Cost of attending boarding schools
Education is free in the public South Korean schools and the language of study is Korean. But there are also international schools in this country, which provide education for international students with an annual tuition of about $ 22,000 to $ 36,000. Primary education in the country will officially begin at the age of six and will continue for six years. After that there is three years of lower secondary school and three years of upper secondary school. In order to complete high school and get a diploma in Korea students must be able to pass some difficult exams. To enter the universities of this country students are not required to pass an entrance exam (SAT). Every year the academic year starts at the beginning of March and will continue until February. In fact, the school calendar has two semesters, the first extending from March through July and the second from September through February. Students attended school every day from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Generally, courses such as Korean language, mathematics, science, physical education, social studies, religious studies, music, fine arts, and practical arts and other specialized and general courses are taught to students. The cost of studying and living in South Korea in primary, lower secondary and upper secondary schools will increase each year.
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The cost of studying for a bachelor’s degree
The bachelor courses/programs in South Korea last between three to four years. The language of study in most of the universities is Korean. About 30% of the courses at Korean universities are taught in English, mostly engineering courses and technical courses are in English. The cost of studying for a bachelor’s degree in South Korea varies depending on the city where the student lives and the university in which he/she study at. But the average tuition fee for a bachelor’s degree for international students is around $ 6,500 to $ 12,000. To study for a bachelor’s degree at Korean universities international students are required to have a 12-year diploma, present their high school transcripts, present a strong Personal Statement, present an IELTS language certificate with a minimum score of 5.5 to 6 and they must know Korean a little bit.
Cost of studying for a master’s degree
The duration of a master programs in South Korea is at least two years. At this level, the possibility of studying in English is more than the lower educational stages. In order to get admitted to a South Korean university to study for a master’s degree students are required to have a bachelor’s degree, an IELTS language certificate with a score of 6.5, strong academic CV, transcripts, Personal Statement, and know a little bit of Korean. It should be noted that the possibility of getting a scholarship for a bachelor’s and master’s degrees is low. The cost of studying and living in South Korea varies greatly depending on the city in which international students live and the university where they study at. But typically the average tuition fee for a master’s degree in South Korea is around $ 5,000 to $ 20,000 a year. It is possible to study for a variety of disciplines/majors in South Korea such as all of the majors that are related to engineering, management, music, art and many of the humanities majors.
Cost of studying for a PhD degree
A PhD at a South Korean university will typically take a minimum of 3 years and a maximum of 5 years. To enter South Korean universities to pursue your doctoral studies it is necessary to present a valid language certificate (IELTS 7), have a strong academic CV and working resume, provide a valid master’s degree, have at least 1 or 2 ISI articles or published articles in valid international journals. In the end, the most important thing for getting admitted to a PhD course is to find a supervisor or tutor who would accepts the student and is willing to work with the student in his / her specialty. The cost of studying for a PhD degree in South Korea also depends entirely on the city where you live in and the university where you study at. But it is interesting to know that it is possible for students to get scholarships for doctoral studies. Scholarship will cover at least 50% of the tuition fees and living expenses in the South Korea for international students. Tuition fees for each semester of the doctoral program are approximately between three to 10,000 euros.
Scholarships in South Korea
The cost of living and studying in South Korea is relatively high for international students. It should be noted that a few number of students will be able to get scholarships in South Korea at the undergraduate and graduate levels. At the undergraduate level, only one type of scholarship will be awarded to international students, which is known as the Korean Government Scholarship. This scholarship will be awarded to only 60 students worldwide and it is highly competitive. Because it will cover most of the living expenses and tuition fees in South Korea. Generally, it is more likely to get a scholarship for doctoral studies. Here you can see some of the scholarships that are offered in South Korea.
Scholarships in South Korea |
Sogang University Scholarship |
Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) |
Hankuk University for Foreign Studies |
UST Scholarships |
KAIST Scholarships |
Korean Government Scholarship (KGSP / GKS) |
Graduate Scholarship for Excellent Foreign Students (GSFS) |
Seoul National University scholarship |
Generally, the process of getting a scholarship in South Korea is a very difficult and competitive process and depends entirely on the student’s educational background. Having published articles in international journals, ISI articles, high language score, and winning a medal in the Olympiad competition are among the important factors for getting a scholarship.
General requirements for getting a scholarship to cover tuition fees and living expenses in South Korea |
None of the student’s parents are citizens of Korea. |
The student’s grade point average be high in all of the previous educational stages. |
Presenting a valid language certificate according to your desired degree |
The applicant must be under the age of 25 in order to get a scholarship for a bachelor’s degree. |
Present a letter of recommendation from a professor |
Cost of living in South Korea
The cost of studying and living in South Korea isn’t a specific amount. Because the amount of tuition fee depends on the university where you are studying at and living expenses depends on the city where you are staying as well as the type of your life style. The cost of living in South Korea is about four percent higher than in the United States. For example, the cost of living in South Korea is estimated at around $ 1,000 per month for each person. AS we have mentioned, tuition fees for bachelor programs are about 6,500 to 12,000 euros, about 5,000 to 12,000 dollars for master programs and about 3,000 to 10,000 euros for PhD/doctoral programs. It should be noted that these amounts are not the exact amounts and as we have mentioned earlier, these costs will vary depending on the city in which you live and the university you study at.
Working while or after studying in South Korea
International students are allowed to work for a certain number of hours per week according to their degrees. An undergraduate student /bachelor’s student is allowed to work for 10 hours per week, master’s students can work for 20 hours per week and PhD students can work for about 30 hours per week. Certainly students cannot cover all for their living expenses and tuition fees in South Korea by working, but it will help them a lot. It is important to know that education alone does not directly lead to getting a permanent residence permit. After starting to work in this country and paying for the insurance and taxes, applicants can apply for a permanent residence permit, and then after 5 years they can apply for South Korean citizenship. The average monthly salary of a person in South Korea is around $ 2,303.75 (after Tax deduction).
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