DEFINITELY THE BEST EXPERIENCE YOU WILL HAVE (no regrets) Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

I absolutely love how the professors are so entertaining. They understand that many students are here to clear modules and understand Korean culture. And hence, my professors will try to incorporate facts about Korea and give up tips on where to go as tourists. They also tell us how to avoid tourist traps and even famous Korean cuisine!

On-site administration of your program

I made it a point to join every single field trip organized by Korea University even though I signed up for the trips alone. It is a great way to make new friends and my Korean buddies are very friendly! They welcome us and showed us the Korean drinking culture and we bonded through Noraebang and Maekju Sessions. IT WAS THE BEST DECISION OF MY LIFE TO JOIN THE FIELD TRIPS ORGANIZED!!! :) The programme administrators respond to the emails really quickly and try to help wherever possible. I had to change my modules at the last minute, and the administrator assisted me with it even though the changes were done after the deadline!

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

I did not manage to stay in the school campus and I regretted it very much. I believe I could have made more friends if I were to stay in school. However, there are perks to staying alone outside as well. I stayed in a guesthouse in Myeongdong and it was really near shopping and food places. The guesthouse owners were very accommodating and even provided everyday transport from the subway station to our guesthouse. They even brought me to the airport shuttle bus stop and helped me with my luggages on my very last day of stay!

I absolutely can't take spicy food and will tear up whenever I do so. Hence, i really thought I wouldn't be able to survive in Korea as they are known for all the spicy food. But Korea has so many food choices that I always have a hard time choosing it! (E.g. naengmyeon, jajangmyeon, Ginseng Chicken soup etc). There are a lot of choices for vegans as well as their noodle dishes are mostly vegetable based!

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

As mentioned, I clicked really well with my Korean buddies. We still keep in touch through Kakao and they always organized group outings for our orientation group! I think we had at least 1 informal group outing after every field trip! I remember there were 2 drinking sessions and Noraebang sessions after the graduation ceremony and after the baseball match. I also met many Koreans in my Finance class and even had the chance to travel together to Busan. I used to think Koreans are very reserved but the people I met have made me change my opinions about them. My Korean classmate told me that it takes a while for Koreans to warm up to us as they are generally shy about using English to converse. I mean, i would definitely be embarrassed about using my limited Korean to talk to them so give them time and you will make a lot of friends!

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

Generally, i did not fall sick during the summer school programme. When my throat felt a bit sore, I went to the pharmacy and could get lozenges without much difficulty!

It's definitely much safer in Korea than I thought! As a girl who stays alone, i get really paranoid easily, especially since there are a lot of small alleys in Korea. But no, don't get so paranoid! It is very safe, but of course, do refrain from staying out too late but generally crime lates are low! In fact,there are many times where I had to stop passersby to ask for directions (as I was trying to save on the mobile data expensea) and they were more than willing to help me. Some even go the extra mile to point out the road for me! :)

I really really enjoyed my summer school and I never regretted spending my summer studying in Korea! Many of my friends spent summer building up their specifications by getting internships but I absolutely won't regret my decision!

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

I think Korea's food expense are still generally not as high. As compared to Singapore, it can get a bit pricey but many local shops offer budget meals with traditional Korean cuisines like fish cake soups and kimbabs! There is a stall near Korea Uni that sells affordable meals for around USD 3.50!

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The Outright Urbanite