Graduate School of Korean Studies
Admission Guide for International Students
THE ACADEMY OF KOREAN STUDIES
1. About the Graduate School of Korean Studies
The Graduate School of Korean Studies (GKS) is a subsidiary school of the Academy of Korean Studies, supporting research related to humanities and social sciences in the field of Korean Studies. The Graduate School is on a mission to produce highly educated scholars who would contribute to the development and globalization of Korean Studies as well as experiencing and exploring the essence of Korean culture and its impact on the future of Korea.
Founded in March, 1980, GKS has provided research-oriented education via mentoring system. As a result, graduates of GKS are recognized for their academic excellence and superior research skills, playing pivotal roles among educational and research institutions of Korean Studies around the world today. Currently,
approximately 200 students, including about 80 students from 17 foreign countries study at GKS.
As the world's leading graduate school of Korean Studies, the Graduate
School of Korean Studies has gained reputation globally for setting a high standard for quality education and research in Korean Studies nationally and internationally.
2. Key Attributes
The only research-oriented graduate school specializing in Korean Studies in
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the world
Selective students with a 4:1 student-faculty ratio
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Collaborative lectures to promote interdisciplinary research
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One-on-one, individualized learning between students and professors
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Students' publication of articles in an accredited academic journal or
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participation in research projects may count as credits for their course works.
Fieldwork courses: Great opportunity for understanding Korean society
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The Program of International Korean Studies offers lectures in English.
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Intensive Korean language courses available for international students
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Student exchange programs with overseas universities
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Full-time study
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Affordable tuition and various financial aids
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On-campus housing for every international student
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3. Program Overview
The Graduate School of Korean Studies offers 16 majors for M.A. and 14 majors for Ph.D. programs.
Number of years required to complete coursework
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(1) M.A. Program: 2 years (2) Ph.D. Program: 3 years
Each year consists of two semesters.
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(1) First (Spring) semester: March 1 to August 31
(2) Second (Fall) semester: September 1 to the last day of February of the following year.
Each semester is 15 weeks long.
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Most lectures are conducted in Korean, but several lectures a semester are
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offered in English.
M.A. thesis or Ph.D. dissertation must be written in Korean. In special cases,
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the Graduate School Committee may allow writing them in English.
In order to improve their research skills in Korean Studies, international
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students are expected to improve their Korean language proficiency. All newly admitted foreign students must take the Korean language test on the scheduled date, and according to its results, they may have to take different numbers of Korean language classes offered by GKS, in order to complete their coursework.
4. Financial Aid
Full Tuition Waiver: All international students are provided with a full tuition
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waiver. However, violation of the university code will cause withdrawal of this tuition waiver.
Government Grant: The Government Grant provides selected students with a
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monthly stipend of KRW 750,000 and one round-trip airfare.
After enrollment the grant recipient must maintain average grade point of
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3.7/4.3. (For the first two semesters, the recipient must maintain 3.3/4.3 GPA
instead of 3.7/4.3.) Failure in doing so will result in cancelation of the grant.
Korean Government Scholarship Program(granted by NIIED): As the Graduate
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School of Korean Studies is an applicable institute, KGSP provides selected students with a monthly stipend KRW 900,000, research expenses, settlement support fund, one-round trip airfare, etc. Selected students are available to enter the graduate school after either language course(one year) or getting TOPIK level 5 or 6 during the language course.
Subject of Korean language course : TOPIK level under 5 certificate holder
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Exemption of Korean language course : TOPIK level 5 or 6 certificate holder
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Please refer to 'KGSP guideline of the Year 2010' for more details like
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Applicable country, Application qualifications, etc.
Other financial aid opportunities: Limited number of RA/TA positions is
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available.
5. Majors Offered
Programs Divisions Majors
Master's programs
Humanities Korean History/Archaeology, Paleography, Philosophy, Korean Language/Korean Literature
Culture and Arts Anthropology, Folklore, Religious Studies, Musicology,Art History, Cultural Informatics
Social Sciences Political Science, Economics, Sociology, Ethics,Education International
Korean Studies Korean Studies
Total 4 divisions 16 departments
Doctoral programs
Humanities Korean History/Archaeology, Paleography, Philosophy, Korean Language/Korean Literature
Culture and Arts Anthropology, Folklore, Religious Studies, Musicology,Art History
Social Sciences Political Science, Economics, Sociology, Ethics,Education
Total 3 divisions 14 departments
6. Number of Students Admitted
Number of international students admitted each semester is not fixed.
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7. Eligibility
All applicants must meet one of the two conditions below.
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1. Neither the applicant nor his or her parents possess Korean nationality.
2. The applicant has completed more than 16 years of education outside of Korea that is compatible with Korea's elementary, middle, high school and college education.
Master's Program
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Applicants for the Master's program must have a Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) or be expected to receive a Bachelor's degree before enrollment at GKS.
An applicant's undergraduate major does not necessarily have to be related to
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the major that he or she is applying for at GKS.
Doctoral Program
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Applicants for the Doctoral program must have an M.A. degree (or equivalent) or to be expected to receive an M.A. degree before enrollment at GKS.
An applicant's major in M.A. degree must be the same or closely related to
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the major that the applicant is applying for at GKS.
The applicant cannot apply for the doctoral program in a similar field if the
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applicant already holds a doctoral degree .
8. Selection Process
Applicants who have submitted all required documents will have a phone
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interview, and the interview result will be included and considered for the application documents review.
When application documents are being reviewed, the Graduate Admission
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Committee makes a comprehensive evaluation of the application form,
statement of purpose, personal statement, recommendation letters, language proficiency, previous academic achievement, academic willingness, etc.
9. Application Procedure and Schedule
10. Required Documents
Application Form (Download)
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Personal Statement (Over A4 or Letter 3pages, explain in detail)
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Statement of Purpose (Over A4 or Letter 3pages, explain in detail)
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Two copies of original Degree Certificate & Graduation Certificate of
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Bachelor's and/or M.A. Degree
Applicants for the doctoral program must submit certificates of both M.A. and
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B.A. degree.
Applicants who have graduated from universities in the People's Republic of
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China must also submit an English academic degree certificate accreditation from the China Academic Degree & Graduate Education Development Center (http://www.cdgdc.edu.cn/).
Two copies of original official transcripts of undergraduate and graduate
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Studies.
Applicants for Doctoral program must attach an abstract of their M.A. thesis.
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Spring
semester Fall
semester Remarks
Application
Deadline Oct. 31 Apr. 30 Applications are accepted year round.
Notification Dec. 15 Jun. 15 Notification on the GKS web site and via mail
Orientation and
registration Feb. 13 Aug. 13
Please refer to the notification letter for detailed schedule.
Korean language
proficiency test Feb. 15 Aug. 15
Semester begins Mar. 1 Sept. 1
Two Letters of Recommendation (Download)
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One of the letters should be written by an academic adviser or a dean of the
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department in the applicant's undergraduate/graduate school.
Recommendation letters must be sent directly by the person recommending the
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student.
Certificate of Korean Language Proficiency (Download)
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Applicants for the International Korean Studies are exempt.
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Korean (S-TOPIK) and English (TOEFL, IELTS or TEPS) language
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proficiency test transcript, if available
Applicants for the International Korean Studies whose first language is not
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English are required to submit English language proficiency test transcript.
A copy of the passport and three passport-sized photos
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Application Fee: US $50 or KRW 50,000
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*KRW: account no. 270937-04-000487 (Kookmin Bank)
*USD: account no. 270968-08-100314 (Kookmin Bank) (Account holder: Academy of Korean Studies)
Kookmin Bank swift code: CZNBKRSEXXX Application qualifications of KGSP
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Application Form (Attachment #1)
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Study Plan (Attachment #2)
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Self Introduction (Attachment #3)
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Pledge (Attachment #4)
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Personal Medical Assessment (Attachment #5)
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Korean (S-TOPIK) and English (TOEFL, IELTS) language proficiency test
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transcript in original, if available (Certificate holders will be given preference) Published paper, if available (submit 1 or 2 publications)
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Award, if available (submit copy of award)
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11. Important Notes for Applicants
Application form, letters of recommendation, certificate of Korean language
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proficiency must be in the format downloadable at GKS website.
Application form, personal statement, and statement of purpose may be
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submitted by online applications at GKS application website
(http://portal.aks.ac.kr/Entrance/login.jsp). Other required documents must be submitted by registered mail.
Personal statement and statement of purpose must be written in Korean.
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(Applicants for the International Korean Studies may write in English.)
Any certificates that are not written in Korean or English must be translated
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and notarized in Korean or English before being submitted.
Applications with any missing document would not be accepted and reviewed.
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Submitted documents and the application fee will not be returned.
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All statements in the application must be true. If any false statement in the
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documents is discovered, admission may be revoked.
Transcript should include grade point average (G.P.A) or percentage grade.
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* If the grade is difficult to convert to percentage, official explanatory document from the attended university is required.
Language test scores must be less than 2 years old on the date of application.
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Applicants for KGSP should submit the applications of KGSP to GKS and the
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following is the eligibility of KGSP.
You are not considered for KGSP if you:
are not a citizen of the applicable country
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are over 40 years old as of September 1, 2010
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are enrolling or have enrolled in the same academic program in Korea (as
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the one the applicant is applying for)
score under 80% grade point average from the previous attended institution
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12. Research(Non-Degree) Program A. Eligibility
The applicant must possess a Bachelor's Degree, or equivalent.
B. Program Overview
Researchers must pay tuition, and the research period can not be longer than
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a year.
Research program certificate will be issued to the researchers who have
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successfully completed the program.
Researchers must register for at least one course each semester and must
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research under the guidance of an academic adviser at GKS.
Researchers have access to GKS facilities including library and dormitory.
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C. Application Procedure and Required Documents
Application timetable, required documents, and ways of applying (or how to apply) for the Research (Non-degree) program are the same as the Degree Program.
13. Facilities
▣ Graduate School building
Recently renovated GKS building has lecture rooms, graduate students study
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rooms (open 24 hours), an Internet PC room, and a language lab.
▣ Jangseogak Library
Janseogak library, specializing in Korean Studies, has some 350,000 books and
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rare materials related to Korean Studies, antiquarian books (some 100,000 books and 500,000 antique documents), and Master's theses and doctoral dissertations.
▣ Siseupjae
Siseupjae includes Guesthouse for Korean Studies scholars (from home and
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abroad) and a dormitory for graduate students. The dormitory has only double rooms (2 students in a room), and the residential fee is KRW 463,500 per semester.) Siseupjae also has meeting rooms, a communal kitchen, a laundry room, and a fitness center.
▣ Others
Cafeteria, convenient store, soccer field, and a table tennis room are available
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to students.
14. Contact Information
Address : THE ACADEMY OF KOREAN STUDIES The Graduate School of Korean Studies
110 Haogogaegil(Unjung-dong), Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, 463-791, Republic of Korea
Tel : +82-31-709-8111(Ext. 213 214), +82-31-708-5310～ Fax : +82-31-709-9946
E-mail : gradaks@aks.ac.kr Website : http://www.aks.ac.kr
