Korean language programs at Busan universities

PNU Language Education Institute

The PNU Language Education Institute (부산대학교 언어교육원) teaches Korean across levels 1–6 covering speaking, listening, reading and writing. A common route is to study Korean here first, then move into a degree program. Apply through the institute's own Korean Language Registration page at https://lei.pusan.ac.kr/page?menuCD=000000000000211, which splits applicants into new students who need a D-4-1 study visa, new students who do not, and enrolled students extending. The institute site has an English toggle but it is a script handler with no separate English address, so there is no linkable English page. Use lei.pusan.ac.kr rather than the International Office's summary page, which still showed 2025 term dates and 2025 fees when we checked in August 2026.

Daily campus life and most undergraduate teaching runs in Korean. PNU does offer English admission information, an English-friendly International Office and selected English-medium courses, but international students are expected to build TOPIK competence through the PNU Language Education Institute (KLI) over the first year, and TOPIK level is what unlocks PNU's own tuition scholarships. Current Korean course terms and fees live at https://lei.pusan.ac.kr, not on the International Office summary page, which was still showing 2025 dates and fees in August 2026. Ask our education partners for the current list of English-medium tracks.

PKNU Korean Language Program

The PKNU Korean Language Program (국립부경대학교 한국어연수과정) runs through the International Student Support Team and is connected to a TOPIK test center on campus. Korean reinforcement programs for degree students are coordinated by the same team.

Most degree teaching runs in Korean. English-track options exist inside the Division of Global & Interdisciplinary Studies, and admission information is published in English. International students are expected to build TOPIK competence through the PKNU Korean Language Program, our partners can confirm the live English-track catalogue for your cycle.

KMOU Korean Language Institute (한국어교육원)

10 weeks, 200 hours, Mon–Fri 09:00–12:50. Four intakes per year (Mar / Jun / Sep / Dec). The KLI is connected with the Office of International Affairs in D8. KLI material also includes D-4 language visa information and document lists, follow the latest KLI admission notice rather than an older PDF.

KMOU's own eligibility rules make the Korean requirement concrete. To apply for undergraduate international admission you need TOPIK level 3, or completion of a level 3 course at a university-run Korean language institute, at the time of application, and TOPIK level 4 or above before you can graduate. The KMOU Korean Language Institute (한국어교육원) runs the formal Korean pathway, 10 weeks, 200 hours, Monday to Friday 09:00 to 12:50. Specific TOPIK-prep classes should be checked on the latest KLI notice. KIIP classes are not confirmed.

Dong-A Korean Language Course

Also known as the Dong-A Korean Language Institute or Korean Language Institute of Dong-A University. The program covers Beginner 1–2, Intermediate 1–2 and Advanced 1–2 levels, combining language skills with cultural activities. Classrooms are connected to Bumin Campus but may vary by semester.

Most degree teaching runs in Korean. Dong-A does operate a separate undergraduate English track alongside the Korean track, with its own admission page and its own calendar, so confirm in writing which track your programme sits on before you apply. International students typically build TOPIK competence through the Dong-A Korean Language Institute, and that matters financially here: Dong-A's entry scholarships are banded directly on TOPIK level, and students who complete two or more semesters at the institute qualify for a better scholarship table. One caution on sources, the English-language Korean Language Institute course page on english.donga.ac.kr was still showing 2025 deadlines when we checked in August 2026, so confirm current terms with the International Exchange Office rather than that page.

Kyungsung Language Education Center

Kyungsung's Korean Language Center (under the Language Education Center / 언어교육센터) opened in March 2006 and has run Korean education since 2003, with around 1,000 international students, ~70 Korean teachers and more than 30 classrooms. The 2026 program runs 4 terms per year (spring/summer/fall/winter), 200 instructional hours per term, 20 hours per week, 800 hours per year. Located in Geonhak Memorial Hall (Building 30), Room 201-2.

English-track majors list IELTS 5.5 or TOEFL iBT 71 as the minimum English-proficiency requirement (with exceptions for English native-speaking countries). Korean-track students admitted below TOPIK level 3 are expected to complete around 300 hours of Korean training within one year. Confirm the live admission guide before applying.

Center for Korean Language and Culture Education (KLCE)

Regular Korean course: 10 weeks, 200 hours, level-based, includes Korean language and culture. 2026 dates: Spring 3 Mar – 13 May · Summer 22 May – 31 Jul · Autumn 1 Sep – 13 Nov · Winter 19 Nov 2026 – 29 Jan 2027. Current KLCE listing: application fee KRW 50,000 · tuition KRW 1,300,000 · insurance KRW 80,000 · approx. national health insurance KRW 70,000 after 6 months · total for new students KRW 1,430,000 · textbooks ~KRW 60,000. TOPIK prep follows the TOPIK schedule; KIIP availability is not confirmed, ask the language center directly.

Apart from the Global Talent Convergence Major, most majors are instructed in Korean. The Center for Korean Language and Culture Education (KLCE / 한국어문화교육원) is the formal Korean pathway, our partners confirm the live English-medium catalogue for your cycle.

Dongseo Language Center / Korean Language Program (한국어연수과정)

Level-based Korean classes. Korean recruitment notices use the term 한국어연수과정. TOPIK preparation and KIIP availability still need confirmation, ask the language center directly.

Dongseo runs a Korean Language Program through the Dongseo Language Center (한국어연수과정), contact +82-51-320-2097. TOPIK preparation and KIIP availability are not clearly confirmed, ask the language center directly.

Silla Korean Language Education Center (신라한국어교육원)

Located in the International Education Building, Room 420. Level-based Korean classes plus short-term summer and winter cultural-experience programs combining intensive Korean with culture and buddy activities. TOPIK-prep and KIIP availability are not clearly confirmed, ask the center directly.

The Silla Korean Language Education Center (신라한국어교육원) sits in the International Education Building, Room 420. Phone +82-51-999-5754~5 · email kedu_c4@silla.ac.kr. Silla also offers summer and winter cultural experience programs with intensive Korean and culture activities. TOPIK-prep and KIIP availability are not clearly confirmed, ask OIA.

Korean Language Education Center (한국어교육센터, KLEC), Building D 2F

The language centre is on the Haeundae campus at 영산대학교 부산캠퍼스 D동 2층, (48015) 부산 해운대구 반송순환로 142 한국어교육센터. Phone 051-540-7174, also 051-540-7023 to 7025, fax 051-540-7026. The centre head is 이향숙, kaori73@ysu.ac.kr, 051-540-7255. Six levels are published: 초급 1단계, 초급 2단계, 중급 3단계, 중급 4단계, 고급 5단계 and a TOPIK 대비반 preparation class. Classes run Monday to Friday, 09:30 to 13:10, in four terms a year of 10 weeks and 200 hours each, using 경희한국어 from Kyung Hee University Press. Entry to the language program itself needs only high school graduation or equivalent (고등학교 졸업 이상 또는 이와 동등한 자격을 소지한 자), no TOPIK. Applications go to chang@ysu.ac.kr for applicants from outside China and hilwh@ysu.ac.kr for applicants from China. No KLEC presence is published for the Yangsan campus.

Youngsan does not publish the language of instruction program by program, and we found no official statement of any English-taught degree track anywhere on the site. What the university does state, on the Korean Language Education Center course-overview page, is that degree entry needs TOPIK level 3 or above (TOPIK 3급이상 취득자 입학가능), with one exception: the School of Global Studies (글로벌학부) admits at TOPIK 2, and a TOPIK 2 entrant must complete at least 250 hours of Korean training during the first year (TOPIK 2급 소지자의 경우 입학한 후 1년간 250시간 이상의 한국어연수 필수). That implies Korean-medium study. Two Yangsan programs are labelled (Chinese students). No IELTS admission requirement is published anywhere, IELTS appears only in the scholarship table. Note also that the TOPIK 3 rule sits on the language-centre page rather than in a formal 모집요강 admission guideline, and carries no year stamp. There is no published language requirement at all for graduate admission. Ask the Office of Global Affairs to confirm both the language of instruction and the language requirement for your specific department in writing.

Korean Language Institute (한국어학당)

Connected with the Global Education Center and OIA route, based in the International Education Building (Building No. 21). The Global Education Center page lists a bank-balance requirement of up to USD 9,000 within 30 days for some applicants. TOPIK preparation and KIIP availability are not clearly confirmed.

Tongmyong runs a Korean Language Institute (한국어학당) connected with the Global Education Center and OIA route, based out of the International Education Building (Building No. 21). Contact +82-51-629-3020 · kissoo@tu.ac.kr. TOPIK preparation and KIIP availability are not clearly confirmed, ask the Global Education Center directly.

No Korean language institute in the published structure

There is no Korean language institute at BNUE. The university's published 부설기관 are 교육연수원, 평생교육원, 창의인재교육원, 다문화교육원 and IB교육센터, and its 부속시설 are 학술정보관, 생활관, 학생상담센터, 교육박물관, 입학본부, 미래교육원 and 인권센터. None of them teaches Korean to international university students. The 다문화교육원 (Multicultural Education Center) does exist, on 051-500-7255, 051-500-7194 and 051-500-7538, but its published functions are mentor and mentee matching, scholarships, cultural experience programs and outreach lessons for multicultural and North Korean defector schoolchildren in the region. Its page says nothing about Korean courses for international university students. If you need a Korean language pathway in Busan, you will need to find it at another institution.

BNUE does not publish which programs run in English and which run in Korean, and no English-medium degree programme is advertised anywhere on its site. Assume Korean-medium study throughout. There is also no Korean language institute in the university's published structure. The full published list of 부설기관 is 교육연수원, 평생교육원, 창의인재교육원, 다문화교육원 and IB교육센터, and the 부속시설 are 학술정보관 (the library), 생활관 (the dormitory), 학생상담센터, 교육박물관, 입학본부, 미래교육원 and 인권센터. No Korean course for international university students appears in any of them. That is an absence in the published structure rather than an explicit statement that no course exists, but for a college of this size and mission the absence is meaningful.

국제교육원 (International Education Institute)

CUP has its own Korean language institute on campus, the 국제교육원, an affiliated institute of the university. The 정규과정 (regular course) runs from 초급 (beginner) through 고급 (advanced) with four intakes a year, in March, June, September and December. Each term is 10 weeks and 200 hours, Monday to Friday, either 09:10 to 13:00 in the morning or 13:20 to 17:00 in the afternoon. The term windows are early March to mid May, early June to mid August, early September to mid November, and early December to mid February. Tuition is KRW 1,200,000 per 10-week term, with a non-refundable application fee of KRW 50,000, insurance of KRW 100,000 for 6 months, and textbooks charged separately. There is also a 단기과정 (short course) in 3-day and 7-day formats, customised for overseas schools and organisations, including textbooks and cultural activities. Short-course enquiries go to hsyoon@cup.ac.kr. Note that CUP publishes two different locations and phone numbers for the same institute: the main site gives 미카엘관 (Michael Building, M) Room 104 with direct lines 051-510-0863 and 051-510-0870, fax 051-510-0869, while the international site gives 메리놀관 201호 with the switchboard 051-515-5811 to 5815, fax 051-514-1576. Both are official. Try the direct lines first and fall back on the switchboard.

CUP advertises no English-medium degree track anywhere in its official admissions material. Admission on the foreign special track is gated on Korean proficiency, and the 모집요강 states that applicants admitted with TOPIK below Level 3 must take mandatory Korean-language coursework, which points to Korean-medium delivery. We want to be careful with the wording: no official page makes an explicit statement such as "all courses are taught in Korean", and no page lists any English-taught programme either, so we are not publishing "no English-taught programmes" as a verified fact. What is verified is the absence of any advertised English-medium track and the presence of a Korean-language entry requirement. The eligibility rule itself is generous in one respect: the guideline asks you to hold a TOPIK score without stating a minimum level for eligibility. The level affects two things instead, whether you must take mandatory Korean coursework and which scholarship band you land in.

Global Language Education Institute / Korean Language Training Course

Intakes in March, June, August and December. Study period 6 months to 2 years. Applications usually open ~3 months before the schedule. TOPIK and KIIP availability are not clearly confirmed, ask the language coordinator directly.

Kosin runs Korean language training through the Global Language Education Institute / Korean Language Program / Korean Language Training Course. We could not verify the intake months or the course length, so we are not publishing either. TOPIK information appears in Kosin notices but the exact prep format is not clearly confirmed; KIIP is not confirmed. The official Language Program page is https://global.kosin.ac.kr/ia/bbs/board.php?bo_table=contents&wr_id=4.

International Language Education Center

The Korean program is run by the International Language Education Center in the Sungpa Global Building (성파글로벌관, Building 13). Classes focus on listening, reading, writing and speaking; TOPIK-prep and KIIP availability should be confirmed directly with the centre.

Dong-Eui's own international admissions page states that it offers undergraduate programs in Korean and English tracks, and graduate programs in Korean, Chinese and English tracks. Treat that as the university's claim about what exists on paper, not as a guarantee that a given major runs in English in your intake, and ask the International Exchange Team for the actual course list before you commit. In practice most day-to-day teaching and campus life runs in Korean. The regular Korean course at the International Language Education Center focuses on listening, reading, writing and speaking. TOPIK-specific classes are not clearly confirmed on the official page, and KIIP availability is not confirmed either, so ask the language center directly.