KAIST

Key facts

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

About KAIST

KAIST was founded in 1971 as the Korea Advanced Institute of Science (KAIS) with a US$6 million loan from USAID. In 1981 it merged with the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) to form KAIST; the two split in 1989, and that year KAIST merged with the Korea Institute of Technology and moved from Seoul to Daejeon.^[7] The main campus is in Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, at 291 Daehak-ro.^[6]

The university’s overview page counts 5 colleges, 7 schools, 13 graduate schools and 27 departments.^[1] Wikipedia names the colleges as Natural Sciences; Life Science and Bioengineering; Engineering; Liberal Arts and Convergence Science; and Business, but its totals differ from the official page.^[7] Among the 12,348 students are 4,009 at bachelor’s level and 1,676 in the joint master’s-PhD programme; the page gives no reference year, while Wikipedia gives the same total for 2024.^[1][7]

How is KAIST ranked?

In the QS World University Rankings 2027, published on 18 June 2026, KAIST is 65th in the world and fourth among Korean universities, behind Seoul National University (38th), Yonsei University (42nd) and Korea University (52nd).^[2] The Korea Herald reports the same position.^[9]

KAIST was missing from the 2026 edition. Korea JoongAng Daily reported in March 2025 that QS had excluded the university for one year after a KAIST department emailed about 300 overseas academics in November 2024 and offered $100 to those who took part in a survey related to QS. KAIST said the payment was a token of appreciation, that no money was paid, and apologised; QS kept its decision.^[10] Any older rank in circulation for “QS 2026” therefore cannot be a QS 2026 position. Rankings differ by publisher and year. How we compile rankings.

What can you study at KAIST?

KAIST is a science and technology university. According to its overview page it has 5 colleges, 7 schools and 27 departments with 13 graduate schools.^[1] Undergraduate applicants must enter as freshmen; the undergraduate eligibility page states that KAIST has no transfer programme.^[11]

At graduate level, the admissions site describes two recruitment cycles a year, spring and fall.^[12] The tracks listed include a joint master’s-PhD programme, co-op and entrepreneurship programmes.^[12]

How much does KAIST cost?

Undergraduate

These are the cost-of-attendance figures of the international undergraduate site. The page does not name the academic year and shows no date, so treat the amounts as indicative.^[3] The page subtracts the KAIST Scholarship (full tuition plus a stipend of KRW 350,000 a month, KRW 2,100,000 per semester) and arrives at a net estimated total of KRW 1,679,500 per semester, KRW 3,359,000 per year.^[3]

Scholarship

International undergraduates admitted to KAIST can receive tuition exemption for eight semesters, a living allowance of KRW 350,000 per month and medical health insurance. The condition is a GPA above 2.7 out of 4.3 after the freshman year. There is no separate application: you tick the KAIST scholarship box in the Statement of Financial Resources section of the application.^[4]

Graduate

The graduate cost page lists tuition of KRW 19,118,000 per year and KRW 11,070,787 in other costs (housing, books, meals, health insurance, travel, telecommunications), KRW 30,188,787 in total, for academic year 2023. The KAIST Scholarship covers full tuition and guarantees minimum living expenses; the page says 94 percent of international students benefit.^[8]

How do you apply to KAIST?

• Undergraduate: apply as a freshman through the international undergraduate admissions site. Applicants must hold foreign citizenship; dual citizens who hold Korean citizenship are not eligible. Neither parent may be a Korean citizen, or, for applicants of Korean origin, all schooling from elementary to high school must have been completed outside Korea (international schools in Korea do not count). The page lists Spring 2027 (early round only) and Fall 2027 (early and regular rounds) as intakes.^[11]
• Graduate: applicants need a bachelor’s degree (master’s or master’s-PhD programme) or a master’s degree (PhD) by the start of the course and must have a citizenship other than Korean.^[5] The graduate site refers to an ApplyWeb account for the online application.^[12]

We give no deadlines here because they change every cycle. Read the current admissions guide on the undergraduate or graduate site.

Which language level do you need?

For graduate applicants at least one English test score is required, valid on the online application deadline: TOEFL iBT 83 for tests taken before 21 January 2026 (4.5 on the new scale for tests taken on or after that date), IELTS Academic 6.5, TOEIC Listening and Reading 720 or TEPS 326. TOEFL Home Edition and IELTS Online are accepted; TOEFL MyBest scores, IELTS One Skill Retake and ITP scores are not.^[5]

From the Fall 2027 cycle applicants can ask for a waiver if they are citizens of a listed English-speaking country (for example Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the U.K., the U.S.A.), completed a bachelor’s-equivalent or higher qualification in such a country, or completed one taught in English in a listed country with a certificate of English-medium instruction.^[5]

Not confirmed: the undergraduate pages we read (eligibility, scholarship, cost of attendance) state no English or Korean test minimum. The requirement may be in the admissions guide PDF for 2027, which we could not download completely, so check it before you apply.^[11]

More about studying in South Korea

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

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