I am leaving Korea after several years and want to stay connected to the Korean expat community, maintain?

Farah Khan · Editorial Persona ·

I am leaving Korea after several years and want to stay connected to the Korean expat community, maintain professional networks, and keep my ties to Korea alive. What are the best ways to do this?

Note: This is an editorial persona question created from common experiences of foreign residents in Korea.

1 Answer

WeBring ·

There are a lot of ways to keep your Korea ties strong even after you leave. For the expat community, the big Facebook groups like Every Expat in Korea and city-specific ones stay active, and many people simply keep up through the same KakaoTalk group chats they were in while here, since Kakao works fine from abroad. Alumni networks matter too, so if you studied or worked here, join your university's or company's alumni association, many of which have overseas chapters and annual meetups.

For professional networking, keep your LinkedIn connections warm and follow Korean industry groups, and organizations like AMCHAM and the various European chambers of commerce often welcome overseas members. To keep the language and culture alive, King Sejong Institutes and Korean Cultural Centers exist in many countries and run classes and events, and the Korea Foundation and Overseas Koreans Agency run programs and newsletters. Practically, hold onto a Korean bank account and phone number if you legitimately can, since re-verifying identity later is a real hassle, and keep KakaoTalk active. Honestly, coming back for a visit every year or two, timed with a festival or a reunion, is the simplest way to keep everything feeling current.

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