Korea University was established in 1905 and describes itself as a private university. Its history page calls it the first modern higher education institution founded by a Korean civilian. Dong-One Kim is President; the university marked its 120th anniversary in 2025.
The university consists of the Seoul Campus, covering 946,225 square metres, and the Sejong Campus in Sejong Special Self-Governing City, covering 425,130 square metres, as of the 2024 academic year. It also runs three auxiliary hospitals: Anam and Guro in Seoul and Ansan in Gyeonggi Province. Korea University joined the Universitas 21 network in 2004. Its English pages read for this profile do not state a total student number.