Vietnam is poised to surpass China as the largest source of foreign students in South Korea. This shift means Korean universities will soon hear "Xin chào," the Vietnamese greeting, more often than "Nihao," its Chinese counterpart.
According to data released by the Ministry of Education on the 11th, Vietnamese students numbered 75,144 last year, ranking second behind China's 76,541. The gap of roughly 1,500 students is expected to close this year, with Vietnam likely taking the top spot.
Chinese students' share of total foreign enrollment fell from 34.5% to 30.2% over the past year, while Vietnamese students' share rose from 26.8% to 29.7%. Chinese student numbers grew by just 4,521, compared to a surge of 19,141 Vietnamese students during the same period.
Analysts attribute the rapid increase in Vietnamese students to multiple factors: university recruitment programs, expanding bilateral trade, and the Korean Wave cultural phenomenon. Growing numbers of Vietnamese students are also converting their student visas (D-2) to job-seeking visas (D-10) or skilled worker visas (E-7) to pursue employment in Korea.
Vietnamese students reportedly favor majors including business and trade, Korean language studies, hotel and tourism management, IT and computer science, and beauty and fashion. These fields align with career opportunities at Korean companies or Korean firms operating in Vietnam.
Bilateral trade between South Korea and Vietnam reached $94.5 billion last year, making Vietnam one of Korea's three largest trading partners alongside China ($272.7 billion) and the United States ($196.2 billion).
Following China and Vietnam, the largest sources of foreign students were Uzbekistan (15,786), Mongolia (15,270), Nepal (12,784), Myanmar (8,114), Japan (5,395), and the United States (3,331). Total foreign student enrollment reached 253,434 last year and is projected to exceed 300,000 for the first time this year.
