The Korea Foundation

2025–26 KF Scholarship for Graduate Studies

＊ Important Notice: This call for applications is for applicants from all nations, excluding those in North America, Europe, and Japan.

Applicants from those nations are invited to apply when a new call for applications is issued for the respective regions and countries.

Program Outline

The KF Scholarship for Graduate Studies (GS) is designed to provide scholarship support to graduate students majoring in a Korea-related field or focusing on a Korea- related research topic at a university located outside of Korea.

Eligible Applicants

M.A. or Ph.D. students in the humanities, social sciences, arts & cultural studies, media & communications, contemporary Korean affairs, or any other relevant field with a Korea-related research topic who fulfill the following criteria:

- Have enrolled (or are about to enroll) as full-time students at a university located outside of Korea.*

  * Please note that students who have enrolled (or are about to enroll) at graduate schools aimed at training professionals in specific fields, such as MBA schools, law schools, or interpretation and translation schools, are ineligible for this program.

- Have not previously obtained a Ph.D. degree.

- Hold citizenship or permanent residency status in a country outside of Korea.*

  * Applicants who are Korean citizens must have already obtained permanent residency status in a country outside of Korea as of July 2025.

Scholarship Period

1 year

- Applicants from Asia (excluding Japan), Eurasia, Middle and South America, Africa, Middle East, and others: from September 1, 2025 to August 31, 2026.

- Applicants from Oceania: from March 1, 2026 to February 28, 2027.

Scholarship Support

Graduate studies scholarship [Scholarship amount search]

Application Schedule

- Application Submission Period: July 21 to September 12, 2025 (18:00 KST)
- Reference Letter Submission Deadline: September 16, 2025 (18:00 KST)

  * Please note that any letters submitted after this deadline will not be accepted.

- Notification of Results: Late November 2025 (subject to change without prior notice)

Required Documents

1. Online application (https://apply.kf.or.kr/)

2. Supplemental documents (to be uploaded together with the online application, except for reference letters, which are to be submitted directly by referees)

① Study/research proposal

- Complete the form available on the online application portal.

- Include all required information and a separate bibliography.

- If the application is for a renewal for a second or third scholarship period, applicants must submit both a study or research proposal and a progress report describing their research progress and related activities during the previous scholarship period.

② Reference letters

- Three (3) letters of recommendation

  * One from the applicant’s thesis or dissertation supervisor, one from a professor who is qualified to assess the applicant’s research proposal, and one

     from a professor or lecturer who is able to assess the applicant’s Korean language competency

  * If the application is for a renewal for a second or third scholarship period, only one (1) reference letter is required, and should be from the applicant’s

     thesis or dissertation supervisor.

    ※ How to submit reference letters:

     • Clicking on “Send email to request recommendation” within the online application form will automatically send emails to the indicated referees asking

           them to submit reference letters for the respective applicant.

     • If the application is submitted without clicking on “Send email to request recommendation,” emails will be sent automatically to the indicated referees

           upon submission of the application.

     • Reference letters must be prepared in a designated form and directly submitted by referees via an upload link, as explained in the email that is sent to them.

    ※ Important reminder

     • If reference letters are not submitted by the September 16 (18:00 KST) deadline, the application will be considered as incomplete and automatically

          excluded from the screening process. Please note that it is applicants’ sole responsibility to inform referees of this in advance and ask them to submit their

          letters before the deadline.

③ Copy of academic transcripts

- Applicants enrolled in M.A. programs must submit academic transcripts for their undergraduate degree(s) and the previous year(s) of their M.A. program (if in their second year or above).*

  * For applicants applying for a renewal of the scholarship period, only academic transcripts for the previous year(s) of their M.A. program are required.

- Applicants enrolled in Ph.D. programs must submit academic transcripts for their undergraduate and M.A. degrees, and the previous year(s) of their Ph.D. program (if they are in their second year or above).*

  * For applicants applying for a renewal of the scholarship period, only academic transcripts for the previous year(s) of their Ph.D. program is required.

④ Curriculum vitae

- Information about applicants’ educational experience, including the title of applicants’ thesis or dissertation and the date(s) on which they obtained their degree(s); professional experience; scholarship and grant award history; research accomplishments; and publications.

⑤ Proof of nationality or permanent residency status

- Copy of picture ID indicating nationality, residency permit, or any other relevant details.

   * Please note that any "Unique Identifiable Information (UII)" in the copy, such as ID number, passport number, social security number, etc., shall be

     masked or covered according to the Personal Information Protection Act. Even successfully submitted applications may be rejected if they contain UII.

How to Apply

Sign in to the portal as an individual member and submit the online application form by clicking on the “Apply” button at the bottom of this announcement.

- If you are inactive for more than 30 minutes, you will be automatically logged out for safety reasons, so please make frequent use of the "Temporary Save" button.

- The application and all required documents must be submitted in either Korean or English. Any documents that are in another language must be accompanied by translations in either Korean or English.

Important Reminders about the Program

1. M.A. students are eligible for scholarship support for up to two years; Ph.D. students are eligible for scholarship support for up to three years.

- Scholarships are not automatically renewed. Those who wish to renew their scholarship period for a second or third year must submit an application during the relevant application period. The evaluation of such renewal applications will be made through a screening process.

2. Scholarship recipients may not receive any concurrent grants or scholarships provided by the KF or other Korean institutions.

3. During the semester, scholarship recipients must reside in the country in which the university at which they are enrolled is located, and devote their time exclusively to studying and conducting research.

4. If recipients discontinue their graduate study at the university during the scholarship period and are therefore unable to commit to research full-time, the already received scholarship funds must be returned to the KF.

5. Scholarship periods may not be deferred to the following year. If, for any reason, recipients must postpone the scholarship period, they must withdraw from the program and reapply for the program the following year.

6. Scholarships shall be awarded in two installments, as follows:

- The first installment (80% of the total scholarship) will be disbursed after all required documents, including enrollment certificates, are verified.

- The second installment (20% of the total grant) will be disbursed after a final report is submitted to and reviewed by the KF.

7. If recipients need to change their research topic due to unavoidable circumstances during the scholarship period, prior approval from the KF must be obtained. In this case, the scholarship period cannot be adjusted or extended.

8. Scholarship recipients are required to submit a final report detailing the academic achievements made during the scholarship period within thirty (30) days of the end of the scholarship period, using the KF’s standard report form.

9. Upon obtaining their degree, scholarship recipients are required to submit a copy of their thesis or dissertation to the KF. Recipients must also inform the KF about any major academic achievements and activities in which they are involved, as well as any appointments to academic positions, even after the scholarship period has ended.

The KF will monitor recipients’ research progress annually for three (3) years following the conclusion of the scholarship period. Failure to meet these obligations may adversely affect the evaluation of applicants’ future applications for the KF’s support programs.

10. Please note that financial support given through the Scholarship for Graduate Studies may be subject to taxation, depending on the tax regulations in applicants’ respective countries of residence.

Important Reminders about the Application

1. All personal information included in the application form will be exclusively used for the program’s purposes. By submitting the application, applicants agree to the collection of their personal information by the KF.

2. All applicant actions (log-in, data entry, button clicks, etc.) are saved as real-time logs and it is the applicant's responsibility to complete their application before the deadline. To ensure a fair selection process, applications that do not meet the submission deadline will be excluded. No exceptions will be made.

3. Please note that as the deadline approaches, heavy web traffic may cause difficulties when accessing the online system. Therefore, we strongly encourage submitting applications at the earliest convenience. Failure to submit the recommendation letter(s) by the deadline will render applications ineligible due to incomplete documentation.

4. Please be careful when uploading attached files as they will be blocked if the file contains the applicant's unique identification information (UII) or special strings that are considered malicious code.

5. After the completion of the evaluation process, universities will be notified about successful applicants via the email address indicated on the respective applications.

6. The KF may directly request universities and the relevant institutions to verify the authenticity of the submitted documents.

Inquiries

- About the program: KF Fellowships Department (scholarship@kf.or.kr)

- About systematic errors*: KF Tech Support Team (tech-support@kf.or.kr)

   * The following additional information should be included in the email to ensure a timely response: 1) Full name, 2) Time of occurrence, 3) Detailed description

      of the error (Highly preferable with screenshots.)