Graduate Global Korea Scholarship quota to increase in 2026, with more emphasis on R&D
Published: 02 Feb. 2026, 22:05
Updated: 03 Feb. 2026, 13:24
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- LEE TAE-HEE
- [email protected]
![Global Korea Scholarship scholars take a group photo during a career program hosted by the National Institute for International Education on July 3 and 4, 2025. [NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/02/03/43196e7e-f702-459a-8d41-fe364eb7184e.jpg)
Global Korea Scholarship scholars take a group photo during a career program hosted by the National Institute for International Education on July 3 and 4, 2025. [NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION]
The National Institute for International Education (Niied) announced application guidelines for the 2026 graduate Global Korea Scholarship (GKS), offering a larger quota overall, though with greater emphasis on R&D programs.
Niied will be selecting 2,000 graduate GKS scholars this year, according to the guidelines announced Monday. The figure is up from 1,820 seats in 2025.
GKS is a scholarship offered by the Korean government that provides full tuition, a monthly stipend, language study support, health insurance fees and round-trip airfare. To be eligible, applicants and their parents must be non-Korean nationals, and applicants must be under 40 years of age with a cumulative grade-point average of 80 percent or higher in their previous education. Applicants to master’s programs must hold a bachelor’s degree or be expected to graduate by July 31, while doctoral applicants must hold a master’s degree or be expected to graduate by the same date.
For those interested in graduate GKS applications, K-campus, a platform for international students run by the Korea JoongAng Daily, will be hosting the "GKS 101 with K-campus" webinar on Feb. 9. Registration details can be found on K-campus.
Students can apply to GKS via two tracks: the Embassy Track, which has a quota for each country and allows students to apply to three universities, and the University Track, which allows students to apply to one university of their choice.
Applications for the Embassy Track will be accepted via Niied's Study in Korea website from Feb. 12 to 25. University Track applications are accepted via the university to which the applicant is applying. Deadlines differ by each university, but are generally accepted until April.
While GKS is a highly sought-after scholarship, applying for it can be difficult. To help, the Korea JoongAng Daily looked into major changes this year, including quotas, available universities, and academic focus.
Embassy Track
The Embassy Track is assigned a quota of 800 for this year's graduate GKS, up from 720 the previous year.
Students from 143 countries and regions can apply via the Embassy Track this year, down from 146 the previous year.
Cuba, Luxembourg, Mauritania, Sudan and Ukraine were added to the list, while eight — Antigua and Barbuda, Burkina Faso, Dominica, Gambia, Grenada, Niger, Saint Kitts and Nevis and Saint Lucia — were excluded.
No country saw a significant increase in its quota, though Vietnam and Indonesia each received three additional spots, bringing their quotas to 33. Turkey received three more, bringing its total to 11, and Italy received three more, bringing its total to 10.
Some saw their quotas go down, such as Lebanon's, which shrank from three to one, and Jamaica's and Guyana's, both down by one to reach two and one, respectively.
University Track
The University Track also has a larger quota of 1,200, up from 1,100 the previous year.
One notable change is the emphasis on R&D programs.
While University Track applicants can generally apply to any major at their university of choice, specialized programs with distinct academic focuses and quotas also exist.
Of the University Track's total quota of 1,200, 403 seats will be reserved for the R&D program, which allows students to apply to one university's program. The figure is up from last year's 300.
Meanwhile, the quota for the International Organization program — open to applicants recommended by international organizations, with no restrictions on major — has been reduced from 100 to 72.
The R-GKS program for regional universities has been allocated 15 additional seats, and the general track — which has no restrictions — has been allocated 10 additional seats. The quota for the Research program — for research students — and for Global Network programs for global cooperation-related programs remains the same.
New universities offer GKS, but some stop
GKS applicants can apply to a total of 76 universities, comprising 35 Type A universities and 41 Type B universities.
In general, Seoul-based universities and science and technology institutes are classified as Type A, while universities outside Seoul are classified as Type B.
The Niied uses this classification to ensure applications are distributed more evenly across universities. For example, Embassy Track applicants must select three universities, two of which must be Type A and one Type B. Under the University Track, applicants may choose one university, regardless of Type A or B designation, although R-GKS applicants are restricted to Type B universities.
Type A options slightly increased, with Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology, Sejong University and the National Cancer Center Graduate School of Cancer Science and Policy added this year. The Tech University of Korea used to be a Type A school, but it isn't this year.
While the number of Type B universities remains the same, the universities on the list have changed slightly.
Baekseok University, Kyungwoon University, Tongmyong University and Wonkwang University are new to this year's list. However, Daegu Catholic University, Gangneung-Wonju National University, Kumoh National Institute of Technology and National Korea Maritime & Ocean University were excluded from the list.
BY LEE TAE-HEE [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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