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Universities enhance support for international students with new offices, facilities

Published: 06 Apr. 2026, 10:24

LEE TAE-HEE
[email protected]

Incheon National University's officials and international students take a photo in front of Global UNI Land, a new international student lounge, during an opening ceremony held on March 30. [INCHEON NATIONAL UNIVERSITY]

With universities seeing more international students, many schools are expanding their international student offices and opening spaces for their international student body closer to the heart of campus.

Yonsei University moved its Office of International Affairs from Baekyang Hall to room 208 of the Student Union's Annex building starting this spring semester.

The decision follows the need for the Office of International Affairs to be located in a location easily accessible by students as the university sees more international students.

The new location places the office in the same building as student facilities such as the cafeteria, bookstore and cafes, compared to the former Baekyang Hall that housed administrative offices like the Office of General Affairs and the Office of Research Affairs.

Incheon National University also opened two international student lounges, holding an opening ceremony on March 30.

One of the newly opened student lounges is Global UNI Land, located on the first floor of the university observatory, offering space for international students to rest.

Another is the Global UNI Lounge, located near the International Service Center in the administration building and established after the university was selected for the i-RISE program in 2025.

The i-RISE program is led by Incheon and brings together 12 universities in the city — such as Incheon National University, Inha University and Gachon University's Medical Campus — to work on agendas such as international student support and fostering talent aligned with local industry needs.

Through the Global UNI Lounge, students will be able to get administrative help regarding visas, health insurance and banking-related matters. Consultations will be available in multiple languages, with language exchange programs between Korean and international students hosted at the lounge.

With the Global UNI Lounge created as part of the i-RISE program, various mentoring programs and student entrepreneurship support programs will also be hosted at the venue.

"The Global UNI Lounge will serve as a hub that supports international students’ settlement and growth," said Hong Jin-bae, the university's director of international and external affairs. "We will continue to expand support for global talent in collaboration with our local community."

Seoul National University Ryu Hong-lim gives a speech congratulating the opening of the new Office of Global Affairs on Jan. 9. [SEOUL NATIONAL UNIVERSITY]

Seoul National University is another that expanded its administrative body for international students.

The university previously handled international student affairs through the Office of International Affairs, but expanded it into the Office of Global Affairs in January. The Office of Global Affairs acts as the university's central hub for internationalization efforts, including developing related strategies, promoting exchange programs and supporting international students and faculty.

But one of the biggest changes for students is the establishment of the International Students and Scholars Service (ISSS), a team under the Office of Global Affairs.

ISSS serves as an international student support center, with an emphasis on visiting scholars and visiting student researchers, who previously received less attention due to the large number of general international students.

The visiting scholars can visit ISSS to get the S-Card, similar to a student ID and providing access to student facilities such as libraries and sports facilities. Information about the K-STAR visa fast track, which allows outstanding students holding graduate degrees in science and technology at select universities to get the F-2-7S residency visa upon graduation, will also be offered through ISSS.

Apart from services specific to visiting scholars, ISSS is also responsible for hosting networking events and mentoring programs for the general international student body.

A new website has been launched for the Office of Global Affairs, providing information such as announcements for international students, exchange students and outbound students. However, the office itself remains in the same location at the university’s CJ International Center.

BY LEE TAE-HEE [[email protected]]