Korea Is Fun, But School Is Still School. Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The grading and workload were both harder than I was used to from my home university, but only in certain classes. I think that even from the titles/topics of the classes you can tell which ones are going to be a lot of work and which ones are less serious. I recommend taking fun classes, especially if you are just going for the summer, and not trying to fulfill requirements for your major.

On-site administration of your program

I'm not sure which specific person this question is referring to, but I felt that the host university as a whole, as well as the Korean students that were assigned to be our "buddies" were very helpful and knowledgeable. I was able to buy textbooks and everything like that easily. They also gave "scholarships" based on your home university. Being from a UC, I think I got around $100.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

I lived in a dorm that was near to my classes (but on the top of a hill, so a tough walk back at the end of the day in the sticky, humid, Korean summer weather). The dorm was really nice (CJ International House). I lived with another girl from America. I wish they had told us ahead of time that we needed to provide our own hand soap, toilet paper, and ethernet cords.

I just ate at the many restaurants right around the campus or on campus. I heard that the school cafeteria wasn't great. The restaurants around campus were all good and cheap. There was also a lot of variety and they had pretty much anything I could think of, from McDonalds, to Indian, Vietnamese, and Japanese, to Korean fried chicken, to traditional Korean food and even seafood. For lunch and dinner I usually spent somewhere between 5,000 and 10,000 won, which is about 4 to 8 US dollars.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

I really liked the trip to the DMZ and the trip to Lotte World. Those were both really fun and I got to spend time with both international students and the Korean "buddies."

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I only got a mild cold and went to the pharmacy myself, explained my runny nose & other symptoms to the man there, and he gave me medicine. I'm sure if I hadn't already known the vocabulary to explain it to him that a Korean student would have been willing to help me.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

My Korean skills definitely improved in terms of pronunciation and vocabulary, but other than that I didn't feel like I learned too much new grammar. I used Korean a lot every single day through ordering food at restaurants and negotiating prices while shopping. If you are willing to practice Korean it's easy to find places to do it. However, if your Korean isn't good enough for that, you can still easily get around because a lot of restaurants have picture menus and the subways are English-accessible. Also taxi drivers and college students speak English, but other people don't as much.

Select all that apply

• Dorm

Select all that apply

• Americans
• International Students