What Is a Korean Study Plan?
A Korean study plan is a schedule that turns a goal into weekly targets, daily minutes and checkpoints. It answers "how much should I do this week?" and links each week to lessons. A course path answers a different question, "what do I study next?", with a fixed lesson list. If you prefer a fixed lesson list to a calendar, use the course paths.
Every plan here shares four features:
- Hangul first. Each plan starts with the Korean alphabet in week one or two.
- Daily review. Every plan schedules daily review with flashcard decks, because spaced review, seeing each item again just before you would forget it, is what keeps words in memory.
- Stated assumptions. Each plan says how many minutes a day it assumes and gives total hours.
- Checkpoints. Short tests at the end of each week or month tell you whether to move on.
The plans differ in two ways: the time horizon (30 days to a year) and the daily constraint (a routine or 15-minute days). The next three sections group them that way.
Short Plans: 30 Days to 3 Months
Short plans take a complete beginner from zero to survival Korean or roughly A1, the first CEFR level.
- Beginner study plan: most new learners should start with the 12-week beginner study plan. At 30-45 minutes a day, it covers Hangul, pronunciation, about 300 words, and polite present and past sentences, ending close to A1.
- 30-day plan: the 30-day plan covers Hangul and survival phrases before a trip. At 45-60 minutes a day it targets about 50 survival phrases and 150 common words; fluent conversation is not a realistic 30-day goal.
- How to learn Korean in 3 months: after 90 days at about one hour a day, the learner reaches roughly A1: simple self-introduction, daily-routine sentences in present and past, and about 400 words.
The 12-week plan and the 3-month plan reach a similar level; the 3-month plan uses more time per day to add more words and weekly speaking.
Long Plan: One Year to A2
The long plan is for learners who want everyday conversation, not just a start. The one-year plan aims at roughly A2 with a 6-month checkpoint. At about one hour a day, roughly 350 hours in total, it builds to about 1,500 words, connected sentences and simple reading, and ends with three months of TOPIK I preparation.
A2 means you can handle routine exchanges about familiar topics, such as shopping, work, family and plans. It is not fluency, and the plan says so.
Plans Built around Your Day
Two plans start from your available time rather than a deadline.
- Korean study routine: the learner can build a daily session (review, new material, listening, output) and a weekly rhythm matched to their available minutes. Use it alongside any other plan, or on its own after week 12 of the beginner plan.
- 15-minute plan for busy people: if you have little time, the 15-minute plan for busy people keeps you moving. Its daily split is 5 minutes review, 7 minutes new material and 3 minutes listening, which covers Hangul and about 100 words in roughly 8 weeks.
Fifteen minutes a day adds up to about 90 hours a year, which is enough to reach A1 at a slower pace.
Which Korean Study Plan Should You Choose?
Choose a Korean study plan by your daily minutes first, then by your deadline. Daily time is the harder limit, because a plan you cannot keep up with usually stalls within the first few weeks.
How Many Minutes a Day Can You Give?
- 15 minutes: the busy-people plan.
- 30-45 minutes: the 12-week beginner plan.
- About an hour: the 3-month plan, then the one-year plan.
- Varies day to day: the study routine, which scales from 20 to 60 minutes.
When Is Your Deadline?
- A trip within a month: the 30-day plan.
- A semester or a trip in three months: the 12-week beginner plan or the 3-month plan.
- An exam or a move in a year: the one-year plan. For an exam-specific schedule, the TOPIK study plan is built around a test date; the plans on this page are general study plans by time budget.
- No deadline: the 12-week beginner plan, then the study routine.
Compare the Plans
This table compares all six plans. Hours and word counts are typical estimates from each plan's assumptions, and end points are approximate CEFR levels.
| Plan | Minutes per day | Length | Total hours (approx.) | Realistic end point |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | 45-60 | 30 days | 23-30 | Hangul, about 50 phrases, about 150 words |
| Beginner (12 weeks) | 30-45 | 12 weeks | 45-60 | About A1, about 300 words |
| 3 months | About 60 | 90 days | About 90 | About A1, about 400 words |
| One year | About 60 | 12 months | About 350 | About A2, about 1,500 words |
| Study routine | 20-60 | Ongoing | Depends on minutes | A repeatable daily and weekly rhythm |
| Busy people | 15 | Ongoing | About 90 per year | Hangul and about 100 words in about 8 weeks |
Missed a Week: What Now?
If you missed a week, repeat the last checkpoint you passed instead of restarting the plan. The rule scales with the gap:
- Up to 3 days missed: continue, and do your review block first.
- About a week missed: redo the previous week's checkpoint. Pass it and carry on; fail it and repeat that week.
- Several weeks missed: go back to the last checkpoint you can still pass, and restart from there.
Restarting from day one wastes the work you still remember. The checkpoints exist so that a break costs days, not the whole plan, and any Korean study plan on this page can be resumed this way. Back to the beginner starting guide to compare plans with courses and self-study.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I combine two plans?
Yes, if one sets the content and the other sets the daily shape. A common pairing is the 12-week beginner plan for what to study and the study routine for how to run each session. Do not follow two calendars at once, such as the 30-day and 3-month plans, because their weekly targets overlap.
Do plans include TOPIK preparation?
Only the one-year plan ends with TOPIK I preparation, in its last three months. The other plans build general ability that TOPIK tests, but they do not cover exam format, timing or past papers. For a schedule built around a test date, use the separate TOPIK study plan after finishing a beginner plan.
What if I study only on weekends?
Weekend-only study works, but slowly, because long gaps let words fade. If weekends are your only option, add a five-minute flashcard review on weekdays, which keeps memory alive at little cost. Then use the weekend for new lessons and listening, and expect each plan to take roughly twice its stated length.
Should I use a textbook with these plans?
You can, but you do not need one. Each plan links to free lessons for every week. If you like working on paper, choose a beginner textbook written in Hangul with audio, and use it for extra exercises and dialogues while keeping the plan's order and checkpoints as your guide.