in 2023.

63% want to settle in South Korea — clear differences by country

Alongside the rise in incomes, the share of graduates hoping to remain in South Korea after graduation has increased. The proportion hoping to stay rose from 41.2% in 2017 to 63% in 2023, while those planning to return home fell from 48% to 30.4%.

However, views on post-graduation plans differed markedly by country. More than half of Chinese students (53.5–56.7%) said they would return home after finishing their studies. By contrast, the share of Vietnamese students wanting to remain in South Korea rose substantially from 64.8% in 2017 to 80.3% in 2023, and Mongolian students also jumped from 48.7% to 74.7%, showing a strong preference for settling in South Korea.

KEDI researchers said, "Overall job satisfaction among foreign students is relatively high, but satisfaction with welfare provisions, pay and promotion opportunities is comparatively low. To encourage talented foreign workers to stay in South Korea, employers need to improve job satisfaction in those three areas."