These are the only scored bonuses in the GKS guideline. Each is a percentage of the document screening total — not the entire selection process.
These percentages are applied to the document screening (서류심사) stage total. The TOPIK bonus is flat — Level 3 and Level 6 earn the same amount.
Türkiye is one of 16 nations that sent combat troops to the Korean War. Descendants of those veterans earn official additional points.
Türkiye sent the second-largest combat force after the USA. Many Turkish families have Korean War veterans in their lineage but never think to check. Combined with TOPIK 3+ (+10%) and a STEM field (+5%), a Turkish applicant with veteran lineage could earn up to +20% in bonus points — a decisive advantage within the country quota.
Applicants to eligible STEM departments receive an automatic 5% bonus on the document screening score.
The guideline uses the Korean classification for science and engineering fields. Broadly, this includes:
A separate section in the guideline with no numeric score — it breaks ties. This is what most consultancies conflate.
Türkiye is one of the 16 combat-troop nations and among those with the heaviest proportional casualties.
First deployment: 17 Oct 1950 · First engagement: 12 Nov 1950 · Main force presence lasted until summer 1954. Also 2,111 wounded, 168 missing and 244 prisoners of war.
Key term: "lineal ascendant" (직계존속) = direct ancestral line. No generation limit is stated.
Collateral relatives are not accepted — the most common wrong assumption.
Issued by the applicant's own government — a Korean authority is not required. In Türkiye: military service records via the Ministry of National Defence or an official record via the veterans' association.
For Türkiye the ideal document is a detailed civil registry record (Vukuatlı Nüfus Kayıt Örneği) showing the full generational chain up to the veteran, with apostille + certified Korean/English translation.
This is an optional, "submit only if applicable" document (#14 in 2026 GKS-U, #18 in GKS-G). If you qualify, always attach it — no document, no points.
Per the 2026 GKS-U announcement, Türkiye's embassy quota was 1 U-GKS + 1 R-GKS. In such a narrow field, a 5% veteran bonus can be decisive.
Türkiye is on the OECD DAC ODA list (Upper Middle Income). But the GKS-G clause requires being a current academic professor there — not merely citizenship.
The claim that K-Pop / Korean speech contest awards earn extra points is widespread but has no basis in the official guideline. Cultural Center scholarships are separate programs.
An extra point within the scholarship to study in Korea. The subject of this page.
A separate program: financial aid from the Korean Consulate for veterans' descendants studying at universities in Türkiye. Check with the Consulate.