Admissions Guide for International Students - 2018 Spring Semester -

1. About the Graduate School of Korean Studies

   The Graduate School of Korean Studies (“GSKS”) is an affiliated institution of the Academy of Korean Studies, which operates under the Ministry of Education. It is a research-oriented graduate school in the fields of humanities and social sciences pertinent to Korea, which aims at nurturing scholars who will contribute to the development and globalization of Korean Studies. Since its establishment in 1980, GSKS has been providing intensive research-oriented education through eminent professors’ close mentoring of students. In addition, it gained a worldwide reputation for its high standard and quality education. Also its graduates are playing pivotal role in widening and deepening Korean Studies all over the world with their academic excellence. Currently, approximately 280 students, including about 140 international students from 35 different countries, are enrolled in the master’s and doctoral degree programs at the GSKS.

2. Programs Offered

 - Programs : Master's or Doctoral Degree Program / Research(Non-degree Program)

 - Divisions and Majors

   (Humanities) Korean History, Diplomatics and Bibliography, Philosophy, Korean Linguistics·Korean Literature

   (Culture and Arts) Anthropology·Folklore, Religious Studies, Musicology, Art History, Cultural Informatics·Human Geography
   (Social Sciences) Political Science, Economics, Sociology, Education
   (Global Korean Studies) Korean Culture and Society, Korean Classics and Global Communication

   ※ ‘Korean Culture and Society’ is only available for MA’s degree program
 ※ For curriculum comparison, please refer to GSKS homepage(www.aks.ac.kr/univ) - Introduction of GSKS(대학원 소개) - Curriculum Comparison(전공 및 교육과정) - Course for Each Major (per Division, per Major Tap)(전공과목 (학부별, 전공별 탭))

3. Eligibility

 - (Nationality) Applicants must meet one of the following conditions:
   ① Both the applicant and his/her parents are foreign nationals.
   ② The applicant, either a foreign national or a Korean national who obtained permanent residency in a foreign country or who resides overseas, has completed education outside of Korea which is compatible with Korea‘s elementary, middle, high school and college education.

 - (Educational Background)

   In order to be qualified for master’s degree programs, Applicants who satisfy the above qualification ① in relation to
their nationality must hold a bachelor's degree (or equivalent) conferred by a Korean or an overseas university at the start of the desired semester. Applicants who satisfy the above qualification ② in relation to their nationality must hold a bachelor's degree (or equivalent) conferred by an overseas university at the start of the desired semester. It is acceptable that applicants apply for a major which is not directly related to his/her undergraduate major.

  In order to be qualified for doctoral degree programs, applicants must hold a master’s degree (or equivalent) at the start of the desired semester. Applicants are requested to apply for a major which is the same as or closely related to their master's degree major (For more details, please see the Attachment).  Applicants who already have a doctoral degree are not allowed to apply for a doctoral degree program in the same or a similar field.

  In order to be qualified for a research(non-degree) program, Applicants who satisfy the above qualification ① in relation to their nationality must hold a bachelor's degree (or equivalent) conferred by Korean or an overseas universities at the start of the desired semester. Applicants who satisfy the above qualification ② in relation to their nationality must hold a bachelor's degree (or equivalent) conferred by an overseas university at the start of the desired semester.
 - (Language Proficiency) Applicants must meet one of the following conditions in relation to the Korean language proficiency. Applicants must provide a TOPIK score certificate of level 4 or higher; or if they do not have a valid TOPIK score certificate, applicants must take a phone interview held by the GSKS to evaluate their Korean language proficiency*
   * Depending on the interview result, only those whose estimated TOPIK level is 4 or above will be considered to be qualified for a document screening.

4. Selection Process

  A. 1st Process : Korean Language Proficiency Screening
   ○ If applicants do not submit a valid* TOPIK score certificate of level 4 or higher, the GSKS Korean language teachers will conduct a phone interview to test their Korean language proficiency. (*The TOPIK certificate should be
valid on the date of application deadline)
  B. 2nd Process : Document Screening
   ○ Only for those who passed the 1st process or have submitted a valid TOPIK score

   ○ Overall evaluation of applicants' study plan, grades, language proficiency, and academic background (those shown in personal statement and recommendation letters) take place.
  C. 3rd Process : Face-to-Face or Skype Interview
   ○ A face-to-face interview or a Skype interview will be held to those who have passed the 2nd Process.
   ○ Interview schedule will be informed individually. Applicants who do not participate in the interview will be automatically disqualified.

5. Admission Schedule

  - (Entrance period) March 2018
  - (Deadline for Documents Submission and Payment of Application Fee) ~ 5pm on Friday, November 3rd, 2017
    ※ After saving the completed online application form, print it out and submit it with the rest of your documents.
    ※ After deadline, online application system cannot be accessible.
  - (Phone interview to test Korean Language Proficiency if applicable) Friday, Novemeber 10th ~ Tuesday, November 14th, 2017
    ※ Only for those who do not submit a valid TOPIK certificate of level 4 or higher by deadline
  - (Document Screening) Monday, November 20th ~ Wednesday, November 22nd, 2017
  - (Announcement of the Interviewees List, face-to-face/Skype interview) 6pm on Tuesday, November 28th, 2017
  - (A Face-to-face or a Skype Interview) Monday, December 4th ~ Wednesday, December 6th, 2017
    ※ Applicants who are not able to participate face-to-face interview due to overseas residence are to take Skype interview
  - (Announcement of the Final Selection Result) 6pm on Friday, December 22nd, 2017
  - (Deadline of the Enrollment) 6pm on Wednesday, February 28th, 2018
    ※ The selection will be cancelled for those who do not submit all the documents for the enrollment.
※ The above schedule may change under the unforeseen circumstances.
※ The list of interviewees and the final selection result will be announced on the AKS website(www.aks.ac.kr : 한국학중앙연구원 ➢ 한국학대학원 ➢ 입학안내➢ 입학 관련 공지)

6. Application Details

  A. Application Period : 12pm on Thursday, October 12th ~ 5pm on Friday, November 3rd, 2017(Korea Time)
  B. Application Method : Complete the online application (http://www.aks.ac.kr/admission,) save data, print it out, and submit it with your signature below along with the rest of the required documents by postal service or in person.
     ※ ID photo must be uploaded and saved on the online application form.

  C. Call us for online application problems:
      +82-31-779-2796 for inquiries made in Korean
      +82-31-730-8183 for inquiries made in English
  D. Addressee : The Graduate School of Korean Studies, Office of Academic & Student Affairs
The Academy of Korean Studies Haogae-ro 323, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do Republic of Korea (zipcode: 13455)

7. Application Fee

  A. Amount*: KRW50,000 or USD50
      * the amount received by the GSKS after the deduction of remittance charges incurred
  B. Addressee : Refer to the attachment
  C. Application fee must be paid before the application deadline.
  D. Name of depositor must be same with the applicant’s.
  E. Application can't be cancelled once the online application is completed and the application fee being paid. Application fee can not be returned in principle, but under the circumstances where applicants inevitably had to withdraw the
application due to natural disaster, negligence of the university or a fault which is not attributed to the applicant, some or all of it can be returned.
 ※ All postal (or in person) document submission, including filling out the online application, and paying for application must be done by the deadline(5pm on Friday, November 3rd, 2017, Korea Time.)
 ※ The test identification card can be printed out after confirmation of the application fee being paid.

[Attachment]

Admissions Guide for International Students-2018 Spring.pdf