Guide

KAIST undergraduate admissions for international students

KAIST is Korea's first and top science and technology university, it teaches its degrees in English, and it waives tuition for the international students it admits. Here is the whole undergraduate application, start to finish, built from KAIST's own admission guideline.

Written by

Sans BhatiaFounder, KoreaAdmit14 min read · Updated Jul 11, 2026

Updated Jul 11, 202614 min read

KAIST (the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) was founded by the Korean government in 1971 to train the country's scientists and engineers. It sits in Daejeon, about an hour south of Seoul by train, and today enrolls more than 11,000 students, including over 1,200 international students from more than 90 countries. Its undergraduate degrees are taught in English, so you do not need Korean to study there. This guide walks through the international undergraduate application exactly as KAIST lays it out, so you know what to prepare and when.

What KAIST offers undergraduates

KAIST is organized into colleges and schools rather than a long list of standalone departments. Undergraduate fields span the natural sciences, life sciences and bioengineering, engineering, and business.

Two features of the KAIST system are worth understanding before you apply:

• Non-declared major. You enroll without choosing a major. When you reach your second year, you select the major that fits your goals, with no extra application or requirements. KAIST runs fairs, lectures, and seminars to help you decide.
• No transfer system. Regardless of any prior coursework or enrollment elsewhere, everyone who is admitted enters as a first-year student. KAIST does not accept transfer credit toward advanced standing.

The two application tracks

KAIST runs two tracks each cycle, Early and Regular. You choose one, and once you pay the fee you cannot switch between them. The structure is the same every year; the calendar below uses the most recent published cycle (the 2026 guideline) so you can see the shape and the roughly two-week gaps between stages. Confirm the live dates at the source before you plan around them.

A few practical notes from KAIST's process:

• Submit your completed application and documents by the deadline at 5PM KST (Korean Standard Time), not your local time.
• Once you pay the fee, an email goes to your recommender with instructions, so pay early to give them time.
• KAIST advises finishing your online application at least a week before the deadline, because the process takes longer than people expect.
• Your application is submitted automatically at the deadline. There is no submit button.

Who can apply (and who cannot)

This is where the most applicants get caught, so read it carefully. International applicants must meet all of the following.

• Graduation timing. You must have graduated, or be on track to graduate, from high school by the intake's cutoff. For a Spring start the cutoff is late February; for a Fall start it is late August.
• Foreign citizenship. You must hold foreign citizenship, and you must additionally satisfy one of these two conditions: neither of your parents is a Korean citizen, or, if you are of Korean origin, you completed your entire elementary, junior high, and high school education outside Korea.

There is a separate path for international students who completed high school inside Korea (students of foreign nationality living in Korea). It has its own document list but the same core rule applies: both you and your parents must be non-Korean citizens, and dual citizens are not eligible.

The documents you will need

KAIST splits its requirements into what you submit inside the online application and what you upload as scanned files. Here is the full set.

A few details that trip people up:

• The recommendation letter must be written in English, and only one is considered. KAIST recommends an academic advisor, homeroom teacher, or a math or science teacher. The recommender submits it electronically through the link KAIST emails them after you pay, so a Gmail or Yahoo address for your recommender avoids filtering problems. Hard copies are not accepted.
• Transcripts must cover the last three years of high school, year by year, including any coursework in progress.
• The standardized and English tests were once optional during the pandemic. They are both mandatory again. Do not treat them as extras.
• Every document not in English must be translated and submitted with the original, and the translation must carry a seal from a recognized translation office or notary. Files must be PDF, A4-sized, clear, and legible. Blank pages cause applications to be set aside.

The tests: standardized and English

KAIST evaluates academic achievement with particular attention to math and science, so your test scores carry real weight. There are two separate requirements.

Standardized test score

You submit at least one official standardized test result. Accepted options include the SAT, AP, IB, GCE A-Level, ACT, a high school leaving exam, or a university entrance exam. KAIST strongly recommends scores that show strong math and science proficiency, especially in physics, chemistry, or biology.

For the SAT, AP, and ACT, scores must be sent directly by the testing agency through official reporting, which can take one to two weeks to arrive, so report early. Use these KAIST institution codes.

If you take IB or GCE A-Level and only have predicted scores, KAIST accepts predicted score reports verified by a counselor or teacher, and may grant conditional admission. You then submit your final diploma or certificate as soon as you receive it. If your final scores fall well short of your predicted ones, the conditional admission can be rescinded.

English proficiency test

Because the degrees are taught in English, KAIST asks for an English proficiency score. It strongly recommends at least the levels below, from one of these four tests only.

The test must be taken within two years of the application deadline, and you upload the score as a PDF. You can request an exemption if you are a national of an English native-speaking country, or if you completed a high school where classes were taught in English and the textbooks were in English. For the second case you upload a letter of understanding from your high school so KAIST can confirm it.

The application fee, and the fee waiver

The application fee is 80 USD, and it is non-refundable and cannot be waived except through the dedicated program below. You can pay by credit card (domestic or foreign, through the Toss payment page) or by bank transfer. Paying by card generates your application number immediately; a bank transfer has to be received and confirmed first, and international transfers can take weeks, so start early if you go that route.

How KAIST selects students

Selection has two stages.

1. Document review. Every applicant is screened on their submitted materials. KAIST weighs academic achievement (especially the level and quality of math and science study and the institutions attended), potential, interpersonal skills, personal accomplishments, integrity, and leadership.
2. Interview, only if requested. The interview is not a mandatory step. If KAIST decides one is needed, it contacts those applicants individually by email with the date and instructions, and you must reply promptly to confirm.

The personal statement

The application form includes a personal statement built around KAIST's ideal of students who love a challenge, think creatively, and care about others. It is a set of required essay prompts, so it helps to know them before you start writing.

• A question you genuinely have in a field of science, technology, engineering, or math, and what inspired you to ask it. KAIST is assessing your curiosity and attitude, not the question itself.
• What you learned from and felt during up to three curricular or extracurricular activities that meant something to you.
• A time you thought or acted differently from those around you, and how it affected you and others.
• A time you practiced consideration, sharing, cooperation, or conflict management, and what you took from it.
• Anything else about your family or social background, or difficulties you have overcome, that you want KAIST to know.

If you want help shaping essays like these, our guide on how to write a statement of purpose for a Korean university covers the structure and the common mistakes.

After you are admitted

Two things to plan for once you receive an offer.

• Apostille within 15 days. Admitted students must submit apostille certificates for their diplomas, transcripts, and standardized test reports within 15 days of enrollment. Prepare these before you leave your home country, because sorting them out from Korea is far harder. Our apostille guide walks through the process country by country.
• No deferral, no dual enrollment. Admitted students cannot defer enrollment to a later semester; if you need to, you reapply. And admitted students cannot enroll at another university at the same time.

Paying for KAIST

The headline is simple: KAIST waives tuition for the international students it admits, so the tuition line of your budget effectively goes to zero. You still cover living costs in Daejeon, and there are details around stipends and lab support at the graduate level. See the KAIST International Student Scholarship page for the specifics, and our cost of studying in Korea guide for a realistic monthly budget.

What to do next

1. Check the eligibility rules above against your citizenship and your parents' citizenship first. It is the fastest way to know whether this route is open to you.
2. Decide between the Early and Regular tracks based on whether you want a Spring or Fall start.
3. Line up your standardized test and English test early, since official score reporting takes time.
4. Read our guide on studying in Korea in English to see how KAIST fits alongside other English-taught options.
5. Confirm this cycle's exact dates and requirements on KAIST's official international undergraduate admissions site before you commit to a plan.