Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Bulsajo]

I could say "don't shoot the messenger" but I doubt it would change anything.


Koreans Like Canada -- It's that Simple

Embassy, February 22nd, 2006
EMBASSY REPORT
By Sarah McGregor

Students from South Korea, the leading source of foreign students to Canada, are flocking to all three levels of Canadian schools due to reasonable tuition and an easy English accent to grasp.
Woong Chang is in his graduating year as a biology major at Carleton University in Ottawa. But the 27-year-old international student confesses his drive to study in Canada was to master the English language. "I didn't care very much about the reputation of the school," says Woong, president of the university's Korean Student Association. "I wanted to study abroad."

His father, a microbiology professor at an agricultural college near the Korean capital of Seoul, can read and write but can't speak English fluently. He insisted Woong learn the universal basic skill.

Canada became the obvious choice because of its depiction on television and radio and in the press as a peace-loving, safe nation. Tuition and living expenses are more reasonable than in the United States, and spoken English in Canada is easier to understand than in Britain or Australia, he says. "English is the international language and Koreans have to speak it if they want jobs -- even in Korea," says Woong.

South Korea is by far the leading source of foreign students to Canada. Citizenship and Immigration Canada reports 12,292 student arrivals from South Korea in 2004, nearly doubling the number of scholars from Japan (6,894) and China (4,960). There was a total of more than 56,000

international students who entered Canada in 2004.

Overall, statistics show a steady decline in the flow of foreign students to Canada since the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington. (A partial explanation is an ease in visa restrictions that allows students studying for less than six months -- up from three -- to enter the country without a permit.)

However, the Canadian Embassy in Seoul reports a recent turnaround. The mission issued 13,800 study permits in 2005 -- an increase of about 1,500 over the previous year, says Jean-Pierre Cliche, Canada's Immigration Program Manager.

The fields of study are almost evenly divided between English as a Second Language (ESL) programs and elementary or high school. Surprisingly, only a small number of students -- about five per cent-- attend university or college here, says Mr. Cliche.

The application process is relatively simple. The Canadian mission requires a letter of admission from the school, a $125 processing fee, and proof of adequate funds to cover the student's travel and living expenses.

Young Students Are Big Business

A growing trend in recent years is toward young international students attending elementary and high school in Canada, says Mr. Cliche. He explains the movement is partly due to the perception of a poor public education system in Korea. In Toronto and Vancouver, foreigners pay as much as $10,000 annually for a spot in a public grade school, while some private institutions charge more.

Minors can enter Canada with the expressed promise they'll be taken care of by a custodian, typically a friend or family member who has immigrated here. Increasingly, one parent is accompanying the young pupil, using a six-month tourist visa and then applying to stay longer. "We have become more willing to extend their stay because, after all, this is a positive move for Canada, " says Mr. Cliche. "There is a lot of money there."

Elementary, high school and post-secondary students spend about $26,400 annually, while short-term students -- such as those learning ESL -- contribute about $8,000, according to Jennifer Humphries, a vice-president of the Ottawa-based Canadian Bureau for International Education.

Combined, more than 280,000 foreign students spend between $5 to $6 billion a year. "Clearly international students are a major component in the Canadian economy," says Ms. Humphries.

Which explains why the global battleground to attract international students is crowded.

Mr. Cliche says Canadians' clear verbal accent is an advantage over rich English-speaking nations in stiff competition in the lucrative education marketplace, including the United States, Australia and Britain. "Our English is considered stand-out English," says Mr. Cliche.

Other attractive factors include cozy personal relations and strong bilateral linkages, says He Beom Kim, Director of Culture and Information at the Korean Embassy in Ottawa. Mr. Kim says the more than 8,000 Canadians who teach English in Korea each year are also engaging in fine public diplomacy. "Koreans like Canada. It's that simple," he says. An impressive 85 per cent of South Koreans recently surveyed by the British Broadcasting Corporation had a positive impression of Canada's impact in the world -- the most enthusiastic foreign supporters.

Woong says his only complaint is that he may be forced to leave Canada after graduation this year if he can't find a job. "We often have top grades but the companies aren't supporting international students," he says.
http://www.embassymag.ca/html/index.php?display=story&full_path=/2006/february/22/koreans/

[Wrench]

Hmm I wonder how many of them work illegally?

[Bulsajo]

You get the rolly-eyes for that comment.

[Cohiba]

Ya, ya. Koreans say they like Canada because it is
a relatively inoffensive, irrelevant country that provides
reasonable quality of life. (if you can get a job and don't
mind paying 40%+ of your dough in taxes)

Ask Koreans where they want to live and the USA is always
first on the list. More $, less taxes.

[ajgeddes]

[Ya-ta Boy]

Just idle curiosity.

Everyone has seen government reports saying, "Hey! The foreigners think we are terrific" and "Uh oh, the foreigners think we suck". Has anyone seen a government report from any country saying, "The foreigners just think we're ho hum"?

[Bulsajo]

I thought it was a good article, full of relevant info for some- if not many- readers here, yet somehow it seems to have offended you and Wrench. Oh well, I don't think I'll be losing any sleep over that.

[numazawa]

Damn that lucky guy! I bet I'd get quoted a lot, too, if my name were Mr. Cliche.

[mindmetoo]

[JongnoGuru]

[igotthisguitar]

[semphoon]

Nope, you are all WRONG.

I think that you will find that ALL Koreans want to live in SCOTLAND.

[JongnoGuru]

Scotland, Canada, NZ, Australia, America, even China, Japan and the Philippines -- Koreans have many choices in the great "Eenie Meanie Minie Moe" of overseas study & emigration. No single country owns the bragging rights here, and they're all to a degree interchangeable. It's not like people here have some lifelong love affair with the history, culture, people and overall 'thingness' of a particular place, and then one fine day they pack up and move body & soul to the "Promised Land" of Lower New Brunswick.

[Homer]

[mindmetoo]