No. 85 | July 2020
KSIF Newsletter
KSIF designates 34 new KSIs, bringing total KSI
number to 213 (in 76 countries)
- Includes 15 countries (5 African, 2 Northern European) that did not have any KSIs
- Highest number of applications ever received (101 institutions, 50 countries),
exceeding 200 after 13 years of KSI operation
The number of KSIs, educational institutions that teach the Korean language and culture
to foreigners, in operation will soon reach 213 (in 76 countries).
On June 10, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the King Sejong Institute
Foundation (KSIF, president: Kang Hyounhwa) announced that it will be designating 34
new King Sejong Institutes (KSIs) in 30 countries. This most recent designation of new
KSIs has resulted in the total number of KSIs worldwide exceeding 200—a feat achieved
in only 13 years since the opening of the first KSI in 2007.
Of the 34 newly designated KSIs, the most will be in Europe, at 16, with an additional 10
in Asia, five in Africa, and three in the Americas. Another meaningful development is that
15 of the 34 KSIs will be opened in countries that did not previously have a KSI.
A total of 15 countries with no KSIs were selected for this most recent round of
designations, including: eight in Europe (Denmark, Romania, Sweden, Slovakia, Armenia,
Ukraine, Georgia, and Croatia), five in Africa (Madagascar, Algeria, Eswatini, Ethiopia,
and Uganda), one in South America (Costa Rica), and one in the Middle East (Jordan).
Ten KSIs were designated in regions of policy interest for the Korean government: the
New Northern countries (two in Russia and one each in Ukraine, Georgia, and Armenia)
and New Southern countries (two in India and one each in Laos, Vietnam, and Thailand).
The call for applications for new KSIs garnered a total of 101 applications from institutions
in 50 countries, double that of most years. The increase in the number of European and
African applicant institutions, which doubled or even tripled (based on region), shows
how the high demand for Hallyu and Korean language education has spread worldwide.
Applicant institutions undergo a three-step process: document (application) screening,
video interview, and final screening. This year, due to the global spread of COVID-19,
all on-site assessments were substituted with video interviews. The vast majority of
applicants, despite the difficulties caused by the suspension of official duties and closing
of schools, actively participated in the application procedure from start to finish.
Minister of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism Park Yangwoo said, “We are
delighted to name 34 new KSIs despite the adverse effects of COVID-19. With over 200
KSIs worldwide, the government will employ all of the policy tools available to us to
support the KSIs so that interest in Korea’s language and culture will translate into positive
sentiment toward Korea as a nation.”
KSIF President Kang Hyounhwa said, “This round of designations is very significant
because we will now have a KSI presence in Europe, Africa, South America, and the
Middle East, which are regions that lacked Korean educational institutions. In response
to the passion of students around the world to learn Korean, even in the face of the
many hardships caused by COVID-19, we will focus on providing high-quality educational
infrastructure so that regions that cannot conduct offline classes can move all teaching
and learning online.”
No.
Region/city
Institution name
1
Denmark (Copenhagen)
Koreansk Kulturcenter
2
Germany (Mannheim)
University of Mannheim
National University of Laos- International
3
Laos (Vientiane)
Language and Culture Education Center (ILCEC) of
Sangmyung University
National Research University Higher School of
4
Russia (Moscow)
Economics- Institute of International Education
Kyung Hee University
5
Russia (Saint Petersburg)
Korean Cultural Center in Saint-Petersburg
6
Romania (Bucharest)
Dimitrie Cantemir Christian University
7
Madagascar (Antananarivo)
Université d'Antananarivo
8
USA (San Antonio)
St. Mary’s University-Dongseo University
Ho Chi Minh City University of Transport-Dongguk
9
Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City)
University (Seoul)
Korean Culture and Education Association in
10
Belgium (Brussels)
Belgium
University of Peradeniya-Embassy of the Republic
11
Sri Lanka (Kandy)
of Korea in the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri
Lanka
12
Sweden (Gothenburg)
Hangulskolan i Göteborg
Comenius University in Bratislava-Embassy of the
13
Slovakia (Bratislava)
Republic of Korea in Bratislava, Slovakia
Yerevan Brusov State University of Languages and
14
Armenia (Yerevan)
Social Sciences
15
Algeria (Algiers)
Algeria Korean School
16
Eswatini (Mbabane)
Eswatini Medical Christian University
Universidad Central del Ecuador Language
17
Ecuador (Quito)
Academic Institute
18
Ethiopia (Addis Ababa)
Kotebe Metropolitan University
Richmond University-The American University in
19
England (London)
London
20
England (Preston)
University of Central Lancashire
University of Jordan-Embassy of the Republic of
21
Jordan (Amman)
Korea in Amman, Jordan
22
Uganda (Kumi)
Kumi University
23
Ukraine (Dnipro)
National State Tax Service University of Ukraine
University of Isfahan-Embassy of the Republic of
24
Iran (Isfahan)
Korea in the Islamic Republic of Iran
Dhanamanjuri University-Korean Cultural Centre
25
India (Imphal)
India New Delhi
Bharati Vidyapeeth University (Center for Health
26
India (Pune)
Management Studies and Research)
27
Georgia (Tbilisi)
Korean Culture & Language Foundation In Georgia
28
China (Wuhan)
Central China Normal University
29
Costa Rica (San Jose)
Universidad de Costa Rica
30
Croatia (Zagreb)
University of Zagreb-Chung-Ang University
31
Taiwan (Tainan)
Kun Shan University-Korea University of Media Arts
32
Thailand (Bangkok)
Kasem Bundit University
33
France (Quimper)
EMBA Quimper
34
Hungary (Debrecen)
Debrecen Summer School
Total
30 countries
34 institutions
▶Minister of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism Park Yangwoo announcing newly
designated KSIs.