Korean researchers seek opportunities overseas despite record funding
Korea Times illustration by Song Jeong-geun
7 in 10 young scientists actively considering moving abroad due to low starting wages, rigid hierarchies, endless paperwork
When Choi Jae-hyung (a pseudonym), a 29-year-old doctoral student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, made a surprise visit to Korea in December, he attended a get-together with his former classmates. The regular group consisted of 10 alumni who entered Seoul National University’s Department of Mechanical Engineering the same year. But the mood that night was subdued.
“Are you also not going to come back to Korea after getting your doctorate?” one classmate, who was working on his Ph.D., asked Choi.
Choi hesitated, then nodded. “There are more opportunities, and the pay is better,” he said, comparing the United States with Korea.
Another classmate, who listened quietly, asked, “Why did I go into engineering? I should have tried applying to medical school.”
For Choi and his peers, staying in engineering once seemed natural. Even as half of their peers switched to medical school, they continued studying engineering.
But by the time of their reunion, only Choi and four of his classmates remained on the engineering track. Others went to medical school or law school, joined major companies or left to settle in the United States. Some stopped attending reunions, tired of repeatedly hearing their old classmates complain about money and jobs.
Korea heavily funds research, but many researchers say the country has not built careers worth staying for. The problems include low pay, unstable jobs, limited control over research, shifting government priorities and administrative paperwork.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and ICT Bae Kyung-hoon speaks during a ministry press conference at Seoul Central Post Office in central Seoul, May 29. Courtesy of Ministry of Science and ICT
Talent leaves despite record R&D spending
By budget alone, Korea appears deeply committed to science and technology. The Ministry of Science and ICT set this year’s government research and development budget at a record 35.5 trillion won ($23.1 billion) and said the money would help “restore the collapsed science and engineering ecosystem.”
Including private-sector investment by conglomerates and other companies, Korea’s annual R&D spending reaches 131 trillion won. That equals 5.13 percent of gross domestic product, the second-highest share among OECD countries after Israel’s 6.35 percent.
However, science and technology talent is moving away. A Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry report published last year showed 340,000 science and engineering workers left Korea between 2013 and 2023. Of those, 96,000 held master’s or doctoral degrees.
The report also showed Korean high-skilled workers are over-represented in U.S. employment-based immigration. For high-skilled EB-1 and EB-2 employment visas, often issued to advanced foreign workers in fields such as artificial intelligence and semiconductors, Koreans received 10.98 visas per 100,000 people. That is 12 times Japan’s 0.86 and 11 times China’s 0.94.
Research valued, researchers neglected
Researchers point to poor treatment and weak compensation as reasons for leaving. Salary data from Korea’s public research institutes shows why.
The Hankook Ilbo obtained data from the office of Rep. Choi Soo-jin of the People Power Party covering 23 government-funded research institutes under the science ministry. Their annual salary increases over the past five years were 2.58 percent in 2020, 0.81 percent in 2021, 1.29 percent in 2022, 1.45 percent in 2023 and 2.52 percent in 2024. All fell below the 3 percent average inflation rate during the same period.
Annual salaries averaged 40.6 million won for researchers with bachelor’s degrees and 77.39 million won for doctoral-level researchers. By comparison, new university graduates at Samsung earn about 55 million won a year on average.
A chart generated by artificial intelligence
Jung Min-seop, a senior researcher at the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute, said the first monthly paycheck he received at a public research institute after earning his doctorate was 2.4 million won.
“I wondered whether I should work nights as a designated driver,” Jung said. “Even after spending 10 years earning a degree, it is hard to say there is sufficient compensation.”
Researchers at overseas government-backed labs worry less about pay. Job postings at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, a leading U.S. Department of Energy national laboratory, showed starting salaries of $70,000 for full-time researchers with bachelor’s degrees and $120,000 for those with doctorates.
For Choi, who returned to MIT after the reunion, those numbers confirmed his decision to stay in the United States.
“It differs by company, but a new Ph.D. in Silicon Valley receives at least about 300 million won as a starting salary,” Choi said. “In a field drawing attention, such as AI, it can go up to 500 million won. Money is not everything, but I cannot say it is to be sniffed at.”
A chart generated by artificial intelligence
An internal report from the National Research Council of Science and Technology, obtained by The Hankook Ilbo, showed pay is the central concern inside public research institutes. In a July survey of 1,244 employees at government-funded research institutes allowing multiple responses, “low wages and compensation” ranked first as a factor discouraging researchers from joining and staying in their field.
About 87.5 percent, or 1,089 respondents, cited it as a deterrent to joining, while 83.4 percent, or 1,037, said it drove them away. The science ministry-affiliated council oversees government-funded research institutes.
This has made researchers wary of building careers at these institutes. A Bank of Korea survey last year of more than 2,700 science and engineering researchers in Korea and abroad showed 42.9 percent were considering moving overseas within three years. Among those in their 20s and 30s, seven in 10 considered going abroad.
Asked why they were considering overseas jobs, 66.7 percent cited financial reasons. Another 61.1 percent cited the research ecosystem and networks, while 48.8 percent cited assured opportunities.
The decline in overseas talent entering Korea’s public research institutes reflects the same problem. Council data showed overseas talent accounted for 14.4 percent of new doctoral-level regular research hires in 2016. Last year, the share dropped to 3.8 percent.
Limited job security also pushes researchers abroad. Even after nearly 10 years of research to earn a doctorate, stable jobs are not guaranteed. The problem is especially acute in advanced fields, where Korea needs to secure talent early to compete.
A chart generated by artificial intelligence
Jung Min-young of the Korea Brain Research Institute said the organization is the country’s largest public brain science institute, but fewer than half of its 200 researchers hold regular positions.
“There are many researchers who want to return to Korea after earning degrees overseas, where advanced research is active, but remain abroad because there are no regular jobs in Korea,” Jung said. “It is a very unfortunate reality.”
Researchers struggle to pursue long-term work
Low pay is not the only problem. Researchers also say Korea’s science and engineering competitiveness suffers because shifting government priorities limit researchers’ autonomy.
Government priorities shift with each administration, and scientists often sacrifice research continuity to win funding. One researcher at a specialized research institute said that the Yoon Suk Yeol administration emphasized overseas cooperation, while under the Lee Jae Myung administration, projects stand a better chance if they highlight links to AI.
“This time, too, I struggled to find a connection with AI in order to win a project,” the researcher said. “But I felt ashamed because basic science research, which needs steady investment, seems to have been relatively neglected.”
Strict budget documentation adds another burden. Researchers say government research funding, which faces strict audits, often forces them to do administrative paperwork that takes time away from science. Even buying a single reagent can require them to write a justification and prepare documents comparing vendor quotes.
Lee, 28, a graduate of a Korean science and technology institute now pursuing an engineering doctorate at a private university in the U.S., said Korean labs placed much of that burden on graduate researchers.
“When I was in a Korean lab, master’s and doctoral-level researchers took turns serving as the weekly ‘general affairs duty’ person,” Lee said. “When it was your turn, you had to organize waste, receipts and do only paperwork. In the United States, dedicated staff are assigned, so I can focus only on research.”
President Lee Jae Myung talks with future scientists at the Cheong Wa Dae guest house in Seoul, Feb. 5. Korea Times photo by Wang Tae-seog
Need for career stability
Cho Yong-chul, an associate professor of brain sciences and dean of admissions and student affairs at Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology, struggled to answer when asked how Korea could retain science and engineering talent.
“Honestly, it is not easy to hold them,” Cho said, reflecting on the dilemma. “When students ask, ‘If I work hard on research, what comes next?’ and ‘Can I make a living?’ I have no choice but to hesitate.”
Cho has met thousands of young people who entered state-run science and research institutions after focusing solely on science. His assessment is blunt.
“They are smart students,” he said. “If the future looks uncertain, they quickly turn toward places where stable systems are guaranteed. That is why they enter medical school or look abroad.”
Cho said the government and academia urgently need to show young researchers that if they devote themselves to research, they can build stable careers as scientists.
“The people involved know best why this research work is necessary,” Cho said. “If their achievements are recognized and they are compensated accordingly, talent will not leave the laboratory. Only when talent remains will national competitiveness rise.”
This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.