GKS Scholarship Korea: Quotas, Eligibility and Deadlines for 2027

The Global Korea Scholarship (GKS) is the Korean government's scholarship for international students. It pays for a year of Korean language study, full tuition for a bachelor's, master's or doctoral degree, the flight and a monthly allowance. It is run by the National Institute for International Education (NIIED). You apply either through the Korean embassy in your country or directly through a university, but never through both. The basic conditions are an average of at least 80 out of 100 (or the top 20% of your class), an age limit of under 25 for bachelor's and under 40 for graduate programmes, and citizenship of a participating country.

The 2027 undergraduate call is open: online embassy-track applications are accepted from 15 to 30 September 2026 (until 18:00 Korea time), and university-track applications run from September to November on each university's own schedule. Country quotas are small; for example, Russia has 3 embassy-track places, Kazakhstan 4 and Uzbekistan 3. The 2027 graduate call is expected in February 2027; in the previous cycle, the embassy-track quota for Russia was 16 places plus 4 for ethnic Koreans.

GKS at a glance: two calls a year

Sources: 2027 GKS-U guidelines, 2026 GKS-G guidelines. Dollar figures use the ECB reference rates of 23 September 2026 (about KRW 1,365 per US dollar) and are rounded.

What the scholarship pays

Undergraduate, 2027 cycle

Under the 2027 guidelines the undergraduate allowance is all-inclusive: it already contains housing, health insurance, the Korean proficiency grant, the TOPIK fee, the settlement allowance and the degree completion grant. Guides that list these as separate small payments describe older rules.

Graduate, 2026 cycle

Not covered: domestic travel, travel insurance and, under the GKS-U rules, entry from a third country; a scholar who flies in from a country other than their country of citizenship gets no ticket or visa support. Scholars already living in Korea at the final announcement also get no ticket and may need to change visa status through immigration.

Quotas for Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and neighbours

Undergraduate 2027, embassy track

Armenia, Georgia and Belarus are not on the 2027 undergraduate list; in total 74 countries are. Regardless of citizenship you can apply through a university to the UIC (university–industry cooperation) programme: 100 places in science and engineering fields at 13 institutions.

Graduate quotas, 2026 cycle

Armenian citizens applied through the Korean embassy in Moscow in the 2026 cycle: its quota covered 16 places for Russia, 4 for ethnic Koreans and 2 for Armenia. The graduate call also has university-track programmes without country quotas: R&D (403 places in 60 departments at 25 universities) and Global Network (80 places). Quotas change every year; check the new guidelines on Study in Korea. If your country is not listed above, the full quota tables for all 143 graduate and 74 undergraduate countries are in the same documents.

Embassy track or university track

Two rules are absolute. You cannot apply through both tracks at once; both applications are excluded. But if the embassy does not recommend you, you may apply through a university in the same cycle; the university-track schedule is designed for this. If the embassy has sent your file to NIIED, the university track is closed for that cycle.

Choosing universities on the embassy track matters. NIIED warns that candidates who choose only the most competitive universities can fail even after passing round two: in the graduate programme this happened to 52 candidates in 2020, 53 in 2021, 57 in 2022, 52 in 2023 and 86 in 2024. That is why the undergraduate General programme requires at least one regional (Type B) university on your list, and the graduate call names science and engineering applications to regional universities as an explicit evaluation preference.

How candidates are assessed

First the committee checks eligibility: citizenship, education and grades. Then it reviews documents and holds an oral interview. The 2026 graduate rules specify that NIIED's round two has no interview, so it takes place in round one at the embassy or university. Academic performance, language, activities, potential and completeness of documents are considered.

Language points

Korean and English are assessed separately; if you submit several certificates, only the best counts.

Bonus points

Low-income background is a preference in both programmes, and graduate applicants also benefit from a high English score. Note that the undergraduate TOPIK bonus is two to three times smaller than the graduate one, so for school leavers without Korean a strong English certificate and grades matter more.

Documents

Both calls ask for almost the same file: application form, personal statement, study plan, one recommendation, applicant agreement, personal medical assessment, consent to data use, proof of citizenship of the applicant and parents with proof of relationship, diploma or school certificate, transcript, TOPIK or English score if available, and up to five supporting documents.

Rules that trip applicants up:

• Apostille. School certificates, diplomas, transcripts and citizenship documents need an apostille or Korean consular confirmation; copies of legalised documents are not accepted. Documents not in English or Korean need a certified translation, with the apostille on the original or on the translation.
• GPA. If your transcript is not on a 4.0, 4.3, 4.5, 5.0 or 100-point scale, add an official letter on your grading system and a converted GPA stamped by your school or university. Conversions from sites such as scholaro.com count only if the school confirms them.
• Recommendation from someone who can assess your studies (teacher, principal, professor), dated within one year of the deadline. The Korean embassy in Russia stresses that an employer does not qualify.
• Language certificates. Only valid TOPIK, TOEFL and IELTS scores count.
• Order. Arrange documents by the checklist on the first page of the form, number them in the top right corner, A4 format.

Embassies add local rules. For the 2026 graduate call the embassy in Moscow required notarised English or Korean translations of Russian documents, a notarised copy of the internal passport, an apostilled copy of the birth certificate, and gave successful round-one candidates about a week to send originals (Korean Embassy in Russia). Check your own embassy's announcement.

Calendar

Undergraduate 2027

Students finishing school in 2027 cannot use this cycle: graduation must be by 31 December 2026. If NIIED repeats the pattern, the next call opens in September 2027 for a March 2028 start.

Graduate

In the 2026 cycle embassy-track applications ran 12–25 February, embassies announced round one results by 16 March (the Moscow embassy notified successful candidates by 12 March and required originals by 20 March), university decisions by 5 June, the final list in late June, and the language year started in September. KAIST states the 2027 GKS guidelines will be announced in February 2027. Final-year students can apply with a certificate of expected graduation; last cycle the diploma had to reach NIIED by 31 July.

After selection: a scholar's obligations

• The Korean year is compulsory unless you hold TOPIK 5–6. Those who reach TOPIK 5 or 6 in the first six months move to the degree the following semester.
• You need a minimum TOPIK level to start the degree. The GKS-G rules set level 3, and some departments require level 4; otherwise the scholarship is cancelled.
• You cannot change field after final selection.
• Renouncing is irreversible. Undergraduate scholars who renounce cannot reapply; graduate scholars cannot reapply for three years.
• Leaving within three months of university enrolment means repaying everything received.

Step-by-step strategy

1. A year before. Check age and GPA against GKS scales. If your average is below 80, ask whether your school or university can certify a top-20% ranking.
2. 6–9 months before. Take TOPIK or IELTS: for graduate applicants TOPIK 3 adds 10% and English is scored separately.
3. 3–4 months before. Apostilles, translations, grading-scale letter, recommendation. Prepare the full set of originals so you can post it within a week after round one.
4. Choosing universities. Study the University Information file: programmes, teaching language, TOPIK requirements. Include a regional university.
5. Applying. Pick one track. If the embassy does not recommend you, apply through a university in the same cycle.
6. In parallel. Apply to universities and their scholarships so GKS is not your only plan. See our guides to bachelor's and master's degrees in Korea.

Common mistakes

• Name on the form does not match the passport. NIIED warns this delays the visa.
• Misspelled department name. You may apply only to programmes in the University Information file; a wrong name can exclude the application.
• Three top universities on the embassy track. See the rejection figures above.
• Sending documents in parts. The embassy in Moscow does not accept documents outside the main package.
• Planning a university-track application after the embassy has recommended you. That route is then closed for the cycle.

How StudyU helps

Only the initial consultation is free; the link is at the end of this guide. Eligibility checks, track and university choice, document and essay preparation, and a parallel self-funded admission plan are provided under an agreement with StudyU. Scholarship decisions are made by the Korean embassy or university in round one, NIIED in round two and universities in round three; StudyU has no say in selection. See our Korea country page and applying to Korean universities.

FAQ

Sources

• NIIED, Study in Korea: 2027 GKS undergraduate guidelines (September 2026) — checked 23 Sep 2026
• NIIED, Study in Korea: 2026 GKS graduate guidelines (revised 20 Feb 2026) — checked 23 Sep 2026
• Korean Embassy in Russia: GKS-G 2026 call — checked 23 Sep 2026
• KAIST: 2027 GKS timing — checked 23 Sep 2026
• ECB reference rates, 23 Sep 2026: €1 = $1.1411 = KRW 1,558

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