IEF Education Foundation | Education Fair Taiwan Article

As a service to the participants in AIEF's 2003 American Education Spring Fairs in Korea, as well as to inform our friends and colleagues about AIEF's recent events in that country, we have prepared this report to highlight our activities in Korea this spring. Covered in this report are details about the Spring Fair venues, attendance statistics, seminar topics, a review of Korea's recruitment market, and dates for AIEF's 2003 Fall Fair in Seoul. We hope you find this information useful.

The IEF Education Foundation's 2003 American Education Spring Fairs in Korea took place on March 8th – 9th in Seoul at COEX, and on March 11th in Busan at the Lotte Hotel. To make the most of the optimal environment for recruiting students in Korea, IEF coordinated the American Pavilions within the Korean Student Fairs, which were held at each of these venues. The Korean Student Fairs are traditionally the best-attended student recruitment fairs in Korea. Situated at independent sections of the exhibition areas, the American Pavilions were reserved only for official American school representatives, as agents were not permitted to be part of these special sections. The American Pavilion in Seoul featured forty-seven booths, with twenty-four booths in Pusan. In addition, complimentary booths were provided by IEF to the Fulbright office and the U.S. Embassy in Korea. The U.S. Embassy booths at both venues were well-staffed to field the many questions posed by Korean students and parents.

Estimated attendance at the two-day Korean Student Fair in Seoul was 25,000, with the American Pavilion receiving more than 8,300 visitors. Attendance in Busan was estimated at 1,500 visitors. During the exhibition days in Seoul and Busan, IEF’s booth received over 1,100 student inquiry registrations, of which 855 students were identified to be usable data. This list of 855 students will be provided to IEF fair participants via e-mail by April 15.

School Type	Undergraduate	Graduate	Language & Others
Student Interest	35.7%	41.6%	22.7%

Year	2003	2004	2005	2006 and Beyond	Total
Number of students	202	328	124	201	855

During informative seminars offered in conjunction with the Fair, IEF provided insights about the college application process and scholarship opportunities to Korean students. Several schools also conducted individual sessions to introduce their institutions to prospective students.

At the invitation of IEF, Ms. Christina Cavallo, consular officer from the U.S. Embassy in Korea, participated in the pre-Fair orientation in Seoul for the U.S. education delegation and spoke to audiences at both Fair venues regarding student visa issues and SEVIS (Student and Exchange Visitor Information System) procedures. Ms. Mikyung Choi, senior education advisor at the Fulbright's U.S. Education Center in Korea, addressed the topic "The New iBT TOEFL® and LanguEdge Courseware" at the COEX venue in Seoul. All of the sessions were well-attended, with over 200 people at many of them.

In 2002, the number of Korean students studying in the United States was 49,046, representing a 7% increase from 2001. Statistics show that approximately 39% of Korean students in the United States are studying at undergraduate level, 47% are enrolled in graduate programs, and 11% are listed as non-degree or ESL students.

With 154,000 students studying abroad, Korea currently ranks third, after India and China, among countries sending students to the United States. In 1999, Canada replaced the United States as the number one destination for Korean students who study abroad. After the United States, other popular places for Korean students to study are Japan, Australia, and China. Lately, the U.K., Germany, and France have also launched aggressive recruitment campaigns in Korea.

Potentially contributing to the increase in Korean students studying abroad is the Korean government's liberalization of its study abroad regulations for professional and vocational schools and higher education institutions since the mid 1990s. Furthermore, in 2000, the Korean Ministry of Education began to allow elementary, and middle and high school students to study overseas. As a consequence of this government policy, over the past few years there has been a significant increase in the interest of younger Korean students to take part in a variety of educational programs in the United States, such as ESL programs and summer camps.

A recent survey of Korean students planning to study in the United States revealed a strong interest in pursuing degrees in business and engineering. Other popular fields were computer science, information technology, the social sciences, the arts, agriculture, communications and journalism, biological sciences, and health care services. Promising educational interests include intensive English language training, vocational training, accounting, art and music, summer camps, and elementary and secondary schools.

Plans for the 2003 American Education Fall Fair in Seoul are already underway. Scheduled from September 6th – 7th, the event will be held at COEX. U.S. schools are encouraged to contact the IEF Education Foundation early in order to reserve booth space for this always-popular event.

Korean students registering at the IEF booth, which featured a red-white-and blue motif. Those who registered received free counseling and a complimentary gift.

IEF collected student registration information for distribution to all Fair Participants.

Korean students throng the aisles of the American Pavilion, a special section of the Korean Student Fair that was coordinated by IEF on behalf of U.S. educational institutions.

IEF provided each booth with a local interpreter.

Students enjoyed the opportunity to meet face-to-face with American school representatives.