[Opinion] The Trap of Having the World's Highest University Enrollment Rate

The early study abroad of Supreme Court justice nominees' children has become a controversy in the current administration as well as the previous one. The issue is that sending children abroad for early study without their parents is considered illegal. In Korea, the hearing process for top leaders often focuses more on family background verification than on competency verification. In particular, overseas childbirth, false address registration, and illegal study abroad related to children's education are among the representative controversies. This is because the public's interest in children's education is very high.

The author also had the opportunity to spend a sabbatical year at the University of California in the United States with family. Before leaving, many fellow professors who heard the news unanimously shared stories about how their children insisted on staying in the U.S. to study, causing them some trouble. Sure enough, when returning to Korea, my daughter repeatedly asked, "Can't I stay in the U.S. to study?" In such cases, parents naturally face some dilemma. This is because they believe the U.S. education system is much more competitive than Korea's. So, where does the competitiveness of the U.S. education system lie?

Not only elementary students but also middle and high school students, and even university students, show such poor satisfaction with Korean education that it hardly needs confirmation. Students, exhausted from harsh entrance exam competition during their elementary to high school years, have long lost interest and enjoyment in education and learning, and university education has degenerated into an unavoidable process just to get a job. Consequently, every year, more university students are struggling with part-time jobs late into the night to pay tuition and living expenses, only to doze off in classrooms.

When staying abroad, it is easy to confirm that Korea's passion for education is among the highest in the world. It is rare to find a student of Korean descent who is not an honor student. There is little disagreement that Korea's rapid economic growth and development, admired worldwide, owe much to its world-class educational zeal. However, why does our education fail to produce world-class competitiveness? Korea has long stood as an economic powerhouse, and the global Hallyu wave has drawn worldwide attention to "Korea," but where does Korean education rank in global competitiveness? Why are more students dozing off in class every year? Why is the academic level of graduates declining? Why is students' passion for scholarship fading?

According to annual education statistics provided by the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), the proportion of college graduates among Korean youth and middle-aged adults (20s and 30s) is 69.8% (an overwhelming first place in the OECD), whereas the proportion among older adults (50s and 60s) is only 25.1% (OECD average 29.1%). The gap is about threefold. At this rate, universal college graduation among the entire population is only a matter of time. On the other hand, investment per Korean university student is $11,000 (OECD average $17,000), which is among the lowest. Considering these facts, the answers to the above questions become clear.

There is no free lunch in the world. To nurture excellent talent, universities inevitably manage their investment portfolios. The domestic university rankings announced annually by various media outlets often serve as the criteria. Given the limited income due to restrictions on profit-making activities in universities, they have no choice but to adjust expenditures to achieve the best results. With tuition frozen for 14 years, universities face limits in increasing investment. They have no choice but to reduce costs related to student investment. Staff salaries have long been frozen, and essential university operating costs such as facility investment, research and educational equipment, laboratory and practical training expenses, and scholarships are noticeably decreasing.

Korea's high university enrollment rate is not unrelated to its high youth unemployment rate. Many fall into the illusion that simply graduating from university guarantees a decent job. Unless elegant jobs matching college graduates' expectations continue to be created, youth unemployment will be difficult to improve. The capabilities of students should be identified in advance and evenly distributed to appropriate positions in society by benchmarking advanced education models. While hastening university restructuring, the policy of financial tightening that promotes downward leveling must be promptly improved.

Education is a long-term national project. If the current state continues, scholarship will face extinction, the outflow of talented personnel abroad will persist, and Korea may fall to a second- or third-tier country. It is hoped that Korea's education system will rise to a world-class level so that controversies over top leaders' children studying abroad no longer cause social disputes.

Cha Hee-seong, Professor, Department of Architecture, Ajou University