It's not uncommon for Filipinos to give up on their dreams of studying abroad due to financial concerns. These days, however, there are numerous scholarships that give a few lucky students the rare chance to go to school in another country.
For example, the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) Scholarship Program lets Filipino citizens study at top universities in South Korea without any fees. Scholars under this program can expect to receive a regular allowance for living expenses, airfare, scholarship completion grants, insurance, and extracurricular activities—all on top of their school's tuition fees.
KOICA is offering 22 master's programs and two doctorate programs for 2023, and they have already opened applications for the first half of these courses. Certain courses are available only to specific universities, such as Digital Innovation for Hanyang University and Gender Leadership for Ewha Womans University.
Here's the list of courses KOICA has released so far:
To qualify for this scholarship, one must be a Filipino government employee or an NGO worker with at least two years of experience in their preferred field of study. They should also be officially nominated by the Philippine Government through the Commission on Higher Education.
Read more about the qualifications below:
- Citizenship: Must be a Filipino citizen
- Government Nomination: Be officially nominated by the Philippine Government through the Commission on Higher Education*
- Experience: Government employee with a minimum of two years of experience in the field of study (Applicants with a minimum of two years of international NGO work experience may apply for the KOICA-AJOU Master's Degree Program in Civil Society Leadership with endorsement form)
- Age: (Preferably) Be under the age of 40 as of February 2023
- Employment: (Preferably) Be employed by your government during and after the program
- Level of Education: Have a completed Bachelor's / Master's Degree
- English Proficiency: Have a good command of both spoken and written English
- Not be a person who has withdrawn from KOICA's scholarship program
- Have not participated in KOICA scholarship program or any of the Korean Government's scholarship programs before
Interested applicants must submit the KOICA Application Form and the other requirements for their chosen course of study on or before March 10, 2023. Detailed application requirements and guidelines can be found on KOICA's official website: https://www.koica.go.kr/ciat/index.do.
For other inquiries, applicants may email koica.sp@koworks.org or ciat.philippines@koica.go.kr. You may also refer to the directory below:
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This article originally appeared on Candymag.com. Minor edits have been made by Cosmo.ph editors.