Four other people were injured by the animal, which the group then shot dead, at the Von Postbreen glacier on the island of Spitsbergen, part of the Svalbard archipelago.
The party of around 80 were on a five-week expedition in the Arctic run by the BSES, a youth development charity.
The group alerted the authorities by satellite phone at 7.30am on Friday and the injured were airlifted by helicopter to hospital 25 miles away in Longyearbyen, the island's capital.
The four, including the two leaders of the trip, were named as Michael Reid, Andrew Ruck, Patrick Flinders and Scott Smith. They are due to be flown to University hospital in Tromso on the Norwegian mainland on Friday afternoon.
The BSES, which is based in Kensington, west London, has so far not released the name of the dead person.
A spokeswoman said: "There were about 80 people all told in the expedition. The young people are all between 16 and 23."
Liv Asta Odegaard, a spokeswoman for the governor of Svalbard, said: "We got a call via satellite phone from a British group of campers that there had been a polar bear attack and that one person was dead and that others were injured and they needed assistance.
"There are no roads in the area of the Von Postbreen glacier where the incident happened so we scrambled a helicopter."
The hospital said the boys had "moderate to serious skin injuries".
The BSES tour had been organised to introduce youngsters aged between 16 and 20 to "remote, wild environments to develop their confidence".
One expedition member, Marcus Wright, posted on a website last week: "I think we must have all dreamed of polar bears because the next day we were eagerly waiting for the ice floes to break up so we could move on to base camp.
"There was a P.bear sighting across the fjord about a mile away. We encountered another P.bear floating on the ice. This time we were lucky enough to borrow a kind Norwegian guide's telescope to see it properly.
"After that experience I can say for sure that everyone dreamed of P.bears that night."
The Arctic adventure expedition 2011 began on July 23 and was scheduled to run until August 28.
Students were told they would "venture into the untouched beauty and wilderness of Svalbard".
A blog charting the trip said the group would camp by the southern edge of the glacier, 400 miles to the north of Norway.
It read: "Once settled at base camp, you and your fire will move onto your fieldwork objectives – to enable this will be a healthy dose of adventure including glacial travel, snow shoeing, ice climbing and mountaineering dependent on your research plans.
"Once back at base camp there may be opportunity to walk back to Longyearbyen over 4 days with much lighter packs carrying essential supplies only, this carries on the BSES tradition of 'the long march'.
"This period will allow for personal reflection of your achievements and enjoyment of the green tundra after the snow and ice of the last weeks."
Earlier this year the Svalbard governor issued a warning about polar bears after several were seen close to Longyearbyen.
People who spotted the animals were asked to telephone a special number. The governor also reminded the public that seeking out and disturb polar bears violates local regulations and was punishable by a fine or jail.
Liv Rose Flygel, 55, an artist and airport worker who lives near the hospital, said: "It's not been the first time.
"Last summer a man was attacked by a polar bear and there have also been attacks on a man from Austria and a girl. Only the man in the attack last summer survived.
"The problem is when the ice goes the bears lose their way and cannot catch food. People don't really know how dangerous they are; one came down to the sea recently and people were running down to take pictures."
Sandra Swresser, a restaurant manager at Kroa bar in Svalbard, said: "It's very sad. We have had attacks before, it happened a year ago when a Norwegian man was attacked. As it was early in the morning I can only suppose the bear attacked them because it was looking for food."
A local source said: "This was a horrific attack. They are saying the bear was extremely hungry."
Dwindling sea ice in recent years has led to polar bears, which usually hunt seals, looking inland for food, including from the eggs of barnacle geese on the island.
Prince Harry visited Spitsbergen in March as part of a charity hike to raise money for British veterans with The Walking with the Wounded Team.
A spokesman for the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office said: "Our embassy in Oslo is urgently looking into reports of an incident in northern Norway."
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