ID :
24921
Thu, 10/16/2008 - 18:42
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/24921
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Number of young Koreans going abroad to study falls for first time
SEOUL, Oct. 16 (Yonhap) -- The number of young Koreans going abroad to study decreased last year for the first time, government data showed Thursday, with a weak local currency and decline in young adult population cited as possible factors.
The country saw growing signs that international study has passed its peak amid
an economic slowdown. The central bank's tally recently showed spending on
overseas study fell for the first time in seven years during the first half of
2008.
According to the latest data from the Ministry of Education, Science and
Technology, 27,668 elementary and secondary school students left the country for
schools overseas between March 2007 and February this year, down 6 percent from
the same period the previous year. The decrease was unprecedented, as Korean
students had continued to head out in record numbers since data filing started in
1998.
In the first year of record-keeping, 1,562 elementary and secondary school
students went abroad. The number shot up to 4,397 in two years. In 2005, the
total figure broke the 2 million mark and hit a yearly record of 29,511 in 2006.
In the face of the unexpected decline last year, ministry officials were
analyzing possible causes, including a weak Korean currency discouraging parents
from paying expensive tuition in the U.S., Canada and England. Also, a decline in
the young adult population as a result of low birth rates is also believed to
have reduced the demand.
"Concerning specific reasons, we have yet to conduct a survey, but we broadly
understand that this comes from low birth rates and other complex social
factors," Cho Ki-won, a ministry official in charge of international education,
said.
The Bank of Korea recently found that Koreans' spending on overseas studying
totaled US$2.26 billion in the January-June period, down 5.8 percent from a year
earlier. It was the first decline since 2001 and the largest half-year fall since
the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis.
Destination trends are also changing. The ministry data found Southeast Asia is
increasingly taking over top spots from perennially popular nations like the
United States, Canada and Australia.
Southeast Asia, whose figures have yet to be broken down by nations, drew 7,421
new Korean students last year, second only to the U.S. with 14,006 students.
China came third with 6,880, followed by Canada with 5,453 and Australia with
2,030.
Countries like Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines, seemed to be considered
ideal by budget-minded middle-class parents who can't afford international
schools in North America or England.
The country saw growing signs that international study has passed its peak amid
an economic slowdown. The central bank's tally recently showed spending on
overseas study fell for the first time in seven years during the first half of
2008.
According to the latest data from the Ministry of Education, Science and
Technology, 27,668 elementary and secondary school students left the country for
schools overseas between March 2007 and February this year, down 6 percent from
the same period the previous year. The decrease was unprecedented, as Korean
students had continued to head out in record numbers since data filing started in
1998.
In the first year of record-keeping, 1,562 elementary and secondary school
students went abroad. The number shot up to 4,397 in two years. In 2005, the
total figure broke the 2 million mark and hit a yearly record of 29,511 in 2006.
In the face of the unexpected decline last year, ministry officials were
analyzing possible causes, including a weak Korean currency discouraging parents
from paying expensive tuition in the U.S., Canada and England. Also, a decline in
the young adult population as a result of low birth rates is also believed to
have reduced the demand.
"Concerning specific reasons, we have yet to conduct a survey, but we broadly
understand that this comes from low birth rates and other complex social
factors," Cho Ki-won, a ministry official in charge of international education,
said.
The Bank of Korea recently found that Koreans' spending on overseas studying
totaled US$2.26 billion in the January-June period, down 5.8 percent from a year
earlier. It was the first decline since 2001 and the largest half-year fall since
the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis.
Destination trends are also changing. The ministry data found Southeast Asia is
increasingly taking over top spots from perennially popular nations like the
United States, Canada and Australia.
Southeast Asia, whose figures have yet to be broken down by nations, drew 7,421
new Korean students last year, second only to the U.S. with 14,006 students.
China came third with 6,880, followed by Canada with 5,453 and Australia with
2,030.
Countries like Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines, seemed to be considered
ideal by budget-minded middle-class parents who can't afford international
schools in North America or England.
