Revisiting 'Who Are International Students' in the Borderless Higher Education of a Multicultural Era

In recent times, it has become increasingly difficult to find a term as frequently mentioned in South Korean universities as "international students." About a year ago, a plan was announced to attract 300,000 international students by 2027, but efforts to recruit students from abroad have intensified unprecedentedly for several years now. The objective of 'internationalization'—far from being a mere emulation of others or a lofty goal—has transformed into a fierce struggle for survival, a stark contrast to the situation before 2010.

The Rapid Rise of Diversity in South Korea

Around the turn of the millennium, the number of international students in South Korea began to significantly manifest, with the Ministry of Education reporting 180,000 and the Ministry of Justice over 230,000. It has been about three years since South Korea transitioned into a 'receiving country,' where the number of students coming from abroad surpasses those leaving for studies overseas. The qualitative diversity has become increasingly crucial as students from China, Vietnam, and Uzbekistan alone constitute two-thirds of all international students.

In the 1970s and 1980s, student mobility in South Korea was primarily domestic, moving from under-resourced rural areas to urban centers in search of better educational opportunities. This changed in the 1990s with more South Koreans studying abroad, culminating in the early 2000s with the overseas study boom. Many of these students eventually returned, enriching the country's socio-cultural diversity in invisible yet significant ways.

Not only universities but South Korea itself has rapidly transformed into a multicultural society. As of March 2024, the foreign population in South Korea has surged by about 11% in just one year, reaching approximately 2.6 million. It's a well-known fact that in regions outside the capital, foreign workers and students significantly impact the local economy, and the proportion of foreign and multicultural students at the elementary, middle, and high school levels has increased dramatically.

Revisiting Who Counts as an 'International Student'

As the globalization of higher education has progressed over the past 20 years, the demographic shock and the increase in socio-cultural diversity in South Korea prompt a critical examination of whether the term "international students" accurately captures all intended subjects.

For instance, a student from a non-capital region, who is a South Korean national but whose parents are foreigners and who does not exhibit typical Korean traits, enrolls in a university in the capital region—are they considered an international or a domestic student? Conversely, what about a student who does not hold South Korean nationality but has Korean parents and has grown up abroad, while showing the typical Korean traits, and enrolls in a domestic university?

While it might seem convenient to classify based on the nationality listed on a passport, the reality is far from straightforward. Considering mobility, diversity, and multicultural perspectives, these students are multidimensionally constituted, which necessitates a change in university strategies to support their learning and growth. 

In this context, Kimberlé Crenshaw's concept of 'intersectionality' is pertinent, suggesting that an individual's social identity is formed and affected by intersecting factors such as race, ethnicity, class, gender, and gender identity, often leading to complex outcomes like discrimination or exclusion.

From Transnational to Borderless

If the discussion were only about student mobility, it might be simple. However, in the rapidly changing global higher education environment, the mobility of universities and programs is also unbounded. From a transnational higher education perspective, when students and programs cross national boundaries, how should 'international students' be defined? A student attending a university affiliated with Country B but operated in Country A might be classified differently from the perspective of each country.

Against this backdrop, Lane and Farrugia (2022) presents an interesting classification of four student types based on the perspectives of 'home campus' and 'overseas branch.' The types are as follows:

• Boundary Spanner: Students who are considered domestic at both the home and branch campuses. They are often connected to both countries through dual citizenship or other means.
• Passthrough: Students who are domestic at the home campus and international at the branch campus. These students receive their education in the home campus country and choose the branch campus to study in a similar environment for specific purposes.
• Staycationer: Students who are international at the home campus but domestic at the branch campus. These students are from the country where the branch is located and pursue an 'international study experience' without leaving their home country.
• Explorer: Students who are international at both the home and branch campuses. These students are not originally from the countries where either campus is located and seek challenging international educational experiences.

With the advent of digital transformation promoting online higher education, how should a student residing in Country A and attending online classes offered by a South Korean university be classified? 

Beyond traditional frameworks like 'Internationalization Abroad' and 'Internationalization at Home,' the emergence of 'Internationalization at a Distance' complicates the situation further. In a university that educates students globally, the category of 'international students' may soon lose its relevance. This reevaluation from a borderless higher education perspective, facilitated by educational technology, is emerging in response to these developments. 

In the dynamically changing realm of global higher education, we must continuously reassess how we define the categories of past, present, and future international students.