By Kang Seung-woo
The Ministry of Education said Thursday that it will ensure that foreign students coming to Korea to take language courses do not overstay their visas after graduation as part of the government's efforts to tackle the growing number of illegal immigrants.
The measure is part of the ministry's International Education Quality Assurance System (IEQAS) that will be operated for three years from 2020. The IEQAS is aimed at strengthening controls at domestic universities over their enrollment of foreign students by suggesting ideal standards for recruitment and management. Schools receiving IEQAS qualification will receive various benefits in recruiting foreign students.
Unlike its rules for undergraduate foreign students, the ministry has been under fire for being lax about people coming here to take Korean language classes.
The number of international students attending language courses in Korea has increased from 16,639 in 2012 to 44,746 in 2018.
To deal with this criticism, the ministry will evaluate each school's student management plans and infrastructure for language courses, such as budget, admission process, the number of inbound students per class, the ratio of students subscribed to health insurance, and the ratio of students who overstay their visas after finishing their courses.
For foreign students taking undergraduate and graduate courses, the ministry will also tighten its evaluation standards on schools recruitment and admission. Universities with a lax recruitment system for foreign students will be excluded from global education-related projects sponsored by the government.