Address: 1 Gwanak-ro, Gwanak-gu, 08826 Seoul, South Korea
Engineering, Natural Sciences, Medicine, Humanities, Social Sciences, Law, Business
Seoul National University was founded in 1946 through the merger of ten higher-education institutions in the Seoul area. Its roots include schools set up under King Gojong, such as the law academy Beopkwan Yangseongso in 1895 and a medical school in 1899. The first president was Harry Bidwell Ansted, and Lee Choon-ho became the second president in October 1947. In 1950, during the Korean War, the university was occupied by North Korea and moved temporarily to Busan.
The main campus is at Gwanak in the south of Seoul, with its own station on subway Line 2. It replaced the former campus at Dongsung-dong in Jongno between 1975 and 1979. The Yeongeon campus in Jongno-gu houses the medical, dental and nursing colleges, and the Pyeongchang campus is in Gangwon Province. Plans for a global campus at Siheung, in Gyeonggi Province, started with a memorandum in 2010. The agricultural programmes of the former Suwon campus moved to Gwanak in 2004.
In 2022 the university enrolled 28,264 students, among them 15,870 undergraduates, 12,394 postgraduates and 4,019 doctoral students, and it had 2,278 faculty members. It has 16 colleges that offer 83 undergraduate programmes, and one graduate school with 99 programmes, together with several professional graduate schools.
The Central Library opened in 1946 and inherited the collections of Keijo Imperial University. In 2022 it held 5.2 million volumes, more than 260,000 journals and electronic journals, and over 230,000 non-book items. The Kwanjeong Library was completed in February 2015. Kyujanggak, the royal library founded by King Jeongjo in 1776, is run today by the Kyujanggak Institute for Korean Studies and keeps key Korean historical records. The SNU Museum opened in 1946, and the SNU Museum of Art, designed by Rem Koolhaas, opened on 8 June 2006.
Graduates include Ban Ki-moon, former Secretary-General of the United Nations, Lee Jong-wook, former director-general of the World Health Organization, Hoesung Lee, chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Song Sang-hyun, former president of the International Criminal Court, and Kwon Oh-hyun, former chief executive of Samsung Electronics. Tuition differs by programme. Check the current tariff. Teaching is largely in Korean.
Domains taught:
Agriculture, Chemistry, Data Analytics, Electrical and Electronics, Engineering, Life Sciences, Materials, Mathematics, Physics
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Master, MBA
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Kyujanggak Institute for Korean Studies, SNU Museum, SNU Museum of Art, and exchange partners worldwide.
Research:
Natural sciences, engineering, medicine, agriculture, social sciences and humanities, with the Kyujanggak archive of Joseon-era royal records as a research collection.
Famous Alumnis:
Ban Ki-moon, Lee Jong-wook, Hoesung Lee, Song Sang-hyun, Kwon Oh-hyun, Bang Si-hyuk
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
2300
Current students***:
28300
Foreign students***:
N/A%
Cumulative former students***:
N/A
Pros
Most prestigious university in South Korea, wide range of colleges, large library holdings including the Kyujanggak, Gwanak campus with its own subway station.
Cons
Very competitive admission, demanding academic culture, teaching largely in Korean, Seoul living costs.
Best For
Students aiming at the leading national university in South Korea, with strong sciences, engineering, medicine and humanities.
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Most Similar Schools Locally
Among national alternatives, Korea University stands out for its focus on chemistry, physics and mathematics, and it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba, and covers finance and software engineering as well.
In terms of fields, Yonsei University is the nearest neighbour, with chemistry, physics and mathematics again at the core; it has almost the same size, at about 29,832 students, and is private, whereas this university is public.
Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology follows much the same lines as this university, with chemistry, physics and mathematics as common ground, and it runs the same bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba programmes, and covers robotics and AI and machine learning as well.
Pusan National University overlaps with this university on materials, life sciences and engineering, so the two are easy to compare, and it has almost the same size, at about 26,000 students, and is also a public institution.
The comparison with Kyungpook National University is straightforward on subjects, since both focus on life sciences and engineering, and it has almost the same size, at about 28,000 students, and is also a public institution.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
If this university is on your list for agriculture, chemistry and physics, National Taiwan University in Taiwan deserves a comparison, because it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba, and covers finance as well.
University of Porto, in Portugal, takes a similar route through chemistry, physics and mathematics; it covers finance and food science as well, and has almost the same size, at about 30,640 students.
Looking internationally, University of Cape Town in South Africa is where chemistry, physics and mathematics get a comparable treatment; it is also a public institution, and runs the same bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba programmes.
Looking internationally, University of Adelaide in Australia is where agriculture, chemistry and physics get a comparable treatment; it covers food science as well, and has almost the same size, at about 30,279 students.
Beyond national borders, University of Lisbon stands out as a comparable school for agriculture, chemistry and physics; it covers finance and civil engineering as well, and is larger, enrolling about 47,794 students against roughly 28,300 here.
*our own picks (our criteria: a mix between domains, diploma delivered, reputation and size), but obviously too many criteria for an apple-to-apple ranking.
FAQ
Where is Seoul National University?
The main campus is at Gwanak in Gwanak-gu, Seoul, with its own station on subway Line 2.
When was it founded?
In 1946, through the merger of ten higher-education institutions in the Seoul area.
Who was its first president?
Harry Bidwell Ansted.
How many students does it have?
In 2022, 28,264, including 15,870 undergraduates and 12,394 postgraduates.
How many colleges does it have?
Sixteen colleges with 83 undergraduate programmes, and one graduate school with 99 programmes.
Where are the medical colleges?
On the Yeongeon campus in Jongno-gu, Seoul.
What is Kyujanggak?
The Joseon-era royal library founded by King Jeongjo in 1776, run today by the Kyujanggak Institute for Korean Studies.
How large is the Central Library?
In 2022 it held 5.2 million volumes and more than 260,000 journals and electronic journals.
Who designed the SNU Museum of Art?
Rem Koolhaas, and it opened on 8 June 2006.
What does it cost?
Tuition differs by programme. Check the current tariff.
Architecture, Biology, Engineering, Innovation, Research and Development
*: without any judgment of the quality, readers are strongly encouraged to check the official status of the exact diploma envisioned as many universities have a mix of recognized diplomas, not recognized, “co-delivered,” “equivalent to”, “some pathways” (…), can change over time, and can be named differently from one country to another.
**: international reputation: is based on some criteria that do not mean much in some domains or specialties (number of researchers, of scientific publications, on budget ….). Our approximate 1-4 scale:
known locally
known locally and internationally
is listed in some of the world university’s classifications
is listed among the 20 firsts in some of world university’s classifications
***: estimated numbers, based on online sources and/or feedbacks. The numbers can vary greatly depending on school organisation (ex.: school is part of a group, it employs internal staff or external consultants or has public staff without employing them …). Refer to all the links provided to have accurate and updated numbers.
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