Graduates clad in borrowed gowns fling their graduation caps into the air after attending the second commencement ceremony of the 2021 academic year at Hanyang University in Seoul on Aug. 18, 2022. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Sept. 2 (Korea Bizwire) — Educational expenditures at South Korean universities last year increased on a per-student basis compared to a year earlier, but the actual value of scholarships and student loans disbursed declined.
According to data from the Ministry of Education and the Korean Council for University Education, domestic universities’ educational expenditures per student stood at 17.1 million won (US$12,630) last year, up 5.7 percent from a year ago.
These expenditures amounted to 20.8 million won per student for national and public universities, up 10.1 percent year on year, while private universities saw such per-student spending reach 15.9 million won, up 4 percent year on year.
“University spending, including expenditures for experiments, increased.” a ministry official said.
The total value of scholarships for general and education universities stood at 4.5 trillion won last year, down 2.6 percent year on year.
The ministry noted that the decrease was attributable to the decline in the amount disbursed in COVID-19 relief scholarships, which dropped by 178.3 billion won last year compared to a year earlier.
The value of scholarships per student also fell by 0.1 percent to 3.3 million won last year.
J. S. Shin (js_shin@koreabizwire.com)
