[Student Reporters] Students Still Want to Study Abroad Despite Negative Implication

With another year gone another wave of seniors will be graduating and flying off to their respective oversea universitities in the U.S. U.K. and other countries. Every year the number of Korean students applying to foreign universities is increasing drastically. Just about 6 years ago only around 500 Korean students applied to overseas universities. Now the number has increased to near 6000 students with the number increasing each passing year.

As the number of students wishing to study abroad increases so does the competition. Currently the number of Korean students studying in the U.S. borders 120000 making up the largest number of overseas students from a single nation. Every year this number increases making it harder and harder for Korean students to gain acceptance to top U.S. universities.

This is not only true for Korean students living in Korea but also living in the U.S. as well. As universities pursue racial and cultural diversity they refrain from picking too many students from the same country. As the years pass although unofficial rumors that universities actually discriminate against Korean students have become widespread.

True or not one thing is sure- Korean students have to work much harder if they wish to get into elite universities. However there is still a negative view towards students who wish to or have gone to foreign universities. Many Korean people believe that admissions to foreign universities can simply be gained through paying a large tuition fee and that it is a small privilege of the rich.

They believe it is an escape route for students who do not want to study and have the luxury of rich parents who can support that wish. One student who wished to remain anonymous said "Studying overseas? That's just for people who have a lot of money to waste and don't want to study." Although views are changing such outlook is still prevalent within the Korean society.

As foreign university acceptance becomes more competitive Korean students who wish to study abroad face the challenge of working towards gaining acceptance to an overseas univeristy while dealing with the negative implications of students studying abroad. However these adversaries must be overcome if one wishes to study at one of the world's top universities. How? That is a question only the individual students can answer.