By Kim Hyelin and Kim Young Shin

Ever since he saw a Korean soap opera for the first time when he was a middle-schooler, Diego, from Costa Rica, has been a big fan of Korean media and language. He’s now about to graduate from high school and he wants to study for his undergrad in Korea. However, tuition and the cost of living are holding him back.

As he was searching for scholarships on the web, he learned about the scholarship program provided by the Korean government.

As more and more students from abroad are studying in Korea, and as the number of international students studying in Korea exceeded 120,000, the Korean government now offers many different types of scholarships, called Global Korea Scholarships (GKS). Here are the types of government scholarships that are offered to overseas students.

Korean Government Scholarship Program

As Diego wants to study at a university in Korea, he can apply for the Korean Government Scholarship Program. The program offers the broadest coverage among the various GKS programs. It provides money for tuition, airfare, living allowance, medical insurance, language courses and printing costs. Undergraduates can apply for this program in September and graduate students in February. The grantees are required to take a one-year Korean language training course and pass the Level 3 exam of the Test of Proficiency in Korean (TOPIK). Those who have already passed the Level 5 test are exempt from this requirement and also get points for their Korean Language Proficiency.

As part of this program, the applicant and their parents must be citizens of a country other than Korea. The applicant must have a GPA above 80 percent. For the undergraduate program, applicant must be under 25 years old at the date of entrance. Graduate students must be under the age of 40, and have finished all of their high school and undergraduate courses. Applications are submitted at the Korean Embassy in the applicant’s home country or at a university in Korea.

Korean Government Support Program for Foreign Exchange Students

Julia from Germany has recently become interested in Korean music after watching some Korean pop videos on YouTube. She would like to learn more about Korea by staying in the country for one or two semesters. Julia can take advantage of the Korean Government SupportProgram for Foreign Exchange Students. This program provides living expenses, a settlement allowance, round-trip airfare and medical insurance for exchange students from universities selected by the National Institute for International Education (NIIED).

To apply for this program, the student must have completed at least two semesters already, and must have a GPA above 80 percent. Also, the student must register for regular courses, not just language courses. The universities recommend talented exchange students to the NIIED first and then the institution selects the grantees from the list.

Support Program for Self-financed Students

Violeta from Spain, a self-supported student who has been studying in Korea for two years without knowing about the government’s scholarship program, can also benefit from the Support Program for Self-financed Students. This program offers KRW 50,000 per month for 10 months to the foreign student studying in Korea. To apply for this program, the student must have been enrolled in a Korean university for more than two years and must be supporting themselves. They also have to have passed the Level 4 TOPIK exam. Also, their overall GPA and the average grades from the previous semester have to both be above 80 percent.

The NIIED also runs scholarship programs for science and engineering students from ASEAN countries and for students from African and Latin American countries. These programs provide round-trip air tickets, boarding, and traveler’s insurance for six and five weeks, respectively.

The NIIED provides scholarship information in 10 languages, including English, simplified Chinese, Japanese, Spanish, Arabic, French, Russian and Vietnamese. Please visit the link below for more information.

http://studyinkorea.go.kr/en/sub/gks/allnew_invite.do

kimhyelin211@korea.kr