Dongguk University

Key facts

Checked against the sources listed at the bottom of this page on 5 November 2026.

About Dongguk University

Dongguk University was founded in 1906 by the Jogye Order and has remained one of the few Buddhist-affiliated universities in Korea.^[2] Wikipedia dates the start to 8 May 1906, when the Myeongjin School was set up by the Association of Buddhism Research, and says the school gained full university status under its current name in 1953.^[7]

The 2025 fact sheet lists 18,426 undergraduates and 5,056 graduate students, a main campus in Seoul and a Bio-Medi campus in Ilsan for the College of Life Science and Biotechnology.^[1] The English homepage gives different headline figures (13 colleges and about 18,000 students), so counts vary by source and date.^[5]

Dongguk announced plans for a standalone college exclusively for international students, to start with the March 2028 intake. The Korea Herald reports that most classes there will be in Korean, that it will offer six majors (Hallyu culture, filmmaking, advertising, media, global business, and theatre and acting) and that admission guidelines are not final.^[6]

How is Dongguk University ranked?

In the QS World University Rankings 2027, published on 18 June 2026, Dongguk University is 520th, up from 618th the year before. JoongAng Daily describes this as a significant leap.^[3] The Korean trade paper Hankook Daehak Sinmun lists its QS positions as 671 to 680 in 2024, 701 to 710 in 2025, 618th in 2026 and 520th in 2027, a gain of 151 places since 2024.^[8] Rankings differ by publisher and year, so treat one position as one view. How we compile rankings.

What can you study at Dongguk University?

The exchange fact sheet counts 15 colleges, 78 undergraduate programmes and 136 graduate programmes.^[1] International undergraduates apply to admission units; the guide asks each applicant to choose a first and a second choice. Some students choose their major later: Business School students after two semesters, English Language and Literature and Architectural Engineering students at the end of the first year, and students of Korean Language, Literature and Creative Writing, Police Administration and Theatre at graduation. Students admitted to the College of Buddhist Studies cannot switch majors but may take a double major.^[4]

The guide states that no major is taught entirely in English.^[4] Freshmen can join the Dongguk Global Leaders Track, which requires 16 credits and TOPIK level 4 before students can register for major courses.^[4]

How much does Dongguk University cost in 2026?

The guide says these tuition fees are based on the 2026 academic year and are subject to change. It does not state whether the amount covers one semester or one year, so ask the admissions office at adm@dongguk.edu before you budget.^[4][2] The application fee is KRW 130,000 for most departments, KRW 160,000 for theatre, KRW 180,000 for fine art and KRW 200,000 for Korean traditional music.^[4]

Scholarships for new students

Students who entered through the international track receive a share of tuition for the first semester if they hold a TOPIK certificate: 30% for level 4, 50% for level 5 and 100% for level 6. Applicants from Taiwan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Uzbekistan, India, Indonesia, Japan, Pakistan and Hong Kong can receive a 50% Global Diversification Scholarship. Government-sponsored scholars are excluded from these awards.^[4]

On-campus housing in the Seoul campus residence (Namsan) for two people cost KRW 1,661,280 for four months or KRW 2,461,600 for six months for new residents in Fall 2026.^[4] For living costs see our South Korea guide.

How do you apply to Dongguk University?

The undergraduate route for international students has its own guide for each intake; the notice for the spring 2027 intake was posted on 10 September 2026 and covers freshman and transfer admission.^[4]

• Who can apply: both parents must be foreign nationals. Freshmen need a regular high-school diploma or expected graduation; second- and third-year transfer applicants need at least one or two years at a 4-year university (or a 2- or 3-year college degree).^[4]
• How: apply online at jinhakapply.com, then send documents by post or deliver them in person to the Global Student Team on the Seoul campus.^[4] The guide states that the number of students selected depends on each department.^[4]
• Money: successful candidates submit, after paying tuition, a bank certificate showing at least KRW 20,000,000 (about USD 15,000).^[4]
• Contact: adm@dongguk.edu for admission questions or scf@dongguk.edu for general student queries.^[2]

We give no deadlines because they change every year. Dongguk runs its undergraduate admission in rounds, and the first round for the spring 2027 intake has already closed; check the university’s international student notice board for further rounds.^[4] Graduate admissions are on a separate page of the foreign-admission site, which we could not read.

Which language level do you need?

Applicants must meet one of these Korean proficiency routes, according to the spring 2027 notice:^[4]

• TOPIK (including iBT TOPIK) level 3 or higher.
• King Sejong Institute Korean, Intermediate 3B or higher. The fall 2026 notice named Intermediate 1B, so the bar rose between intakes.^[9]
• Four semesters in the regular programme of Dongguk’s Korean Language Institute with level 3 or higher, or four semesters at another Korean 4-year university’s Korean institute with level 4 or higher; attendance must be at least 80% in each semester.
• Passing stage 3 of the Dongguk University Korean Level Test, which cannot be taken from abroad.

Applicants who meet any of the first four routes need not take the level test.^[4] TOPIK (Test of Proficiency in Korean) is graded from level 1 to 6. The guide states that no major is taught entirely in English, and the Korea Herald reports that most classes in the planned 2028 international college will also be taught in Korean.^[4][6]

More about studying in South Korea

• South Korea: best universities
• Cost of Studying Abroad
• International Student Scholarships
• University Ranking Methodology

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