17 schools banned from admitting int’l students

Universities that have wantonly accepted international students but neglected them once they arrived in Korea will be banned from getting visas for students for one year from March.

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and the Ministry of Justice disclosed yesterday the names of 17 universities that will be cracked down on following an investigation that began in September.

The ministries said the schools indiscriminately accepted international students in a bid to boost their rankings in annual university evaluations. The number of international students is one of the evaluation criteria. Some offered hefty tuition discounts.

After luring international students into their classrooms, they failed to provide them with adequate academic and social support, the ministries said. This harmed the reputation of Korean universities abroad.

According to the Education Ministry, it evaluated a total of 347 universities and selected the 36 worst offenders, labeling them “incapable” of dealing with international students.

The bottom 17 will not be issued visas for students from March for a year, while the next seven universities will be ordered to improve their performances. The remaining 12 universities will receive consultations with experts to improve their performances.

The 17 universities include seven four-year universities: Soongsil University, Daegu Arts Univeristy, Sangmyung University’s Cheonan Campus, Sungshin Women’s University, Hanmin International School, Hansung University and Myungshin University. They also include 10 junior colleges: Donga College, Busan Arts College, Songwon University, Juseong College, Chung Cheong University, Gwang Yang Health College, Sunghwa College, Songho College, Youngnam Foreign Language College and Hanyeong College University.

These universities accepted applications indiscriminately, said the Education Ministry, and drastically reduced tuition for international students.

The Education Ministry did not names the remaining 19 universities, which will submit improvement plans.

By Yim Seung-hye [sharon@joongang.co.kr]