Chairman Bae Byeong-il Champions Urgent Tuition Relief for Students in Special Disaster Zones

From the declaration date of the special disaster area, tuition fees and essential expenses will be supported differentially for one year based on financial aid bracket and disaster damage severity

On the 5th, officials announced that beginning in the second semester of 2025 measures would support tuition assistance for students from families in areas designated as special disaster zones. The announcement came after wildfires, a fighter jet misfire, and heavy rain damage inflicted economic losses on households and disrupted students' education.

Under the program the government planned to cover tuition fees as a national scholarship so that affected students did not have to suspend their studies. Students from households that suffered at least fifty percent housing damage qualified for prompt scholarship disbursement. Differential support was provided based on the date the special disaster area was declared, each student's financial aid bracket, and the extent of damage. Support extended to students identified as affected households after local governments confirmed the scale of housing damage. Applicants had to complete the process during a designated period, or if they missed the first window for the second semester of 2025, during a second period scheduled from August 13 to September 10, 2025.

The emergency disaster scholarship was administered in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and the Korea Student Aid Foundation, a quasi-governmental organization established in 2009 to provide comprehensive financial aid for higher education. The foundation's annual budget exceeded 11 trillion won, and it managed programs such as national scholarships, student loans, work-study scholarships, excellence scholarships, donations, and mentoring. Korea University also endorsed and implemented the measure to support academic progress amid economic challenges. "I expect that quickly supporting tuition fees for college students from households affected by the newly declared special disaster zones would help alleviate the educational burden on families suffering economic difficulties from disasters," said Bae Byeong‑il, chairman of the Korea Student Aid Foundation, according to official remarks. "In the future, the foundation would continue to expand tuition support so that college students would not have to give up their studies due to unexpected hardships," he added.