Signal About 30,000 STEM students leave Korea each year and net talent outflow has widened

Summary

The plan reports that about 30,000 science and engineering students, from undergraduates to doctoral candidates, leave Korea every year. Citing the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, it gives figures of 28,000 in 2021, 32,000 in 2022 and 29,000 in 2023. Senior academics are also leaving, with 56 Seoul National University professors moving abroad over the past five years according to the education ministry. Between 2019 and 2021 the inflow of foreign workers into Korea fell while the outflow of Korean workers abroad rose. As a result, the net outflow of talent widened from 78,000 to 84,000, according to the chamber's 2025 analysis.