Study in South Korea in 2026: universities, fees, D-2 visa, work hours, GKS scholarship and D-10 job-seeker visa
Last reviewed 2026-10-26. Rules, fees and processing times in this area change often. Check the official source before you act, and tell us if something looks out of date.
South Korea combines high-ranked universities, moderate tuition and a generous government scholarship. Work hours depend on your Korean-language score, and the post-study route was extended in late 2025. Most immigration details here come from university and third-party guides, since official pages were hard to reach.
Universities
QS World University Rankings 2026 (per JoongAng Daily): Seoul National University 38, Yonsei 50, Korea University 61, POSTECH 102, Sungkyunkwan 126 and Hanyang 159. KAIST was reported as excluded from QS 2026 over a survey breach, so we give it no rank.
Tuition and living costs
From the official Study in Korea site (reference year not stated): average annual tuition is about KRW 6.0 million for humanities and social sciences, KRW 6.9 million for natural sciences and KRW 7.3 million for engineering, with medicine at KRW 9.8 million. Undergraduate averages are KRW 6.8 million at national universities and KRW 7.6 million at private ones, and graduate averages are about KRW 4.2 to 4.4 million.
Living costs are roughly KRW 750,000 to 1,000,000 a month: housing 500,000 to 700,000, food 200,000 to 300,000, transport 50,000 to 100,000 and other costs 100,000 to 200,000.
Student visa
- D-2 (degree) and D-4 (language): a Korea University guide gives a visa application fee of USD 60 to 90 and an alien registration card fee of KRW 35,000 from 1 January 2025.
- Funds: the same guide says USD 20,000 a year, with a bank certificate issued within 30 days of applying, which can be in a parent's account with a family relationship certificate when applying from abroad. Another guide says there is no single government threshold and that universities commonly ask for KRW 20 million or USD 20,000 to 25,000. Check with your university.
Working while you study
Weekday limits depend on your TOPIK (Test of Proficiency in Korean) level, according to a 2026 guide:
| Status | Language level | Hours if not met | Hours if met |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-4 language course | TOPIK 2 | 10 | 20 |
| D-2 bachelor's years 1 to 2 | TOPIK 3 | 10 | 25 |
| D-2 bachelor's years 3 to 4 | TOPIK 4 | 10 | 25 |
| D-2 master's or PhD | TOPIK 4 | 15 | 30 |
Meeting certain extra conditions can add 5 hours. A permit and a GPA of at least 2.0 are needed, and some work such as delivery and construction is restricted. Sources conflict: one guide says coursework graduate students with TOPIK 4 can work 35 hours, while its appendix says 30. Treat 30 as the base and check with your university's international office.
After graduation
- D-10 job-seeker visa: a third-party guide says the maximum stay rose to three years from 29 October 2025, renewed in one-year steps, and the points test is 60 of 190. It quotes a financial proof figure from 2025, so check the current amount.
- E-7-1 specialist work visa: a guide quotes a minimum salary of KRW 31,120,000 a year for 2026.
- F-2-7 points residence: about 80 points is commonly cited, and degrees from Korean universities and TOPIK scores earn points. Verify with HiKorea.
Intakes
Semesters start in March and September. Application windows vary by university, so check each one.
Global Korea Scholarship (GKS)
GKS is the government scholarship. The official NIIED pages could not be read, and third-party sites disagree, so verify before you apply:
- Undergraduate 2027: one site lists the Embassy Track as open from 15 to 30 September 2026, with results expected in January 2027, and a University Track with deadlines set by each university.
- Benefits (third-party): airfare, tuition, a language-training year, a monthly allowance of roughly KRW 0.9 to 1.2 million (the sources conflict), a settlement allowance and medical insurance.
- India quota: one source says 4 Embassy Track places and another says about 22, so we state neither.
- Eligibility given includes roughly 80% marks or a top-20% class rank for undergraduates.
Language
TOPIK 3 to 4 are needed for work permission and often for Korean-taught programmes, and English-track programmes accept TOEFL or IELTS. We found no university-specific minimums.
Related guides
Study in Japan, engineering abroad, working holiday visas and scholarships for Indian students.
Sources
- JoongAng Daily: QS 2026 rankings
- Study in Korea: tuition
- Study in Korea: living expenses
- Korea University: visa and immigration guide for graduate students (2026)
- Seoulstart: D-2 visa
- Seoulstart: D-2 to E-7 conversion
- Jobploy: 2026 international student part-time work permit guide
- Careers360: GKS scholarship 2026
- GKS Scholarship: undergraduate 2027 guide
Figures were gathered in October 2026 from government, university and education-site pages. Official immigration pages were often unreachable, many figures come from a single secondary source, and where sources disagreed we say so. Fees, work-hour limits and visa rules change often, so confirm everything on the official site and with your university before you apply. Visa Ray is a rule-based reference tool, not a law firm. You can run a free assessment on Visa Ray for your own profile.
