According to last year’s monthly bulletin of Immigration and Foreign Policy Statistics, among European countries France accounted for the largest number of arrivals to South Korea, and arrivals in 2023 more than doubled compared with 2022. In particular, the number of French international students (based on D-2 visas) is the highest among European countries, with more than 1,400 currently residing in South Korea.

Jeonbuk National University (JBNU) (President Yang O-bong) has moved to expand its international exchange network by strengthening cooperation with leading French universities to secure this demand for foreign students from France. Observers are watching whether this will lead to attracting high-caliber international students through student exchanges.

Recently, Cho Hwa-rim, Director of the Office of International Affairs, visited major French institutions including Paris Cité University, the National Institute for Oriental Languages and Civilizations (INALCO), Paris-Panthéon-Assas University, Bordeaux Montaigne University, Sciences Po, Le Havre Normandy University, Institut National des Sciences Appliquées (INSA) de Lyon, and Jean Moulin Lyon 3 University, achieving concrete commitments to student exchanges.

First, under an international exchange agreement with Paris Cité University, widely recognized as France’s most prestigious research university, JBNU will exchange 10 students beginning next year from the College of Engineering, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, and the Department of Korean Language & Literature. Special programs were discussed with the School of Dentistry and the College of Nursing. Exchanges will begin this year in chemistry, computer science and mathematics, physics, biomedical science, life sciences, and earth sciences.

Also, the National Institute for Oriental Languages and Civilizations (INALCO), a language-specialized university with more than 300 years of history, has had an agreement with JBNU since 2010 and has engaged in active annual exchanges. Currently 30 JBNU students are studying there. Through the recent discussions, INALCO has confirmed it will send five to six students to JBNU starting this September.

Discussions were also held on concluding an agreement with Paris-Panthéon-Assas University, known as Paris II and a leading French institution focused on law and social sciences, and it was decided that students will be exchanged from March next year in the School of Law, the Department of Economics, the Department of Political Science, and the College of Engineering (Digital Information Computing). The president and vice-president of that university are expected to visit JBNU soon to formalize the exchange agreement.

In addition, Bordeaux Montaigne University, with which JBNU signed an official agreement last October, will begin student exchanges of five to seven students starting this September. Notably, during President Yang O-bong’s visit last December the two universities held a commemorative tree-planting ceremony to celebrate the partnership. This year, Bordeaux Montaigne’s presidential delegation will visit JBNU and conduct another commemorative tree-planting to symbolize a closer friendship.

Moreover, JBNU plans to launch formal student exchanges through concrete agreements with Sciences Po, Le Havre Normandy University, INSA de Lyon, and Jean Moulin Lyon 3 University.

With Sciences Po, JBNU has provisionally agreed to pursue an agreement this year, aiming to begin exchanges in 2025, under which Sciences Po will send incoming exchange students to JBNU’s International Humanities Department, the College of Social Sciences, and other units. Le Havre Normandy University’s presidential delegation is also expected to visit JBNU in the first half of this year to sign an official agreement outlining a 2+2 joint degree program, student exchanges, and faculty collaborative research.

INSA de Lyon will visit JBNU in the first half of this year to sign an agreement and has agreed to begin exchange students, a dual-degree program, and co-supervised advising from next year. A delegation from Jean Moulin Lyon 3 University will also visit JBNU to sign an agreement. Exchanges will start with five students next year, and the parties agreed on recruiting outstanding PhD candidates from JBNU’s Department of Korean Language & Literature and implementing visiting professor exchanges.

Cho Hwa-rim, Director of the Office of International Affairs, said, "During this visit I could personally feel that awareness of and regard for Korea have risen significantly in France." She added, "Through cooperation with leading French universities, we will strive to expand our student exchange programs, attract outstanding international students, and implement dual-degree programs to promote the excellence of JBNU's Korean language education and Korean culture programs widely, and to lay the groundwork for the university's advancement as a global hub."