Exchange Students’ Global Korea Scholarship (GKS) for 2026
The Global Korea Scholarship (GKS) provides exchange students with full funding. This grant is available for undergraduate and graduate courses in 2026–2027. Living expenses, airfare, medical insurance, and a settlement payment are all covered by the scholarship.Students have a rare opportunity to experience academic life at Seoul National University, one of the most prominent universities in the world and the most prestigious in Korea, through SNU ISI. Students can study a wide range of subjects from the fields of economics and business management to history, politics, sociology, and the arts at SNU ISIs, which are taught by eminent SNU and visiting faculty members.
More than 2,000 students from all over the world have taken part in the SNU ISI program since its inception in 2007 in order to study, experience, and have a memorable summer filled with activities, academics, and enduring friendships.
The goal is to enhance Korean universities’ global competency while giving exchange students worthwhile experiences with Korean education and culture.
Summary of Global Korea Scholarship:
- Level of Study: Undergraduate / Master’s
- Institution(s): SNUs partner universities
- Study in: South Korea
- Program Period: 4 months or 10 months (depending on student’s exchange period)
- Deadline: September / February(Annually)
- Funded: Fully funded
Courses Offered:
College of Humanities
- Language and Literature
- English Language and Literature
- French Language and Literature
- German Language and Literature
- Russian Language and Literature
- Korean Language and Literature
- Hispanic Language and Literature
- Linguistics
- Asian Languages and Civilizations
- Religious Studies
- Aesthetics
- Korean History
- Asian History
- Western History
- Archaeology and Art History
- Philosophy
College of Social Sciences
- Political Science and International Relations
- Political Science
- International Relations
- Economics
- Sociology
- Anthropology
- Psychology
- Geography
- Social Welfare
- Communication
College of Natural Sciences
- Mathematical Sciences
- Statistics
- Physics and Astronomy
- Chemistry
- Biological Sciences
- Earth and Environmental Sciences
College of Agriculture & Life Sciences
- Plant Science
- Forest Sciences
- Food and Animal Biotechnology
- Applied Biology and Chemistry
- Biosystems & Biomaterials Science and Engineering
- Landscape Architecture and Rural System Engineering
- Agricultural Economics and Rural Development
College of Business Administration
College of Education
- Korean Language Education
- English Education
- German Language Education
- French Language Education
- Education
- Social Studies Education
- History Education
- Geography Education
- Physical Education
- Ethics Education
- Mathematics Education
- Physics Education
- Chemistry Education
- Biology Education
- Earth Science Education
College of Engineering
- Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
- Materials Science and Engineering
- Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Computer Science and Engineering
- Chemical and Biological Engineering
- Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering
- Architecture and Architectural Engineering
- Industrial Engineering
- Civil and Environmental Engineering
- Energy Resources Engineering
- Nuclear Engineering
College of Fine Arts
- Oriental Painting
- Painting
- Sculpture
- Crafts and Design
College of Liberal Studies
College of Human Ecology
- Consumer and Child Studies
- Food and Nutrition
- Textiles, Merchandising and Fashion Design
College of Music
- Vocal Music
- Composition
- Instrumental Music
- Korean Music
College of Nursing
College of Pharmacy
- Pharmacy
- Manufacturing Pharmacy
College of Veterinary Medicine
- Preliminary Veterinary Medicine
- Veterinary Medicine
Interdisciplinary Programs for Undergraduates
- Comparative Studies for East Asian Humanities
- Entrepreneurship
- Global Environmental Management
- Information Science and Culture Studies
- Media Art
- Computational Sciences
- Technology Management
Also Apply: Full-Funded Danish Government Scholarship 2026
RESTRICTION:
- COLLEGE OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION is restricted to students who are currently majoring in business or economics at their home university.
- Applicants who apply for the KOREAN HISTORY/ PSYCHOLOGY/ STATISTICS MAJOR must provide proof of Korean language ability. A satisfactory level of Korean language ability should be either (1) Level 5 or above of official Korean Language Proficiency Test or (2) Level 5 or above of the Korean Test conducted at the SNU Language Institute.
- COLLEGE OF LAW is NOT open to undergraduate level students from Spring 2018.
- School of Law, a specialized law school for graduate-level students, will be open to undergraduate level students from Fall 2025. Please note that these undergraduate students will be enrolled as graduate (Master’s) students in SNU law school during their study.
Applicants who want to study in the discipline of Medicine, Pharmacy, Dentistry, Nursing, Music, and MBA must, in advance, be advised of the eligibility by SNU coordinators.
- COLLEGE OF MEDICINE is no longer available to exchange students.
- COLLEGE OF DENTISTRY is open ONLY to master’s level students currently enrolled in a master program at School of Dentistry or equivalent at their home university. The student exchange program is NOT available at the undergraduate level for the College of Dentistry.
- VOCAL MUSIC MAJOR is restricted to students who are currently studying vocal music at their home university.
Benefits
This scholarship provides the following benefits:
- Living Expenses: 630,000 won per month.
- Settlement allowance: 200,000 won upon arrival.
- Round-trip Airfare: Reimbursement available within the set amount.
- Medical Insurance: 20,000 won per month(paid by each university).
Eligibility Criteria
This scholarship requires the following qualification:
- Required Language: English.
- Eligible Countries: All world countries.
- Applicants must currently be enrolled in at least second semester of the home university program (= have completed at least one semester before they apply)
* We cannot thus accept graduate students who are enrolled in the first semester of the Master’s program at their application stage.
- Applicants must fulfill the following GPA requirement. (from Fall 2020’s admission)
- Undergraduate: GPA 2.5/4.0 (equivalent to 2.7/4.3) or percentile rank 83
- Masters: GPA 3.0/4.0 (equivalent to 3.3/4.3) or percentile rank 89
How to Apply for Global Korea Scholarship?
follow the following application instructions.
- The nominated students will receive detailed information on how to log in and apply online by the designated SNU coordinator.
- Applicants must be nominated by their universities and application package should be sent by the university by e-mail, along with a formal nomination letter for the GKS scholarship.
- Apply to the exchange program through the On-line Application Form, fill in the application, and upload the scanned copies of the documents below to the application system:
Student grants
- A Certificate of Enrollment from the current university you are attending.
- Official University Transcript.
- Letter of Recommendation from a professor at the current university.
- A Statement of Purpose (a free essay in English or Korean).
- A Copy of Applicant’s Passport.
- For Fine Arts, Music, and Physical Education applicants: Photographs of works/recording of performances
For more information of the exchange programme, Click here.
- Submit the application.
IMPORTANT NOTES:
- Exchange program candidates can complete the application by online submission.
- All documents should be submitted and posted in ORIGINAL or verified as an official copy, and should be in Korean or in English. If your documents are not in Korean or in English, please have your document translated in Korean or in English and have confirmed and sealed by an authorized body.
