On 8 September 2026 the Ministry of Education announced a new strategy for international students. Korea has 307,464 international students in 2026, reaching its 300,000 goal one year early, so the focus moves from recruiting more students to quality and talent development.
What is planned: • A draft standard agreement between universities and recruitment agencies will be prepared and distributed in the second half of 2026. • Guidelines on how foreign degrees are verified, and consulting for universities, to strengthen checks of academic records. • The Korean-language standard (official language-test indicator) in the university certification system will rise step by step until 2030. • Universities not accredited in the institutional accreditation, or rated in financial crisis two years in a row, will be placed in the lowest certification grade and barred from recruiting new international students. • A 24-hour AI chatbot in students' own languages, linked to professional counsellors, for students who need help. • From 2027, a new certification for university departments that excel at training international talent.
These are plans: the 5th-cycle basic plan for the certification system is due in the second half of 2026. We will post the details when they are published.
What it means for you: choose an agency that gives you a written contract, never submit documents you are unsure about, and keep improving your Korean.
Source: Ministry of Education announcement, 8 September 2026 (as reported by Korea Education Newspaper).