Elite minds, from top professors to AI experts, are quietly leaving South Korea in search of better working environments abroad.
At top universities like Seoul National University, which is a symbol of South Korea’s educational excellence, the “brain drain” trend is becoming more evident. In the past four years, the school has had 56 professors leave, moving to educational institutions in the US, Singapore or China.
This figure includes not only scientists and engineers, but also professors in the social sciences , humanities, medicine and arts. Four times higher salaries, favorable research conditions and housing subsidies are causing the best people to choose to leave.
The root cause of the “intellectual migration” wave lies in the shortcomings of the Korean higher education system. Universities are suffering the consequences of a nearly two-decade-long tuition freeze, which has prevented them from improving faculty salaries or investing in research.
According to the Korean Ministry of Education, the average salary of lecturers at private universities increased by only 0.8% over the past five years, from 100.6 million won in 2019 to 101.4 million won in 2024. Meanwhile, international universities are willing to pay more than 330 thousand USD to attract the same position.
For experts in artificial intelligence, a field that is expected to be a driver of national growth, the picture is even more worrying. According to the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the country currently ranks 35th out of 38 in the OECD in terms of AI talent retention. Countries such as Luxembourg and Germany are becoming attractive destinations thanks to effective recruitment policies and excellent research conditions.
In addition to low salaries, the research environment in Korea is also considered to lack development opportunities, have limited infrastructure, and rely too much on short-term performance evaluations. An AI researcher at a major tech corporation shared that in Korea, domestic graduates are often undervalued compared to international students, not only because of their professional abilities, but also because of their English skills and international experience.
Faced with this situation, President Lee Jae Myung asked Prime Minister Kim Min-seok to propose measures to retain talent, especially in strategic areas such as AI and biotechnology.
However, many experts warn that preventing brain drain is not enough. South Korea needs to shift to a “brain circulation” model, which means not only retaining talent, but also attracting international experts and encouraging overseas Koreans to return and contribute.
To do that, Korea's education and research system needs to drastically reform from performance-based compensation mechanisms, investment in world-class research facilities, to expanding global academic cooperation programs.
The “brain drain” is not limited to Seoul. From 2021 to mid-2025, 119 faculty members left major research institutes in the region, including KAIST, GIST, DGIST, and UNIST. Of these, 18 settled abroad. Local professors moved to the capital, and from there went out into the world.
Source: https://giaoducthoidai.vn/han-quoc-chat-vat-giu-chan-nhan-tai-post739119.html
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