There are three application routes
Online applications for international admissions at Korean universities split into three routes. Some universities, such as Seoul National University, run their own application system. Some, such as Yonsei University's undergraduate international track, hand the process to Jinhak Apply. Others, such as Korea University, send you from the Office of International Affairs website to an outsourced application agency site. Whichever route applies, the starting point is the notice on the university's admissions or international affairs website. Do not search for the application site address; follow the link printed in the admission guidelines.
Agency accounts come in separate types. Uway Apply and Jinhak Apply run a common application account, used for the regular domestic admission rounds and overseas-Korean admissions, separately from a general application account used for transfer admissions, graduate schools and similar. Choose the wrong one and the application you want will not appear in the list. A single-site member who registered with only one agency also cannot apply to universities that the other agency handles exclusively, so registering as an integrated member is safer.
Foreign nationals fail the real-name check. The application still goes through
This is where international students get stuck most often. Uway Apply states in its official help pages that real-name verification can fail even when you enter your alien registration number correctly. Verification fails when your real-name information is not registered with the credit information company, and minors and foreign nationals are the groups this usually affects. Failing the real-name check has no effect whatsoever on your application. Click the "Write application" button on that screen and carry on.
Jinhak Apply goes one step further and states that there is no identity verification step in account registration at all. Uway Apply splits registration into two paths, one for applicants who have a mobile phone number and one for applicants who do not. In other words, you can create an account without a Korean mobile phone.
What you cannot change later is your name and date of birth. Jinhak Apply states that these cannot be edited and that you must withdraw your membership and register again. Enter them from the start exactly as they are spelled in your passport. Seoul National University specifies that you must create a new account every semester even if you created one for the previous semester, and that qq.com email addresses cannot be used.
Application fees go through only on overseas cards with 3-D Secure
The amount varies by university and field. Seoul National University's Global Talent Special Admission for Spring 2027 charged KRW 70,000, Yonsei University's undergraduate international track for Fall 2026 KRW 150,000, and Korea University's international special admission KRW 150,000 for humanities and sciences and KRW 200,000 for arts.
Jinhak Apply offers three payment methods (Jinhak Cash, credit card, bank transfer); Uway Apply offers four (bank transfer, credit card, U Cash, simple pay). If you are applying from abroad, this is the part that matters. Jinhak Apply states that an overseas credit card can be used only if it is a VISA or MASTER card enrolled in 3-D Secure. Check with your issuing bank in advance whether your card is enrolled. Bank transfer requires the payer's Korean account number and resident registration number, so it is unusable without a Korean account.
The card does not have to be in the applicant's name. Both agencies state that payment can be made with someone else's card, including a parent's. For the prepaid options, the deposit can also come from someone with a different name. However, topping up without pressing the payment button does not complete the application. Three wrong password attempts lock that card or account, and only the bank or card company can unlock it.
File formats and size limits differ by university
There is no common rule. Korea University asks you to convert every submitted document to PDF and upload within 40MB in total. Seoul National University asks that elementary, middle and high school records be bundled by school level at 15MB per level, and that other documents be merged into one file per item within 8MB, in JPG, PNG or PDF. Photo specifications differ too: Korea University requires 3×4cm, 24KB or less, taken within the last three months, while Seoul National University requires a photo taken within the last six months against a white or light background.
Seoul National University states flatly that encrypted files or files that will not open count as not submitted. Open each file again after uploading and check it. Seoul National University does not accept submission by post, email or fax and recognises online upload only, whereas Korea University and Yonsei University require original hard copies to be mailed in addition to the upload.
Deadlines run on Korea Standard Time, usually at 5 p.m.
All three universities state in their guidelines that every date and time is based on Korea Standard Time (KST). If you are in a different time zone, convert it to your local time in advance. The actual closing time is often 5 p.m. Yonsei University's Fall 2026 undergraduate international track closed on 26 March at 17:00, Korea University's same intake on 27 March at 17:00, and Seoul National University's Spring 2027 intake on 9 July at 17:00. Mailed documents are sometimes judged by arrival, not by postmark. Yonsei University's deadline was arrival by 10 April, 17:00.
Yonsei University's Graduate School states that the application period is never extended and that preparing, entering and uploading documents takes at least 30 minutes to an hour. Logging in just before the deadline is risky.
Once you pay, you cannot edit. Seoul National University is the exception
Paying the application fee finalises the submission. Korea University states that after payment, editing the application, cancelling the submission and refunds are all impossible; Yonsei University likewise states that after payment nothing can be modified or cancelled and the fee is not returned. Yonsei University's Graduate School blocks even changes of department and the deletion or editing of uploaded documents.
Seoul National University diverges here. The admission type and the department cannot be changed after payment and the application cannot be withdrawn, but personal information, the personal statement and uploaded files can still be edited after completion, up to the deadline. The agencies have no authority to edit or cancel a submitted application on their own. Whether editing is possible is decided by the university. Check this item in your university's admission guidelines before you pay.
The application number is your proof of completion
Once the fee is paid, an application number is issued and the submission is complete at that moment. Uway Apply states that if you have your application or examination number, the submission is finished. If the university's own applicant lookup does not show you yet, that is only a difference in when the data is reflected. If the application sits under "Submitted" in your application folder it is complete; if it sits under "Not submitted", the fee has not been paid.
The number stays with you to the end. Yonsei University asks you to write the application number in the top right corner of every document you submit, and Korea University asks you to print the envelope label with its barcode and attach it to the mailing envelope. Seoul National University checks results by date of birth and application number, so losing it means you cannot see your result. Print or save the admission slip and the submission confirmation screen.
Sources
Information on this page is current as of September 2026.
