Korea University Student Exchange Report Spring Semester. Mok Kim San

Transcription

1 Korea University Student Exchange Report 2013 Spring Semester Mok Kim San

2 Part I Monthly Activity Log 1. Late August There was a 3- days orientation program for all the exchange students one week before the semester starts. The first 2- days of the orientation were mainly for administration, which I applied for the student ID card, bank account and a telephone plan. The last day of the orientation was a city tour which students can choose to join it. 2. September In the beginning of September, I settled down and explored the neighborhood and the university. During which, I met a lot of new friends and since the school workload was not heavy in this month, it was a good opportunity to explore Korea. I spent most of my time into traveling around Korea and trying lots of korean dished with my new friends. 3. October In the first half of October, the school workload was still light. Thus, I went to Busan which is famous for beach and seafood in the first week. In the second week, I had a short trip to Bukchon which I lived in a korean traditional house for few days. It was a good experience in understanding Korea and I really had a good time there. In the late october, it was the midterm week and I was busy with it. 4. November The busy school life continued to Novemeber. I got lots of assignment and presentation to be submitted in this month. Thus, I spent most of my time into dealing my school work and I learnt a lot from working with the local students. However, the maturation of autumn leaf happened in the first week of November. It was a good time for sightseeing and hiking. Apart from that, the first snow occurred in the mid November which was the time I saw snow. It was really amazing.

3 5. December It was getting colder and colder in December. Normally, the temperature varied within ±5 degree celsius. However, it was a good chance for skiing. Still, It was a busy month as I got lots of paper to be submitted and the final examinations was held in the mid of December. I spent most of my time into revision and preparation for the end of my exchange life. After the final examination, I travelled to the Nami Island which was famous for its beautiful tree lined roads and Jeongdongjin which was one of the most popular sites in Korea for watching the sunrise. I had a good time there.

4 Part II General Exchange Information 1. Visa Procedures For students going to exchange in Korea, you should apply for a D- 2 visa in the Korea Embassy which is located in Admiralty. It is highly advisable to apply for the visa as soon as you recevied exchange package from KU, including the certificate of admission, confirmation letter and memorandum so as to avoid last minute complication. Details of required documents can be checked here: 2. Insurance The HKUST has purchased insurance for all exchange- out students that is enough to cover most general accidents. But you have to request the HKUST for giving you the certificate of the insurance as a prove to KU. 3. Health certificate If you are going to live in the campus dormitories, you need to submit a prove for your health when you check- in. It is highly recommended to do the health check in HK and bring the certificate with you because things will be more complicated in Korea. The staffs in hospital may not able to talk in english with you. 4. Alien Card Registration International students must apply for a residence permit at the immigration Office of the Korean Government within 90 days from the date of arrival in Korea. When students are registered as an alien, an Alien Card is issued, which is needed in a variety if curcumstances. Details of it will be announced during the orientation. 5. Orientation Activities There will be 3- days orientation right before the beginning of the semester. In the orientation, you will meet your korean buddy who will take care of you for the whole semester. Normally, one korean buddy will take care of 2-3 international students. They will help you to get the

5 student ID card, bank account and phone number during the orientaion. Besides, there are many activities organized by KUBA in the whole semester including parties, sightseeing, sports events and weekly lunch meetings. 6. International Service and Activities There is a international One- Stop Center in Korea University which mainly helps the international students to deal with studying and living affairs. 7. Accommodations There are 3 types of accomodations offered: CJ International House, Anam Global House and Anam Hall 2. During the exchange, I lived in the Anam Global House which is newly built. The living environment is nice enough and rooms are clean. But 2 downsides are that there is only 1 kitchen avaliable shared by all hall residents and the road connected to the Anam Global House is a bit steep. 8. Course Registration The course registation is mainly completed online. The offered courses will be announced in 1 to 2 months prior to the beginning of semester on the KU website. You should check the courses offered and make the selection before the registration day. In case of getting into the waiting list, you can ask the professor to sign an override slip for you and submit it to the International One- Stop Service Center before the add- drop period ends. 9. Teaching and Assessment Method The teaching and assessment method is simliar to the HKUST and it is easy to get good grades here. But one important thing you should pay attention to is the attendence. Normally, you will simply get a fail if you miss more than 3 classes in some courses. 10. Sports and Recreation Activities

6 Common sport and recreation facilities such as gym room, basketball courts, tennis courts can be found in KU campus. 11. Costs/Expenses Items Expenses (HKD) Accommodation $12,000 Airline ticket $3,500 Food $13,000 Personal Expense $10,000 Transportation $1,500 Insurance $1,500 Traveling $8,000 Total $49, Health and Safety Smoking is part of korean life and KU does not ban on smoking inside the campus. Simply get away from the smokers if you feel uncomfortable. Besides, drinking is also popular in Korea. Thus, be cautious when you walk alone at the nighttime because it is common to find drunken people on the street. 13. Food The taste of the korean dishes is heavy, mainly spicy and salty. Normally, you will be thirsty after those meals but the Korean really make very delicious spicy food. Get used to the strong taste and you will enjoy them. If you get tired of korean dishes, italian food is another good option. There are numbers of good italian restaurant in korea and the price is just similar to those in HK. 14. Transportation Within Seoul, there are basically 2 kind of public transportations you can take: Metro and Bus. You need to purchase a T- money card, similar to octopus card in HK, for easy traveling. But it is not recommended to take the bus if you do not know korean because all the route information and stop display are in korean. If you would like to get out from Seoul to the other cities, there are also long- distance railways

7 available, namely KTX, ITX and Mugunghwa Express. For more information, please visit the website of Korail. 15. Climate Korea is cold in winter. The temperature can be as low as - 10 degree celsius. So you need to bring or simply buy thick enough clothing in Korea. Besides, Korea is dry as well. It is recommended to bring a moisture cream with you. 16. Communication Undoubtedly, korean serves as the dominant means of communication and english is not really popular, compared to mandarin. It is possible for the local university students not able to talk in english. Thus, It is recommended to learn some basic korean before you go to Korea. But do not have to worry too much about communication because the korean are generally very helpful to the tourists. Use of body language could help.

8 Part III Items to Bring ü Adaptor ü Laptop ü Passport ü Winter Clothes ü Money in KRW ü Camera ü Personal photos ü Moisturing cream ü Medicine ü Herbal tea ü Credit Card ü Hair dryer Suits