As a result, the government is pursuing international research collaborations, opening branch campuses, and establishing joint programmes with foreign institutions as much as it is trying to attract more students to study in China. A new goal is to see 8 million Chinese students enrolled in transnational education programmes (TNE); the current number is 800,000. No timeline has been specified, but China tends to achieve targets with exceptional speed.

China’s attraction for international students

The number of Chinese universities placing in ranking systems such as Times Higher Education (THE), QS, and Shanghai (also known as the Academic Ranking of World Universities, or ARWU) continues to rise. In 2025, 108 Chinese institutions made ARWU’s top 500, just behind the 111 American institutions in that tier. This was a +10% year-over-year rise for China, compared to +2% for the US. Over the past decade, the pattern is even more striking, as shown in the following chart from Higher Education Strategy Associates. In this chart showing the changed position of 9 countries over 10 years, only Australia joined China in improved performance over time, and that was minimal. The US was the country with the greatest contraction in the ARWU rankings from 2015–25.

There is a similar 10-year contrast between the number of Chinese and US institutions placing in the top 500 on : China is way up with fewer US institutions ranked.

Ascent up the rankings is a major draw for international students considering China for study abroad, but there are also other benefits. Among them are ample scholarships offered by the Chinese government (especially at the postgraduate level) as well as relatively low tuition fees and costs of living. At the 2024 Forum on China-Africa Cooperation Summit, for example, China announced 60,000 new scholarships for African students.

What’s more, for students from over 100 Belt and Road (BRI) countries, the presence of Chinese companies in their home region offers opportunities for post-study employment. Over the past decade, Chinese companies have created millions of jobs in Africa, and China is the continent’s top trading partner.

The extensive range of the Belt and Road initiative – stretching across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America and the Caribbean – has also fuelled the diversity of nationalities on Chinese campuses. : “No one nationality is over-represented among China’s international cohorts – an aim many institutions globally are attempting to replicate.”

QS expects international enrolments in China to increase by +2.5% annually till 2030 to about 550,000 – a lower growth rate than European countries as well as New Zealand, Malaysia, South Korea, and Vietnam, but a greater expansion than in the US, Australia, and Canada. Any growth will be thanks in no small part to China’s growing supply of English-taught programmes (ETPs). There are now as many ETPs in China as in many leading European destinations (close to 3,000), especially in STEM programmes and at the postgraduate level.

Language and cultural barriers an issue

The diversity of international students in Chinese universities is impressive, but QS notes that there is a downside: “[It] cushions against single-market volatility but also complicates recruitment strategies and programme design.” With top nationalities including Thailand, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Russia – and growing numbers of African students – it is not a simple task to support all students in terms of language and cultural integration.

Integration can also be complicated because international students are often housed in separate, more well-equipped student residences than domestic students – another point of tension for Chinese families. Vietnamese study abroad consultancy notes:

“Rooms are usually more spacious, fully equipped with private bathrooms/showers, air conditioning, mini-fridges, and even balconies. Compared to dormitories for Chinese students (often 4-6 person rooms, shared bathrooms, no or limited air conditioning), the conditions for international students are clearly prioritised.”

Growing resistance to inbound student mobility

Continuing a pattern that can be observed in other major study destinations, there is mounting frustration among some segments of the Chinese public about growing numbers of foreign students in in the country, especially against a backdrop of persistently high youth unemployment rates.

That frustration is in large part driven by intense competition for well-paid jobs in the country. In published by the University of Oxford, authors Wen Wen and Die Hu pointed out that:

“China is a non-immigrant nation with a surplus of domestic college graduates … its ability to absorb foreign graduates into the labour force is low and the legal limitations for foreign students to stay are valid.”

Since that paper’s publication, China launched the K Visa in 2025 in a bid to attract more STEM researchers to the country. Those eligible for the K Visa do not need a job offer from a Chinese employer, and the visa offers considerably more flexibility regarding entry frequency, validity period, and duration of stay than other Chinese visas.

The K Visa was launched the same year that China’s graduating class numbered 12.2 million, up more than +4% over 2024 and the largest increase ever. When the new visa was announced, voicing upset, some of them xenophobic. Canada’s newspaper interviewed Zheng Yifan, a 33-year-old tech worker from Chengdu, who said:

“I feel this visa doesn’t sound wise, and many in my industry share similar views. This whole thing leaves a bitter taste in the mouths of people like me who have climbed the ladder through sheer effort. China doesn’t lack talented people – we just lack job opportunities and resources.”

Similarly, Jakky Yang, a 27-year-old investment adviser in Shenzhen, said: “The fundamental reason many people like me oppose this visa is because our own domestic needs still need to be addressed. Many people in China are caught in a cutthroat competition, struggling to survive, while foreigners can easily access the benefits we have to fight so hard for.”

“Pretending to work”

If anything suggests just how dire many Chinese youth feel about their job prospects, it is the “pretending to work” phenomenon, which dovetails with the “lying flat” trend. Essentially:

• “Lying flat” describes Chinese youth who have simply stopped looking for jobs due to dismay over limited opportunities, choosing instead to stay at home, adopt a minimalist lifestyle, and sometimes be paid to take care of ageing parents or household chores.

• “Pretending to work” is a nationwide trend in which jobless young people pay a company for office space. One example is the aptly branded Pretend To Work Company in Dongguan, which asks for US$5 a day in return for access to an equipped office where clients socialise and/or conduct job searches. In 2025, the interviewed Pretend To Work Company clients, who reported feeling less alone and less pressured by anxious parents in their rented office space.

Both “lying flat” and “pretending to work” are stark illustrations of the tension between the needs of the Chinese economy and the needs of Chinese students and workers facing barriers to landing good jobs in that economy.

Students returning in greater numbers

The situation becomes even more complicated because of the huge numbers of foreign-educated Chinese students returning home. About 495,000 students returned after studying abroad in 2024, nearly 20% more than in 2025, according to the Chinese Ministry of Education. The influx is partly fuelled by unfavourable visa and political climates in some host countries. The numbers have become so large that the government has set up an online job search and start-up assistance platform just for returnees. It has done so in partnership with 50 organisations to add a talent-matching component to the service – particularly in the fields of AI and advanced materials.

As with international students, there is some resentment around the influx, as domestic students and workers worry returnees will take all the most desirable jobs. The reality is more complicated.

Ba Ran, a vice president at the online recruiting firm Liepin Group, told China’s that the swell of returnees has reduced the scarcity premium of a foreign degree. He noted: “The rise of Chinese tech giants has created a demand for locally trained talent with a strong grasp of the domestic market, an area where freshly returned graduates can be at a disadvantage.” Over the past seven years, recruitment platform Zhaopin has seen a drop in Chinese job listings asking for overseas-educated talent.

While returnees with highly specialised STEM skills continue to fare well in the labour market, those with less remarkable credentials are commanding lower salaries in the past. Ba Ran says that HR departments “are no longer dazzled by an overseas degree … now they are more focused on concrete skills and a willingness to work diligently.”

Beyond inbound

Clearly, and as in so many other countries, there are limits to how many international students and researchers China can host without jeopardising social harmony. Jobs are a hot-button issue, and many a country can trace civic unrest or even revolution to perceived injustice around who can and cannot access good job opportunities.

The Chinese government seems to have foreseen this breaking point by investing heavily in transnational education (TNE). There are now more than 1,000 Chinese-foreign joint ventures or international branch campuses (IBCs) in various regions, including China. In fact, China’s “education blueprint” explicitly states a goal of attracting foreign science and engineering universities to set up shop in China. Hongqing Yang, chief executive of the Educationist Group, a Hong-Kong based consultancy, told Times Higher Education: “China seeks to cultivate talent domestically by opening up to foreign universities, especially as it faces challenges in sending its students abroad for education, particularly STEM education.”

Evolving approach

In the first 20 years of this century, the Chinese government invested heavily in the capacity and quality of China’s higher education system even as millions of Chinese students continued to go abroad. Three factors are fuelling a further evolution of China’s approach going forward:

1. China’s emerging superpower status, massive investments in research, and well-cultivated alliances and agreements with countries all over the world now allow its universities to partner equally with top foreign universities, which is a new source of innovation.
   
   
2. More restrictive visa regimes in the Big Four study destinations, tensions with the US, and a lower premium for foreign-earned degrees are prompting Chinese families to question the return on investment of study abroad.
   
   
3. The public mood suggests that there are limits to the social licence for attracting more international students to China (a development we have seen in Canada, Australia, the UK, and the US to various extents).

The UK has always been the leader in transnational education provision. In 2026, it faces far more competition in this area. Institutions in other destinations are rushing to set up branch campuses and joint programmes – often in response to government policies limiting their recruitment of students to home campuses. China is at the forefront of this race. The Chinese Ministry of Education approved a record 285 new joint education institutes and programmes at the degree level in 2025. There are now 1,589 active TNE partnerships involving China and another country.

As QS noted in its Global Flows report, China is steadily “positioning its universities as more credible partners in shaping the future of global education.”

For more information, please see:

• “China: Two-thirds of new TNE partnerships are with countries outside the Big Four”
• “China opens up to global STEM talent with new visa class”
• “Market snapshot: International student recruitment in China today”
• “Youth unemployment reaches record high in China”

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The government-funded Talent Taiwan website says, “The message from the 2026 amendments is clear: Taiwan is no longer just looking for ‘workers’—it is looking for residents.”

Generous new work rights

Two years of open work rights for most international students: As long as they graduate with at least an associate’s degree, international graduates of Taiwanese universities can now work for two years in Taiwan without needing an additional work permit. The first allowance is one year, which can then be extended by a further year. During this time, graduates can intern, freelance, work part time, or work full time to “discover their ideal career path” in Taiwan. 



Before this amendment, only graduates who met salary requirements and worked in specific occupations were eligible for post-study work rights – and only then if they were sponsored by an employer.



Two years of open work rights for top students graduating with degrees from other countries: Students who have graduated in the past five years from one of the world’s top 200 universities (as ranked by Times Higher Education, QS, or US World News) can now apply for a two-year open work permit in Taiwan. 



Elimination of the two-year work experience requirement for employers hiring eligible students from abroad: Taiwanese employers can now hire graduates of the world’s top 1,500 universities (as ranked by Times Higher Education, QS, or US World News) without those graduates needing two years of work experience in Taiwan.



Shortened time to permanent residency: Prior to 2026, all international graduates of Taiwanese universities needed to work for five years in Taiwan before they could apply for permanent residency. But now, graduates of undergraduate programmes need only four years; graduates of master’s programmes need only three; and graduates of PhD programmes need only two before they can apply for permanent residency.



Pension upon hiring: Foreign workers no longer need permanent residency status to be enrolled in a pension plan in which Taiwanese employers automatically contribute 6% of salaries to “.” This allows foreign workers the same pension rights as domestic workers, and the policy is aimed at improving the appeal of a long-term career in Taiwan.

The government-funded Talent Taiwan website says: “By aligning retirement benefits, shortening the path to permanent residency, and giving students the freedom to explore the market, Taiwan is positioning itself as the most talent-friendly destination in the region.”

Why the push for foreign talent?

Taiwan faces a serious demographic challenge in the form of a low fertility rate and an ageing population. In 2025, it became a “super-aged” society; one in five Taiwanese (20.06%) is now aged 65 or older, compared to a world average of 10.4%. Other, even older, societies include Japan (30% are 65 or older); Italy and Portugal (25% each); Greece (24%); Germany and Hong Kong (24%); and France (23%). Not coincidentally, all these countries are aiming to attract more foreign students and workers.

Taiwan’s demographics are exacerbating skills shortages. Taiwan’s publication notes:

“The National Development Council projects about 350,000 job vacancies by 2028 … including for sectors such as semiconductors, advanced manufacturing and healthcare.”

The need for semiconductor experts

Significant skills shortages in the semiconductor sector would pose a massive risk for Taiwan’s economy. Semiconductor chips are widely considered to be the “brain” of all modern electronics, from cars to medical devices, and from computers to smartphones. Their importance is only growing: the technology think tank states: “Semiconductor manufacturing is arguably the most lucrative industry for future economic competitiveness.”

Taiwan is the world’s top manufacturer of semiconductors, representing about 60% of global production – and 90% when it comes to the most advanced microchips that power AI innovation, high-performance computing (HPC), and sustainable technologies.

Semiconductor manufacturing accounts for 20.7% of Taiwan’s GDP, with the vast majority of that contributed by the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC). That foundry, on its own, held 50% of the global market in 2025 and supplies companies such as Apple, NVIDIA, and AMD.

In terms of global share, South Korea, China, the US, and Japan are the runners-up to Taiwan, and they are competing fiercely for more of the market.

Scholarships for semiconductor-focused students

Suffice to say, Taiwan needs more semiconductor-focused STEM students, and it needs them fast. Scholarships are one of the instruments being used to boost foreign enrolments in programmes such as electrical engineering, materials science, and physics, as well as niche areas including nanotechnology, quantum physics, and microelectronics.

This year, the government will add roughly NT$1 million (US$31,668) to scholarships for top foreign students pursuing studies in semiconductors and AI.

On 26 January 2026, MOE Secretary-General Lin Po-chiao announced and said:

“While the US, Japan and the EU have ramped up investment in semiconductors and AI, proactively recruiting advanced high-tech talent globally, Taiwan must promptly adjust its talent policies to maintain a strategic advantage in the next wave of technological competition.”

More investment is also slated for the major industry-academic scholarship International Industrial Talents Education Special Program (), which was launched in 2024.

INTENSE obtains its substantial funding for students from the government (responsible for bringing in and supporting students in their academics) and industry (for internships and pathways to employment).

The programme is open to students from outside Taiwan as well as international students currently studying in Taiwanese universities. Notably, INTENSE scholarship recipients are required to remain in Taiwan to work after graduation for the same length of time as it took to complete their programme.

The new work and permanent residency rights in place for 2026 will undoubtably make it easier for Taiwan to retain scholarship students for long-term careers in Taiwan’s technology sectors.

For additional background, please see:

• “Taiwan is close to reaching its pre-pandemic benchmark for international enrolment”
• “Asian destinations show their strength in latest ranking of student cities”

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So it was all the more striking to see Prime Minister Modi literally hand-in-hand with Chinese President Xi Jinping last week for their first meeting on Chinese soil in seven years. The visit marked a distinct thawing of China-India relations on the occasion of the annual summit of the (SCO). The two were joined by leaders of the eight other SCO member-states: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Iran, and Belarus. And the summit was widely seen as a demonstration of the closer ties among the members at a time when the global economy has been badly disrupted by US trade policies and tariffs.

The SCO’s membership accounts for nearly a quarter of the world’s geography, and 42% of the global population. It is a striking demonstration of how global power continues to shift this decade, and of China’s rising influence in particular. Where the US has come to represent uncertainty and disruption in global trade, China has been quick to position itself as a reliable, stable partner. As reports, “In a thinly-veiled swipe at the US President Donald Trump’s global tariff campaign, Chinese President Xi Jinping told his counterparts in his opening speech Monday that the ‘shadows of Cold War mentality and bullying have not dissipated, with new challenges mounting.’…The world has entered ‘a new phase of turbulence’ with global governance at a ‘new crossroads,’ Xi said, calling for joint efforts to build a ‘more just and balanced international governance framework.’

Introducing the K visa

Against that broader context of realigning global flows of capital and brainpower, China has taken what appears to be an important step in its bid to attract global STEM talent, and to further reinforce its position as a global technology leader. On 7 August 2025, The State Council of the People’s Republic of China amended the “” to add a new visa category.

The changes amount to two small revisions: (i) the creation of a new K visa, to be issued to foreign young science and technology talent and (ii) a specification that “applicants for a K visa must meet the conditions and requirements for foreign young science and technology talent stipulated by the relevant Chinese authorities and submit corresponding supporting documents.” The new visa policy comes into effect on 1 October 2025.

In order to be eligible for a K visa, applicants must hold a STEM degree (in science, technology, engineering, mathematics) at a bachelor’s level or higher, or be engaged in relevant studies or research at a recognised institution.

What makes the K visa so interesting otherwise is that, compared to other existing visa classes, it offers more flexibility (with no requirement for a Chinese employer or other sponsoring/inviting organisation for application) and more convenience with flexible terms around entry frequency, validity period, and duration of stay. K visa holders will also be allowed to participate in a relatively wide range of activities while in China, including study, research, cultural exchange, entrepreneurship, and work.

“China’s development requires the participation of talent from around the world, and China’s development also provides opportunities for them,” said a statement from China’s State Council.

And there are some early signs that young STEM talent from around the world is paying attention to those opportunities.

The AI proxy

A lot of the global investment in technology – and the competition for talent and investment – currently revolves around Artificial Intelligence. And recent data observations from Studyportals finds that international student interest in Artificial Intelligence degrees in the US fell by -25% year-over-year, whereas interest in AI studies in China increased by 88%. Those indicators of relative demand are based on student searches on Studyportals websites from January to July 2025 compared to the same period in 2024. And, given the prominence of AI in the broader technology landscape, we can imagine the patterns around demand for AI degrees to be something of a proxy for where STEM talent is going generally.

We see those contrasting trends reflected in the chart below, which measures market share of the global demand for AI studies for both the US and China, and where “market share” refers to the percentage of all student interest in AI degrees globally that is captured by the US and China. “The US’ share of global demand for AI degrees is shrinking,” says Studyportals, “while China’s share of the total is growing.” Astute observers will note that the trend described in the chart pre-dates the announcement of the K visa in August 2025.

The linkage here between STEM talent and AI advancements is not subtle. International graduates have historically played a significant role in technology leadership in the US, for example. Four in ten US AI startups have at least one founder who came to the US as an international student, and roughly half of foreign STEM graduates in the US remain in the country to work after their studies. Those percentages would suggest that a shift in student interest from US to China could have a significant impact beyond enrolment statistics: it could also materially impact technology entrepreneurship, innovation, and competitiveness in the US economy.

Studyportals CEO Edwin van Rest echoes the point in saying, “Nations that succeed in drawing the brightest minds and in creating an environment for innovative business to thrive, will not just advance their economies, they will command the future of technology, security, and influence. International students do not only bring revenue to local economies and soft power, they also fuel innovation, startups, and job creation.”

For additional background, please see:

• “Asian destinations show their strength in latest ranking of student cities“
• “Global survey underscores demand shift from ‘Big Four’ to ‘Big Ten’“
• “US: International commencements could drop by 30-40% this September“

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The effect of higher proof of funds can serve as a deterrent for a segment of prospective international students. Destinations requiring lower amounts of guaranteed funds are often less expensive for students in general, and as per our recent article on emerging host countries, more affordable destinations are:

• increasingly being considered by many international students;
• seeing their international student population expand in tandem with leading destinations’ higher costs.

In this article, we take a look at proof of funds requirements in 2024 across 20 destinations.

Please note: These sums are exclusive of what may be required for tuition, health insurance, airfare/travel, additional family members, or other fees. They are the funds the governments expect individual students to have available to them while studying for a certain time period. Also note: These values can change every year, and sometimes proof of funds depends on the student’s country and type of study. The best source of current information for students and agents are individual institutions and government officials. The following figures were updated in July 2024, and are current as of that month.

• Australia: AUD$29,710 (US$19,537)

• Canada: CDN$20,635 (US$14,930)

• China: USD$2,500 per year of study

• Czech Republic: 3,130 CZK (US$133) per month, so assuming a stay of one year, US$1,600

• Finland: €590 per month (US$630), so assuming a stay of one year, US$7,560

• France: €615 (US$655) per month of study (so assuming a study duration of one year, US$7,860)

• Germany: €11,904 (US$12,875) for one year

• Ireland: €10,000 (US$10,680) immediately available and the same amount for each subsequent year of study

• Italy: €350 (US$375) per month of study (so assuming a study duration of one year, US$4,500)

• Japan: 2 million Japanese yen (US$12,970) for one year

• Netherlands: €14.700 (US$15,685) for one year

• New Zealand: NZD$20,000 per year (USD$11,840)

• Portugal: €820 per month (US$875), so assuming a study duration of 12 months, US$10,500

• Singapore: 8,400S$ ($6,175)

• South Korea: US$20,000

• Spain: €600 (US$640) per month (so assuming a study duration of one year, US$7,680)

• Switzerland: HF 21,000 (US$23,070) per year and the same amount for each subsequent year

• UAE: Depends on the university – for Abu Dhabi University, the proof of funds is US$15,000

• UK: Just over £1,100 (US$1,660) per month of study (so assuming a study duration of nine months, US$14,940)

• US: New F-1 students must prove that they have funds for the first year of study (some US embassies will ask for proof of funds for the duration of a programme). For those accepted to highly ranked institutions (e.g., University of California, Santa Barbara) – proof of funds can run over US$70,000 for the first year of a programme.

Considerable variation in terms of requirements

Looking at the research above, it’s clear that students must demonstrate a higher level of access to funds in Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, South Korea, Switzerland, the UK, and US (as well as some universities in the UAE) – all requiring over US$14,000. The next tier includes Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, and Portugal (US$10,000-$14,000), while countries requiring the least amount of available funds are China, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Italy, Singapore, and Spain (under US$10,000).

On its own, a destination’s proof of funds requirement is not among the top factors influencing where students choose to study. But the requirement does provide a signal to students of whether they can comfortably afford to live in a destination – and in this sense, the funds requirement is an interesting variable in the overall way in which students measure the attractiveness of different destinations.

For additional information, please see:

• “The impact of immigration settings, affordability, and job opportunities on international students’ study abroad decisions”
• “The cost of living: A closer look at inflation and foreign exchange trends in key student markets”
• “Global survey shows rising costs of living are significantly affecting international student mobility”

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The government has put aside a budget of NT$5.2 billion (US$166 million) for the effort, which is meant to focus on recruitment for critical skill areas in technology sectors such as semiconductors. Taiwan further hopes that roughly two-thirds of foreign graduates (210,000) will stay on in the country to work after graduation.

That additional budget will be used to fund 10 regional student recruitment centres in key Asian student markets including Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines. It will also support expanded scholarship programmes and improved student services.

And now Taiwan has taken steps to expand post-study work rights for visiting students. As of 1 January 2024, the Minister of Interior is offering foreign graduates of a Taiwanese university a streamlined process for obtaining a one-year residency extension for purposes of seeking employment after their studies. Graduates will have an option to stay on for a second year as well.

This effectively doubles the previous job-seeking period allowed for foreign graduates. At the same time, Taiwan has also eased its visa process for new students, extending the period for the Alien Registration Certificate (ARC) from the previous one year to a new maximum of three years. This means that foreign students no longer need to renew their ARCs annually.

Taiwan’s Ministry of Education pegged the country’s foreign enrolment at nearly 130,000 students prior to the pandemic.

For additional background, please see:

• “Taiwan ties new international recruitment goals to labour shortages“
• “Taiwan’s foreign enrolment getting a boost from Southeast Asia“

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Earlier this year, the Korean Council for University Education (KCEU, an association of degree-granting institutions in the country) projected that the number of students eligible to enter university would drop by nearly 40% within the next 20 years, from about 460,000 as of 2020 to 280,000 by 2040.

An increasing number of universities are under pressure as a result, particularly those outside of the major population centres, and the Ministry of Education recently identified as many as 84 “financially insolvent” universities that will need to close in short order. This is from a base of roughly 385 universities and colleges as of 2021, and policy reforms are expected – including a package of financial measures that will aid institutions to wind up operations – as a growing number of the country’s mostly private universities struggle to attract sufficient numbers of students.

International enrolment continues to grow

One bright spot has been the continuing growth of South Korea’s foreign enrolment, which passed the 200,000-student threshold. The Korea Immigration Service (KIS) reported in March 2023 that there were just over 205,000 international students enrolled in the country as of February 2023.

This reflects a pattern of significant enrolment gains that stretches back before the pandemic, and represents a roughly 25% increase over the enrolment base reported in 2019.

The KIS figures for this year reveal that about 71% of students were in the country on a D-2 student visa; with the balance holding a D-4-1 visa for Korean language learning.

The vast majority come from Vietnam (70,212, or 34%) and China (63,859, 31%), with other Central Asian markets such as Uzbekistan and Mongolia, contributing another 24,000 students combined (or about 12% of the total as of the first quarter of this year).

New policies announced

On 23 June, the South Korean government introduced a package of incentives designed to attract students in even greater numbers. “We plan to enhance the foreign student system that would support the increase in foreign students while contributing to improving the foreign students’ social adjustment,” said a statement from the Ministry of Justice.

The package includes new visa rules that will come into effect on 3 July 2023. Under the new rules, the minimum bank balance that students have to show as part of their D-2 visa applications will drop from KRW26 million (US$20,000) to KRW20 million (US$15,000). Those applying for visas for language studies (D-4 visas) will need to show balances of KRW10 million (US$7,600) as opposed to the previous requirement of KRW13 million (US$10,000).

That financial requirement drops even lower for those applying for studies outside of South Korea’s major cities where the new benchmarks are KRW16 million (US$12,000) for D-2s and KRW8 million (US$6,000) for D-4 visas.

In addition, the Ministry is opening up additional during-study work opportunities for visiting students, with the limit on working hours now being raised to 25 hours per week (up from the previous 20). Those enrolled outside of major cities will be permitted to work up to 30 hours per week.

In order to be eligible to work in South Korea during their studies, foreign students must also demonstrate that they have sufficient Korean language skills. Up until now, they could only do so via the . But the Ministry has expanded the eligible tests now to include the online as well as the .

Finally, the Ministry of Justice (which is also the ministry for the Korean Immigration Service) also announced an easing of rules for those students who wish to stay and work in South Korea after graduation. The number of years in Korea required for has been reduced from five years to four years, and hiring restrictions on foreign workers have now also been eased for Korean employers. This last point appears to reflect a turn in Korean policy toward a more open immigration policy aimed at attracting greater numbers of skilled foreign graduates, and we might anticipate further changes in the country’s broader immigration framework going forward.

For additional background, please see:

• “South Korea reporting big gains in foreign enrolment“
• “Closer to home: Intra-regional mobility in Asia“
• “Special report: Chinese students are turning to Asian destinations in greater numbers“

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Overall, foreign enrolment is up 68% since 2015 – a trend that has put South Korea well on track to reach its longer-term goal to host 200,000 foreign students by 2023.

As has been the case in neighbouring Japan, much of Korea’s recent growth can be credited to Vietnam. As of 2018, there are just over 27,000 Vietnamese students enrolled in South Korea. This amounts to a near doubling in numbers from this key emerging market in the last year alone, and accounts for the lion’s share of overall year-over-year growth over the last two years.

Not surprisingly, China is another major sending market. In 2010, Chinese students accounted for 71% of all foreign student numbers, but their proportion of the South Korean total has declined in the years since. In 2018, Chinese students composed less than 50% of all foreign students, and the proportion of students from South and Southeast Asia continues to expand. Vietnamese students, for example, now make up 19% of total foreign enrolment.

Checking overstays

The dramatic growth over the last four years has also been accompanied by an increase in the number of students that overstay their student visas. The Korean Ministry of Justice reports that 13,945 foreign students overstayed after their visas expired in 2018, up considerably from the 5,879 who did so in 2015. Also of note, roughly two-thirds of those who overstayed last year were from Vietnam.

The ministry announced earlier this month that it is .

In a sign that the government is prepared to introduce targeted controls to discourage visa overstays, the ministry has established new financial requirements for incoming students. For now, as the  reports, the policy will apply “only to Vietnamese students with D-4 visas, and only if they are attending universities the Ministry of Education considers poorly equipped to handle foreign students.”

The new policy requires all Vietnamese students who fall into those categories to verify a deposit of at least US$10,000 with a Korean commercial bank (with a branch in Vietnam). Strict withdrawal limits are in place for the account with students allowed to withdraw a maximum of 5 million Korean won (roughly US$4,400) every six months. As the Korea Herald explains, “In the past, students were required to submit documentation certifying they held at least US$9,000 in a bank account either in their names or their parents’ names. But many students were found to have taken out loans just to be eligible for student visas and to have withdrawn all the funds right away.”

The point made above regarding “universities the Ministry of Education considers poorly equipped to handle foreign students” bears further consideration as these new rules come into place. The Korean government has a formal assessment scheme for international student programmes at the country’s universities: the International Education Quality Assurance System, or . The programme assesses a university’s capacity to attract high-quality international students, and also to manage and maintain the quality of the programmes and services those students receive.

Universities must request the assessment, but  then have preferential treatment from the government, including the opportunity to access official scholarship funds, such as the Global Korea Scholarship programme.

The rate at which students violate the terms of their student visas at a given university, including through overstaying a visa term, is explicitly factored in the IEQAS assessment. The inference in the recent ministry statement therefore is that it is students who are admitted to universities that do not have IEQAS certification that will be required to meet these new financial requirements.

That said, the ministry statement appears to leave room as well for the possibility that the new financial deposit rules may apply more widely in the future.

New prerequisites; new rules for schools and work visas

In addition to its new financial requirements, the ministry has also set out specific language prerequisites for students from Vietnam and 25 other countries: China, Philippines, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Mongolia, Thailand, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Nepal, Iran, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine, Nigeria, Ghana, Egypt, Peru, Guinea, Mali, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Cameroon.

Students from those 26 countries intending to study in English in South Korea will now need to present a TOEFL score of 530 or better (Test of English as a Foreign Language). Those intending to study in Korean-medium degree programmes will need a level 3 or better on the Test of Proficiency in Korean (TOPIK).

Those with a TOPIK level 4 or higher will now also be permitted to work in Korea’s manufacturing sector.

Along with its oversight of universities, the recent ministry announcement also sets out that it will now take on responsibility for Korean schools, including language centres. As of this month, it has already introduced new requirements for Korean language instructors (language teachers will now be required to have level 3 certificates issued by the  and class sizes will be capped at 30 students).

For additional background, please see:

• “South Korea: Record growth in international student enrolment”
• “Korea aims for 200,000 foreign students by 2023”
• “Is Asia ready to be the next higher education superpower?”

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The news comes as the UAE works to lessen its reliance on the oil and gas sector and to move the country further along its path to .

More branch campuses expected

The UAE has for years been aiming to be an education hub in the region and indeed, it hosts the second-highest number of university branch campuses in the world after only . Mohammad Abdullah, managing director of the Dubai International Academic City (DIAC) and the Dubai Knowledge Park, said that the expectation is for still more branch campuses to set up in the region. He cautions, however, that universities applying to start branches in DIAC will be carefully assessed and that a rigorous selection process will be applied.

Dubai is home to more than 200 nationalities today and 90% of the city’s population comes from abroad, which is one reason that international branch campuses are such a natural fit. Speaking with Gulf News, Dr Warren Fox, chief of higher education for the UAE’s Knowledge and Human Development Authority, noted that over 40% of Dubai’s 30,000 international students are enrolled at branch campuses operated by some of the top universities in the world.

Of the UAE’s new student visa rules, Mr Fox said,

“We are expecting significant growth in the number of students coming to study in UAE. This decision will not just benefit UAE economy, but also help higher education institutions and students. It is a win-win situation for everyone as you can now complete your education and explore future prospects.”

New visa allowances will facilitate employment

The UAE is not alone in extending visa rights and work periods for foreign students. The country joins Canada, Ireland, Japan, Taiwan, and China in introducing policies that make it easier for international students to study, work, and sometimes immigrate.

Such measures are aimed at attracting students who increasingly expect their education to lead directly to desired career outcomes. A British Council report noted that,

“International student mobility patterns are evolving based on increased education provision globally and students’ inclination towards programmes with tangible employability outcomes.”

Mr Abdullah (cited earlier), said the visa extension announcement for international students will inspire new strategies at DIAC to help students progress toward careers: “We are looking to work even more towards tying different industries to academic institutions.”

Already competitive

The UAE is already known for its well-considered international education strategies. Last year, the British Council published its Shape of Global Higher Education report based on an analysis of international higher education policies across 38 countries. #2 for quality assurance and degree recognition, and # 5 for openness and mobility.

Sally Ward, regional manager, higher education for the British Council, said, “It is really impressive, actually, for such a small country. They have made this very conscious decision to be open, to make this an area of focus, to promote the UAE as a destination of choice, to provide a wide variety of universities and courses and to find ways to encourage students to come to a stable community where they know they are going to get a high-quality education.”

For additional background, please see:

• “Dubai strengthens its position as a regional education hub”
• “China now the leading host for international branch campuses”
• “UAE leads the world in English-medium international school enrolments”

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