Sunday, April 5, 2015 at 9:40AM
Drew Wolfe
Way More College Students Are Studying Korean. Is 'Hallyu' Why?

"A recent study found that in general, college students aren't taking foreign language classes as much as they used to — a slowdown of nearly 7 percent since 2009. But for one language in particular, there's actually been a pretty amazing jump in the rate of enrollment: Korean."

"The Modern Language Association says there was a 45 percent increase in university-level enrollment in Korean language classes between 2009 and 2013, from 8,449 students to 12,229. Though the raw numbers are still quite small, a look at why any sort of jump might be happening is interesting. Larry Gordon, a reporter for theLos Angeles Timesthinks the wave of international fascination with Korean pop culture — hallyu — is partially responsible."

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