- South Korea's first national university
- Ranked as the 50th best university in the world by the Times Higher Education in 2008
- 32 000 students
- 1 500 faculties
- Main campus, Gwanak Campus, houses the University Administration and most of the constituent organizations
- Located on the southern outskirts of Seoul, at the foot of the majestic Gwanak Mountain
- Seoul is the capital city and largest metropolis in the country
Visa + Requirements|Travel advice + advisories
Partner university’s areas of study
- Majority of courses are taught in Korean but each college or department offers number of courses in English
- COMM courses are in English Law courses are in Korean with few English courses
- Applicants, who apply for the Korean History major, must provide a proof of Korean language ability
- A satisfactory level of Korean language ability should be either (1) Level 5 or above of official Korean Language Proficient Test or (2) Level 5 or above of the Korean Test conducted at the SNU Language Institute
- Korean Language Education Center courses are fee paying to the Centre
Eligibility and Timing
Terms Offered
Who can go?
- Exchange students can take coursework in most areas of study
- This university is also open to Commerce students
- Commerce: When applying to Go Global, UBC-V Commerce students must select 'Seoul National University-COMM' on their Go Global application
- IMPORTANT: Appeals to grades eligibility will not be accepted for this institution
- Students who have less than 70% average in any term of their academic history, will not be considered for this institution
- Starting Spring 2017, commerce students applying to Seoul National University will be required to have an 83% cumulative average to be considered
- Please research applicable course restrictions on SNU's exchange website
Term Dates
- Fall semester: Late August to Mid December
- Spring semester: Late February to Late June
- SNU ISI Summer semester: Early July to Mid August (fee paying to SNU)
- NOTE: Special Summer and Winter sessions are not open to exchange students who are not attending the regular academic year
- Summer students must attend as fee-paying to ISI
Timing
- Students going on exchange in summer must attend the International Student Program and pay fees to SNU
Credits
Summer programs
Course equivalency formula
- Same as UBC
- NOTE: for SNU graduate law school, 12 SNU credits = 15 UBC credits
- Undergraduate law is same as UBC
Credit transfer process
The transfer credit process takes approximately 16 weeks following each submission deadline. You should allow sufficient time to meet important deadlines that may affect you (e.g. application for graduation, registration in courses that require prerequisites that you took on exchange, entry to a major/honours program, etc.)
For more information about Go Global transfer credit
Grading scheme
- Undergraduates usually take two exams per semester: the mid-term exams (April, Oct) and final exams (Jun, Dec)
- Quizzes and test may be given by the professor at any time, and are particularly frequent in mathematics and science courses
- You will receive a scholastic warning if your grade point average (GPA) falls below 1.7 or if you received an "F" in more than 3 classes
- For further information, click here
Passing grade
D-Course Information
* Students who have special requirements or require academic accommodation should contact a Go Global advisor regarding their needs at least six weeks prior to the application deadline.
Type of Go Global Experiences
Full course load information
- 18 credits for undergraduate
- 12 for graduate
Search for courses at this institution
Transfer Credits And Equivalent Courses At This University
Check out the courses that previous students have transferred back to UBC in the last 5 years using our Course Search Tool. If you don't see a particular course you listed, it simply means you need to submit it as a new course request through the Transfer Credit Portal while on your Go Global experience. For more information, please visit the Go Global Transfer Credit webpage.
Exchange Tuition
- 15 credits or equivalent full-time program fee per term, paid to UBC
- Korean Language Education Center courses are fee paying to the Centre
- The Center's standard tuition is 1,580,000 KRW (Morning), 1,420,000 KRW (Afternoon) per semester for the regular courses and 580,000 KRW per semester for Evening Program
- For all exchange students who apply for the KLP, 50% of the KLP tuition fee will be subsidized by SNU (Office of International Affairs)
- However, you should pay full tuition fee by the deadline and OIA will reimburse half of the tuition after full payment is received
- For summer programs, tuition and other fees, aside from the application fee, are paid directly to SNU
Scholarships and awards
The Go Global Award $1000
All students accepted to Go Global for Exchange, Research Abroad, or Study Abroad travel programs are automatically considered for this award. If you meet the eligibility criteria, you'll be notified of your award after you're accepted to Go Global and after you get nominated to apply to the partner university.
Additional awards
Students who are eligible for awards may receive one UBC or UBC-affiliated international learning award. If you're eligible, you are always offered the highest-value award. Unless stated otherwise, you need to meet eligibility criteria set out by the University Senate regarding awards.
Check out international learning awards and eligibility.
Information for US students:
If you are a student from the United States, please check the US Department of Education Lookup Tool to ensure that any partner institution you wish to attend on Exchange is Title IV ‘eligible’ for Federal Student Aid for the year in which you intend to study there. For institutions outside of the US, select “Foreign Country” from the “State” dropdown menu.
If you attend an eligible institution, then you may receive Title IV federal student loans while on Exchange.
If you attend an ineligible institution:
- You will not be eligible for US federal student loans,
- You may invalidate any US student aid you have previously received for your studies at UBC,
- You may be required to immediately begin repaying your US student loans, and
- You may not be eligible for any future US student aid for the remainder of your studies at UBC.
Additional Fees
- Some partner fees may apply
Types of accommodation available
Housing notes
- Due to high demand, exchange students are NOT GUARANTEED on-campus accommodation with SNU
- While there is housing available, you may have to find alternate accommodations for your exchange period
- On-Campus Housing:
- The Gwanak campus is the main campus of the SNU
- Most colleges and schools are located at the Gwanak campus except for the College of Medicine, which is located at the Yeongeon campus in northern part of Seoul
- Exchange students have a right to apply for the Gwanaksa (Gwanak campus dormitory), but are not guaranteed to eventually get a room
- Off-Campus Housing:
- Off-campus housing is available around the campus
- SNU does not provide an assistance to find off-campus housing, and it is students’ own responsibility to find accommodation outside campus