The number of young Korean students being sent to study abroad is back on the rise, apparently buoyed by recently improved economic conditions, said a government report released on Monday.

The report by the Education Ministry and the Korean Educational Development Institute showed that in the 2010 academic year, 18,741 elementary, middle and high school students were sent abroad.

The number in the report was a 3.4 percent increase from the 2009 academic year, which ran from March 2009 to February 2010.

After the number of outbound students reached a peak of 29,511 in 2006, the ailing economy had seen the numbers decline from 27,668 students in 2007 until 2009.

In 2010, 8,794 elementary school students left to study abroad making up nearly half of those going overseas, followed by 5,870 middle school students and 4,077 high school students.

Together, Seoul and the surrounding Gyeonggi Province made up for more than two thirds of the departing students, with the rest leaving from all throughout the nation.

The report also found that the U.S. was the most desired location, followed by Southeast Asia, Canada, China and New Zealand.

Although some experts believe that the increase in numbers was largely due to the temporary upturn in the economy, it is hard to say how long the trend will last.

By Robert Lee (robert@heraldcorp.com)