Global Korea Scholarship (GKS) Eligibility and Application Timeline for ASEAN Students
By Muntasir Minhaz • Published May 30, 2025 • Scholarships & Funding, Study in Southeast Asia
The Global Korea Scholarship (GKS) funds international students, including ASEAN students, to study at a Korean university for undergraduate or graduate degrees. You apply through one of two routes: the embassy track, through the Korean embassy in your home country, or the university track, direct to a participating Korean university.
🎓 Covers both undergraduate and graduate study in Korea
📩 Embassy track: apply through the Korean embassy or consulate in your ASEAN country
Track: apply directly to a Korean university that takes part in GKS
Most GKS students start with a Korean language course before their degree program begins
Exact eligibility rules, funding amounts, and dates are set fresh by NIIED each cycle
What GKS Is
The Global Korea Scholarship (GKS), run by Korea's National Institute for International Education (NIIED) under the Ministry of Education, funds international students to pursue undergraduate or graduate degrees at Korean universities. It is one of the main routes ASEAN students use to study in Korea on government funding rather than a private scholarship or self-funded place.
GKS splits into an undergraduate track and a graduate track, run as separate application cycles with separate requirements. Both tracks are open to citizens of eligible countries, which includes ASEAN member states, provided you and your parents hold non-Korean citizenship.
Embassy Track vs University Track
You do not apply to NIIED directly. Instead, GKS runs through two separate application routes, and you pick one, not both, in the same cycle.
| Embassy track | University track | |
|---|---|---|
| Where you apply | The Korean embassy or consulate in your home country | Directly to a Korean university that takes part in GKS |
| Who screens you first | Embassy staff in your country | The university's admissions office |
| Best for | Students without an existing link to a specific Korean university | Students who already know which Korean university and program they want |
Under the embassy track, you submit your application to your local Korean embassy or consulate, which screens applicants from your country before forwarding a shortlist to NIIED. Under the university track, a GKS-participating Korean university reviews your application directly and nominates you to NIIED. Choose based on whether you already have a target university in mind or want the broader reach of the embassy process.
What Studying Under GKS Looks Like
Most GKS students, especially at undergraduate level, start with a dedicated Korean language course before beginning their degree program, since many Korean-taught programs require a working level of Korean. Some graduate programs, particularly those taught in English, may reduce or skip this language year, depending on the university and department. Whether you need the language year affects your total time in Korea, so confirm this with your target university or the embassy handling your application.
Eligibility Basics
Across both tracks, GKS applicants need to be foreign nationals whose parents are also foreign nationals, meet the academic record requirements for their intended degree level, and satisfy an age limit set for each track and degree level. Because NIIED reviews age limits, required test scores, and other eligibility terms for each new cycle, do not rely on figures from a previous year's cycle. Confirm current eligibility directly with NIIED or the Korean embassy handling applications for your ASEAN country before you start preparing documents.
Planning Your Timeline
GKS runs on an annual cycle with separate recruitment periods for the embassy and university tracks, and the exact opening and closing dates are set fresh by NIIED and by each participating Korean embassy each year. Start gathering your academic transcripts, recommendation letters, and any required language test scores well ahead of your expected application window, and check your Korean embassy's website or the NIIED site directly for the current cycle's dates rather than assuming last year's schedule repeats.
How to Choose Your Route
Pick the university track if you already have a specific Korean university and department in mind and that university lists a GKS quota. Pick the embassy track if you want your application reviewed against other candidates from your own ASEAN country first, or if you are not yet tied to one university. Either way, confirm current requirements with the Korean embassy in your country before committing time to a full application.
Undergraduate Track vs Graduate Track
The undergraduate track is aimed at students who have not yet started a Bachelor's degree, or who are early in secondary school completion, and it typically runs a longer language preparation period given that most undergraduate coursework in Korea assumes Korean fluency. The graduate track targets students who already hold a Bachelor's degree (for a Masters) or a Masters degree (for a PhD), and it is more likely to include English-taught program options depending on the department and university, which can shorten or remove the Korean language requirement. Decide which track applies to you based on your current degree stage before you start comparing embassy and university application steps, since the two tracks run on separate cycles with separate document lists.
Why You Should Not Rely on Old Figures
GKS terms are reviewed by NIIED for each new cycle, covering the monthly funding amount, tuition coverage, settlement support, and specific eligibility cutoffs like age limits and required academic records. Older blog posts and forum threads about GKS often carry figures from a previous cycle that no longer apply, and using them to plan your budget or eligibility can mislead you. Treat any number that is not on the current niied.go.kr page, or your Korean embassy's current notice, as unconfirmed until you check it directly.
Building Your Application Timeline
Because GKS runs on an annual cycle with a Korean language and orientation period built in for most students, start planning at least a full academic year ahead of when you want to begin your Korean degree program. Use that lead time to gather transcripts, decide between the embassy and university track, and, if your target program requires it, prepare for a Korean or English proficiency test. Reach out to your nearest Korean embassy, consulate, or Korean Cultural Center for the current cycle's exact document checklist rather than working from a general list found online.