Making your own Soul in Seoul Past Review
By Leslie Hickman (Truman State University) - abroad from 03/01/2016 to 06/28/2016 with
University of Seoul: Seoul - Direct Enrollment & Exchange
I kept a notebook of things I witnessed that occurred to me as either strange or unique manifestations of Korean culture, since that was what I came there to study. I managed to fill 1 1/2 little notebooks and these are important keepsakes for me. I also learned that my personality fits well within Asian society, helping me make lasting friendships with those from primarily Asian countries. But since I was not a native to the country, I was able to observe it objectively and learn about it better. I learned I love travel but only if I get to stay abroad for long periods of time to get used to a place. Overall, I learned a lot about Korean culture, including their likes and dislikes, daily life, social pressures, and desire to express themselves in a society that discourages them from doing so.
Review Photos
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 0-2 weeks |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
I give it 2, because there was little encouragement to work hard, and professors seemed to assume none of the students actually cared for their subject, though this definitely was not the case for me. Often, we were excused 1 1/2 hours early for the 3-hour class. The classes were also very repetitive, repeating each other due to their similar content. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
None of the staff seemed to understand how difficult it was to arrive in a country alone. They were unhelpful in giving guidance to everyday life in Seoul or giving any direction in activities or events. They relied completely in the Seoulmates, who were oftentimes too busy and stressed to help international students properly. The administration were also fairly bad a communicating clearly. I often had to send follow-up emails asking them to clarify their meanings. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Dirty when I got there. Small, but I didn't mind. No wifi unless I bought it myself. Nice convenience store though. Too much repetitive music in lounge. No good places to study. |
| * Food: |
It would've been five, as I liked the food a lot, but I have food allergies and never knew what was in the dishes I ate. So I was always frightened that I would need to go to the hospital from eating a nut, which did end up happening a couple times. Granted, those were not due to the school's food. Allergy information, though, would be SOOO nice for international students. Then I wouldn't have had to eat everything at a snail's pace waiting for a reaction. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
There was nothing international students could get involved in except Seoulmate, and even performances on campus we might have enjoyed were never told to us. I only felt integrated because my best friends were mostly Asians, including Koreans outside of Seoulmate, and they traveled with me and helped me feel enveloped in Korean culture. But I had to seek these things for myself. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
Many international students became sick and were given medicine from the school, but it never worked for any of them. Though I knew where the health center was I didn't know where to go or who to call if I needed it another time. Luckily, I found a way to get a hold of a Seoulmate when I needed to go to the hospital. |
| * Safety: |
Seoul feels 100% safer than my hometown. I'd much rather walk around at 2 AM through Seoul's dark alleys than at the same time in a well-lit district of my 5,000 person small town. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
I can't possible imagine how other universities would receive me, so I do not regret the program I was placed in however. In addition, other universities would probably have had the same issues for me as University of Seoul since most of the issues stemmed from a lack of understanding the needs and desires of international students. |
Finances
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* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?
(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
5 Luckily, I was paid to teach English to 6 students once a week which gave me some extra income, and got a stipend of around $400 a month for food. Some weeks I saved enough to actually MAKE money. However, my Korean bank wasn't set up until a month into my stay and I had to support myself until then. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | Around $350-$400 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Make sure you have an international card for your first month in Korea, and also for travel to nearby countries like Japan and China. Don't be afraid to spend money on food and travel because the school reimburses you fairly well and it is part of Korean culture to be generous with your money. Just as you are generous, others are too, so it balances out. I perhaps focused on saving too much (how American of me) and often frustrated my friends. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
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How much did the program encourage you to use the language?
0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language |
0 It assumed international students who were not Asian did not care to learn the language, which was true for most but not for me. I was not encouraged to use it and Seoulmates often asked why I was learning if I didn't have to learn. But I took a higher level class and talked in Korean deliberately with people anyway, though they would often speak in English back to me because they were more interested in practicing English than helping me learn Korean. |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Beginner |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Intermediate |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | Self-study |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | There's some great sites like Memrise and Howtostudykorean.com. Also apps like TalktomeinKorea, TenguGo Hangul, and HelloTalk, the last of which where you can talk to actual Korean people. |
Direct Enrollment/Exchange
| * Did you study abroad through an exchange program or did you directly enroll in the foreign university? | Exchange |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? |
A Look Back
| * What did you like most about the program? |
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| * What could be improved? |
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| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | I wish I understood that I needed to have an international card before I arrived. The synopsis made it sound like I didn't. I wish I knew there wouldn't be a single club I could join on campus except Seoulmate, and I wish I had understood that Seoulmates would almost always be too busy to hang out and I would need to make my own events most of the time. |
