South Korean students heading to the United States expressed concern yesterday over a possible backlash after the Virginia Tech shooting rampage, but said they would not change their study plans.

South Korea has sent more students to study in the United States than any other country, according to statistics from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Learning English and getting a higher education abroad is considered highly prestigious in Korean society, where high school students spend hours in after-school cramming institutes to improve their grades and win attendance to colleges.

South Korean officials have expressed condolences as well as concern about a possible racial backlash that Koreans could face in the US after the Virginia tragedy.

High school senior Sim Yeong-eun, 18, said she would go to the United States in August to study despite such concerns.

The attack "won't shake my decision as I've already made up my mind to go to the United States," said Sim, who had been accepted at Virginia Tech but declined before the rampage happened. She plans to go to New York University or the University of Michigan.

But Sim's father, Sim Hwa-yong, expressed concern about his daughter's safety.

"I am worried that South Korean students in the US could be ostracized due to the shooting," he said, adding that he will still allow his daughter to study there.

However, others expressed misgivings about heading to the United States.

"I don't have any immediate plan to study in the US, but I would have reconsidered my plans if I had planned on it," said Jang Bong-geun, a student at Seoul's Yonsei University. If he did study there, he said he would avoid Virginia.

Many South Korean students were skeptical the shooting would spawn racial hatred against South Koreans.

"I am concerned about the negative image the rampage could cause among Americans but I am not worried about racial hate crime," said Lee Zenas, who is set to enter Stanford University this year.

The shooting also did not appear to have any immediate impact on local private institutes that help students head to the US for their studies.

"No students have canceled their plans to study in the US" because of the shooting, said an official at the Chongro Overseas Educational Institute. She asked not to be identified, citing policy.