South Korea’s Dongguk University to launch college exclusively for international students in 2028

SEOUL – South Korea’s Dongguk University will launch a standalone college exclusively for international students in March 2028, offering six majors and considering an initial intake of roughly 30 to 50 students per major, the university told The Korea Herald on Oct 19.The college will offer six majors — Hallyu culture, filmmaking, advertising, media, global business, and theatre and acting — selected based on an analysis of demand among international students, the university said.Beginning with the March 2028 intake, international undergraduate applicants who meet the college’s eligibility requirements will be admitted through the new college. Eligibility will be limited to students whose parents are both foreign nationals.The plan marks a shift from Dongguk’s current system, under which international students enrol directly in existing colleges and departments, to a separate academic structure designed around their educational and administrative needs.Most classes in the new college will be taught in Korean, according to the university, and applicants will be required to submit Test of Proficiency in Korean (TOPIK) scores as part of the admissions process.A university official told The Korea Herald that the required TOPIK level is expected to remain similar to the threshold currently applied to international applicants, though admissions guidelines have not yet been finalised. Dongguk currently requires international applicants to hold at least TOPIK Level 3.Students enrolled in the new college will not be limited to the six designated majors. They will also be able to pursue other fields of study through double majors, the university said.“We started getting a lot of international students, and there were many difficulties as Korean students and foreign students took classes together,” Dongguk University President Yun Jae-woong told The Korea Herald.“So we decided to create a new international college for international students.”Yun said establishing the college had been a longtime goal.“I thought of this even before I became president,” Yun said. “So I finally decided to do it when I became president, and it took three years to prepare.”Building belonging through specialised supportYun said one of the main goals of the new structure is to give international students a stronger sense of belonging and more consistent academic support.Under the current system, international students are overseen by the individual colleges and departments in which they enrol alongside Korean students. Yun said that can make it difficult for departments to respond closely to international students’ needs, particularly when they make up only a small share of the student body.“We will make sure to designate advisers and provide a range of good educational infrastructure,” Yun said.He added that the new college reflects the university’s intent to provide more systematic support for its growing international student population.Dongguk currently has around 2,500 international students, accounting for just under 13% of the university’s total undergraduate and graduate enrolment, according to Yun.The university has also been strengthening support outside the classroom.It opened the Global Service Desk in 2026 to handle counseling and administrative issues for international students and is developing an integrated management system intended to support them from admission and academic life through employment and eventually alumni relations.Yun also addressed concerns that placing international students in a separate college could make it harder for them to integrate with Korean peers.“We have a lot of mentorship programmes that allow international students to mingle with Korean students and a lot of educational activities, such as Buddhist cultural events, that allow the two groups to participate together so that international students do not feel lonely, isolated or excluded,” Yun said.Dongguk, a Buddhist university, already runs joint cultural programmes involving South Korean and international students, including lantern-making activities, overnight temple stays and other Buddhist cultural events.Dongguk is not the first South Korean university to create a standalone college for foreign students. Other four-year universities, including Korea University and Gachon University, also operate separate academic units for international students. THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK