Opened on 12 March 1979
INU's date of establishment is 12 March 1979. It was founded as a private college and became a comprehensive university in 1988.
Incheon National University
INU · Songdo, Incheon
A national university in Incheon, opened in 1979. It was city-run from 1994 and became a national university corporation in 2013. Exchange students all study at the Songdo campus.
- Founded
- 1979 12 March 1979, as a college
- Campus
- Songdo Incheon Line 1, Incheon Nat'l Univ. Station
- Dorm
- ₩720,000 to ₩1,280,000 for 16 weeks, 2026 fees
- Course load
- Up to 18 credits for undergraduates
Incheon National University, brightenedWhat INU is like
Things Korean students all know that are new when you arrive.
City-run, then national
The university became a municipal university in 1994. It merged with Incheon City College in 2010 and became a national university corporation on 18 January 2013.
The whole campus moved in 2009
In 2009 INU moved its entire campus to Songdo International City. The site covers 458,508 square metres, and the school describes it as an environmentally friendly campus in the centre of Songdo.
A lion with a flame mane
The mascot Hwaetbuli is a lion whose mane is made of flames that change with the weather. The school describes it as a freshman who loves to sleep and play, and keeps burning as long as a spark is lit.
- Words you'll hear
- Incheondae 인천대 Short for Incheon National University
- Hwaetbuli 횃불이 The lion mascot
- Songdo 송도 The international city where the campus is
- Sugang 수강신청 Course registration
From INU's official English pages (president's message, university facts, mascot and logo pages), checked on 26 October 2026.
People
Help and events for international students at INU.
INU Buddy
Pairs you with an INU undergraduate, who may get in touch before you arrive. Buddies help with course registration, a bank account, a phone and local transport.
- How to join
- The International Office assigns your buddy.
Country chats
Country chats are for everyone from that country studying anywhere in Korea, not only at INU.
Netherlands
Germany
France
Spain
Italy
Sweden
Finland
PolandGoing with friends? Make a group in A-CHA for your own crew and send them the invite link.
A-CHA events
All eventsOpen to every international student in Korea, not only at INU.
Flash meetups. Anyone can start or join a short meetup in the app, like dinner tonight or a hike on Saturday.
Around campus
INU's exchange students all study at the Songdo campus, in Incheon's new international district.
Address in Korean
인천광역시 연수구 아카데미로 119
119 Academy-ro, Yeonsu-gu, Incheon 22012
Also on Kakao Map and Google Maps. Naver and Kakao work best in Korea.
- Subway
- Incheon Nat'l Univ. Station on Incheon Line 1. From there it's a 20 to 30 minute walk, or bus 8, 16 or 41, or a taxi from Exit 3 for about ₩5,000.
- From Incheon Airport
- Your buddy picks you up at the airport and takes you to the dorm, but only on set dates about a week before the semester. INU tells you the dates while you apply. If you arrive on another day, you get to campus on your own.
- International Office
- Room 403 in Building 1, the administration building. Exchange questions go to inbound@inu.ac.kr.
Songdo Central Park, Triple Street and the G-Tower observatory within 2 km of campus.
131places to eat near SongdoVegetarian options 45Each place shows the menu in English and Korean and walking directions.
0.6 km from campus
Songdo Central Park
Korea's first park built around a seawater canal. It is 370,750 m2 of lawn and gardens cut through the Songdo high-rises. Open around the clock and free to enter. A water taxi leaves from the West Boat House and loops the canal. The East Boat House rents canoes and kayaks. Take Exit 3 of Central Park Station on Incheon Line 1. From there you walk between the Incheon Urban History Museum and the tourist information center. Boat hours shift with the season and the weather, so check on the day.
1.3 km from campus
National Museum of World Writing Systems
The exhibits cover many scripts and languages, so it lands differently if you are learning Korean and can compare it with your own.
1.5 km from campus
Triple Street
An open-air shopping street in Songdo, made up of four blocks, A to D. Fashion stores, restaurants and cultural spaces line a pedestrian spine. Exit 2 of Technopark Station on Incheon Line 1 is about a two-minute walk away. The Korea Tourism Organization lists hours as 10:30-22:00. Individual stores keep their own hours, though. The night lighting runs from 19:00 until 02:00.
1.7 km from campus
G-Tower Observatory (IFEZ Promotion Hall)
A free public observation floor on the 33rd storey of G-Tower in Songdo. It is run as the IFEZ promotion hall, with glass on all sides. You look over Central Park, the Songdo business district and out to Incheon Bridge. It opens 10:00-21:00 on weekdays and 13:00-21:00 on weekends and holidays. Last entry is 20:30. It closes every Monday, on 1 January and on national holidays, and over the Seollal and Chuseok breaks. Groups of ten or more must book at least a day ahead. Drinks are not allowed inside.
Before you come
0 / 6For Spring 2027. The emails from the school come first. Use this list to check nothing is missing. Ticks stay in this browser only.
Not an official INU page. Dates and rules change. Check the details on INU's official site before you apply or book anything. INU exchange programme ↗ Checked on 21 October 2026
Your home university nominates you between 1 October and 1 November, then you upload your documents online between 1 and 15 November. For autumn it's April and May. You can't change the length of your stay later.
A GPA of 2.5 out of 4.5, and English at CEFR B1, TOEFL iBT 60 or IELTS 5.5, or Korean at TOPIK 2. Students from English-speaking countries can show their passport instead. To take courses taught in Korean you need TOPIK 4. You also need a bank certificate for US$4,500 for one semester or US$9,000 for two, issued between 1 and 15 November for spring. If you're from outside the OECD, your enrolment certificate needs an apostille or a consular stamp.
Exchange students pay no tuition and no application fee at INU.
Exchange students need a D-2-6 visa. Apply at the Korean embassy in your country with the certificate of admission, which you download from INU's application site from mid-December.
National Health Insurance starts from the date on your residence card, at about ₩75,000 a month. Until then you must have your own private insurance for your first 2 to 3 months in Korea.
Spring 2027 starts on 2 March, and the orientation for exchange students is the same day. The residence card is explained at the international students' orientation.
Other dates
- 18 DecemberAutumn semester ends
- JanuaryDorm survey email
- Early FebruaryEnglish course list
- 21 JuneSpring semester ends
After you arrive
Residence card
Register within 90 days of arriving.
You apply yourself at the Incheon immigration office. INU explains how at orientation.
You need the card to open a phone contract in your own name, open a bank account and sign up for most Korean apps.
Booking the immigration visit. Papers, fee and HiKorea screens step by step. Read the guide
- Documents
- Your passport, the application form, a 3.5 × 4.5 cm photo on a white background, your enrolment certificate and proof that you live in the dorm. If you live off campus, bring a confirmation of residence and your housing contract instead. The fee is ₩35,000.
- How long
- It takes about 6 to 8 weeks to get the card.
- Trips abroad
- Don't leave Korea until your card is out. The student visa is single-entry, so leaving cancels it, and you would need a new certificate of admission and a new visa.
- Changes
- Report a new address within 15 days of moving, at your local community centre or at immigration. Report a new passport to immigration within 15 days as well. Both are free.
- Leaving Korea
- Leave within 2 weeks of the end of your exchange, and hand the card back at the airport on the day you leave for good.
- Part-time work
- Up to 20 hours a week during the semester, and only once you have a work permit. Private language tutoring is illegal.
- Immigration helpline
- Call 1345 with visa or residence card questions. It answers in English and other languages on weekdays from 9:00 to 22:00. From abroad, dial +82-2-1345.
Going to INU with a friend? Send them this page.
Housing
INU has an on-campus dorm for exchange students. If it fills up, INU also points students to off-campus housing.
INU Dormitory
₩720,000 to ₩1,280,000for 16 weeks, 2026 fees
- Rooms
- Single, double and triple rooms, each with its own bathroom. There are fewer singles and doubles than requests, so you may get another type.
- Fees
- Single ₩1,280,000, double ₩1,040,000, triple ₩720,000, with utilities included.
- Furniture
- A bed, desk, wardrobe, air conditioning and heating for each student. No blankets or pillows, so buy your own.
- Meals
- Meals aren't included. A campus meal is ₩5,000 to ₩8,000.
- Moving in
- One or two days before the semester starts. Arriving earlier costs extra.
- Rooms assigned
- A housing survey comes by email in January, and rooms are announced in February.
Before you apply
- TB test and measles. Bring a chest X-ray TB result with a doctor's note, taken within 2 months before check-in, and proof of at least one measles vaccination. Without both you can't check in.
- Paying. For autumn 2026, residents picked up a bill at the dorm office and paid it in cash at the Shinhan Bank on campus.
- Moving out early. You get the rest of the fee back, minus two weeks.
INU's 2027 factsheet and dorm page. INU says fees can change each semester. Checked on 21 October 2026.
Off campus
- Off campus
- You need your home university's permission to live off campus. INU sends details of an off-campus residence in December for spring, or you find your own place.
- Living costs
- INU estimates at least ₩650,000 a month without rent. A campus meal is about ₩6,000 and a restaurant meal about ₩10,000.
Room search sites in English
Korean universities point exchange students to these. They're private companies with no tie to any school. Don't send a deposit before you've seen the contract.
Finding a room. Browse rooms near campus in the app. If nothing fits, tell us what you need and we'll ask local agents for you, free.
Courses
- When
- INU confirms the English-taught course list in early February for spring. Until then, look at last spring's list on the notice board.Notice board ↗
- Registration
- Everyone registers online at the same time, and students in the major get first pick, so some courses fill up. Prepare a few options with your home coordinator. Courses taught in Korean need the professor's permission first.Course site ↗
- How much
- 3 to 18 credits for undergraduates and up to 9 for graduate students, who can't take undergraduate courses. Most courses are 3 credits, which is 3 hours a week.
- English courses
- Since spring 2026 INU has run English courses only for international students, such as Unlock the Korean Wave and Korea on Screen. EN courses are more than 80% in English. ES courses are taught in Korean with English textbooks and AI English subtitles.
5 more
- Korean
- Korean classes from the Department of Korean Language and Literature, for credit and free, for undergraduates only. Take the level test before the semester. You can't change level, and above level 1 you take every class at your level.
- Grades
- Out of 4.5. An A+ is 95 to 100, and below 60 is an F.
- Transcripts
- INU posts official transcripts to your home university in late July for spring and late January for autumn.
- Attendance
- Korean universities usually fail you after a set number of absences, whatever your grades. Ask each professor in week one.
- Calendar
- INU's academic calendar in English, with exam weeks and holidays.INU calendar ↗
Questions exchange students ask
How does course registration work at INU?
Everyone registers online at the same time, and students in the major get first pick, so some courses fill up.
Prepare a few options with your home coordinator.
Courses taught in Korean need the professor's permission first.
Are there courses taught in English at INU?
Since spring 2026 INU has run English courses only for international students, such as Unlock the Korean Wave and Korea on Screen.
EN courses are more than 80% in English.
ES courses are taught in Korean with English textbooks and AI English subtitles.
How much is the dorm at INU?
INU Dormitory · On campus, Building 18
From the last semester₩720,000 to ₩1,280,000
For 16 weeks, 2026 fees
What about living off campus at INU?
You need your home university's permission to live off campus.
INU sends details of an off-campus residence in December for spring, or you find your own place.
What do I need for the visa to study at INU?
Exchange students need a D-2-6 visa.
Apply at the Korean embassy in your country with the certificate of admission, which you download from INU's application site from mid-December.
How do exchange students meet INU students?
INU Buddy
Pairs you with an INU undergraduate, who may get in touch before you arrive.
Buddies help with course registration, a bank account, a phone and local transport.
Is there a group chat for INU exchange students?
Yes.
INU has a room on A-CHA where exchange students meet, and you can join before you land.
When should I arrive at INU?
Spring 2027 starts on 2 March, and the orientation for exchange students is the same day.
The residence card is explained at the international students' orientation.
How do I get my residence card at INU?
Register within 90 days of arriving.
You apply yourself at the Incheon immigration office.
INU explains how at orientation.
Do exchange students at INU need health insurance?
National Health Insurance starts from the date on your residence card, at about ₩75,000 a month.
Until then you must have your own private insurance for your first 2 to 3 months in Korea.
How many credits can I take at INU?
3 to 18 credits for undergraduates and up to 9 for graduate students, who can't take undergraduate courses.
Most courses are 3 credits, which is 3 hours a week.
How do I apply to INU as an exchange student?
Your home university nominates you between 1 October and 1 November, then you upload your documents online between 1 and 15 November.
For autumn it's April and May.
You can't change the length of your stay later.
Who do I contact at INU?
Official links and help
International Office+82-32-835-9577
inbound@inu.ac.krStudent life
- Events
- Orientation and a campus tour at the start of the semester, culture trips, the school festival and a baseball game during it, and a farewell at the end.
Where to ask. ISSC: INU's international student committee, about 15 INU students picked by the International Office to run culture events, campus tours and help for international students. It isn't a club you join. Open ↗
- Exchange programme
- 2027 factsheet (PDF)
- Notice board
- Dorm
- Visa and residence card
- Academic calendar
- Course site