Tuition fees at the 10 best universities in South Korea in 2026

Tuition fees at South Korea's 10 leading universities range from 2,7-19 million won (50-346 million VND) annually, with the lowest at Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology.

According to the 2026 Times Higher Education (THE) world university rankings, Seoul National University ranks in the top 58 globally and leads in South Korea.

Following Seoul National University are the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Yonsei University, and Sungkyunkwan University. These institutions also rank among the top 100 globally.

Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH) and Korea University are ranked 5th and 6th, respectively, placing in the top 141 and 156 worldwide. The remaining four positions are held by Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), Hanyang University, Kyung Hee University, and Sejong University.

Seven of these 10 universities are private institutions, with typical annual tuition fees ranging from 5,6-15,6 million won (100-290 million VND), according to the study abroad specialist website Study Abroad Aide.

The three public institutions, Seoul National University, KAIST, and UNIST, charge between 2,7 and 19 million won annually, equivalent to 50-346 million VND.

Details are as follows:

No.	University	World ranking	Score (out of 100)	Tuition fees (million KRW/year)
1	Seoul National University	58	74,1	4,9-7,8
2	Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)	70	71,3	19
3	Yonsei University	86	68,5	16
4	Sungkyunkwan University	87	68,3	10,2-15,6
5	Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH)	141	62,3	5,6
6	Korea University	156	61,4	10,6-14,2
7	Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST)	201-250	56,4-58,6	2,7-3,1
8	Hanyang University	251-300	54,3-56,3	10-14,9
9	Kyung Hee University	251-300	54,3-56,3	9,5-12,8
10	Sejong University	251-300	54,3-56,3	9,1-12,5

THE is one of three highly influential university ranking organizations, alongside QS and ARWU. This prestigious university ranking was first published by THE in 2011.

This year, THE surveyed and ranked nearly 2.200 higher education institutions from 115 countries and territories. The US and UK continue to dominate the top 10.

The rankings are based on 18 indicators across 5 pillars, similar to previous years. Research quality accounts for the largest weighting (30%), followed by teaching quality (29,5%), research environment (29%), international outlook (7,5%), and industry income and patents (4%).