No. of immigrant-background students in primary, secondary education hits record high

As of April 1, the number of students in South Korean primary, secondary, and higher education institutions with an immigrant background has reached a record high, according to government data released on Wednesday. The total number of such students surged to 210,838, marking a 4.3 percent increase compared to the previous year.

These students, who come from multicultural or foreign-nationality families, constituted 4.3 percent of all students enrolled across all elementary and secondary schools in the country. The data, provided by the education ministry and the Korean Educational Development Institute, reveals that Vietnamese students represented the largest group among immigrant-background students, accounting for 30.9 percent of the total, followed by Chinese students at 26.7 percent and Filipino students at 8.1 percent.

In higher education, the number of international students, including those enrolled in universities and graduate schools, reached 307,464 in the current academic year, a substantial 21.3 percent rise from the previous year. For the first time, Vietnamese students surpassed Chinese students to become the largest group among international students, comprising 31.5 percent of the total, with 96,834 students. Chinese students numbered 78,890, accounting for 25.7 percent.