Ahmed Shata (FMF): "South Korea is definitely for you!"

 Erasmus+ studies in South Korea

Hello! I’m Ahmed, a third-year information systems engineering student. For my second Erasmus+ experience, I chose South Korea as my destination to study at Hanyang University.

Why South Korea?

I was asked this question dozens of times while being in Korea either by Koreans or other exchange students. However, I was struggling to find very solid reasons. I’m not going to lie; mostly, my decision of going to Korea was out of the curiosity to see a different part of the world and have a change of scenery.

Being born and raised in Egypt, a North Africa’s country and then studying abroad in Lithuania and travelling around Europe on many occasions, I was super excited to go to an Asian country and get to learn a new culture. Thus, I took advantage of Erasmus+ studies outside of Europe and applied to 2 Korean universities. Among the other reasons of why I chose Korea were:

1. Quality education: as my first choice, I chose Hanyang University which has a pretty high ranking and is known for having one of the best engineering schools in South Korea.

2. Great location: since Korea is close to many other Asian countries, like Japan, Thailand, and Philippines, this makes it relatively easy and cheap to travel around.

One thing I want to point out is that there are some challenges you might encounter, and it won’t be all easy. For instance, the process is harder compared to going to European country because of the bureaucracy and visa requirements.

At some point, it even seemed impossible to go and I was about to quit the whole thing, but thanks to the International Relations Office who sorted out all the problems I had before going to Korea. 

Overall Experience

Although this was my second time to go on Erasmus+, I went to South Korea with a different perspective. Not only to interact with other exchange students but also to immerse myself in the Korean culture and to live like a local. And I can say without any doubts that studying abroad in Korea was one of the best decisions I made in my life. 

So, if you are looking for quality education, a rich culture, and a lively and intense life, then South Korea is definitely for you! In this article, I will share my 4-month experience in South Korea, and hopefully, I can give a glimpse of how exchange studies in Korea is such a great opportunity.

Academic Life at Hanyang

First of all, the campus was beautiful, with great scenery and aesthetic buildings. Since the university is really big, it took me a week or two of wandering around to get familiar with everything on campus. Also, I found the campus so hilly, but it was a good work out walking up those hills daily.

I really liked that the campus had all the facilities a student might need, including cafes, restaurants, convenience stores, sport fields, a lot of study spaces, and even spaces to take naps during breaks. 

Course Registration 

The number of courses offered in English was good enough, and I didn’t have any problems selecting the right courses and getting approval from the Faculty coordinator.

Before the semester starts, there were 3 rounds for the registration of courses on the University’s portal. The first round was just for exchange students, and it was really competitive because the places offered were a few, around 3-7 places for each course. The later rounds are for both exchange and Korean students and had much more places. By the time, I got to register all the courses I initially selected. At first, the process seems a bit stressful, but you shouldn’t worry about registering for the courses you need.

Even if you couldn’t register for a course online before the semester starts, you can still attend the course and ask the professor to sign a document which registers you to the course manually. Fortunately, the professors are understanding and do it easily.

The Quality of Studies

I took 5 courses which sum up to 15 Hanyang credits, which are equivalent to 30 ECTS. As an information systems student, my personal favorite was “Software Engineering”. This course was a collaboration between the university and the big tech company, LG. As the sole course evaluation, we were asked to develop an idea which can be integrated into LG’s white appliances and write a thorough documentation of the process in a group of 4.

During the semester, we visited LG showroom and got introduced to LG’s latest technology by the company’s employees. Also, I know fellow exchange students who took other courses which were also collaborations with Korean tech companies, like SKT Telecom.

At the end of the semester, representatives from these companies evaluate students’ projects and offer internships for students. Therefore, I believe it’s a great opportunity if you are studying any computer-related specialty.

I also enjoyed the “Introductory Korean” course, which was really fun and interactive. However, the other courses were mostly theoretical. These courses were mainly based on memorizing chunks of information and answering a lot of questions on the midterm and final exams. 

Life in Seoul

After a 10-hour flight, I arrived in Seoul around midnight. However, I was impressed by how life in Seoul is so intense even during the night. Most of the shops were open and streets were illuminated, and I could hear pop music coming from the cafes and restaurants.

For me, the first few days in Korea were a bit intimidating since things like getting around and ordering food seemed quite different. However, I felt like every single day in Korea is a new adventure, and there was always something new to discover.

Sometimes, the language barrier made it hard to communicate as many of the locals don’t speak English. However, when I asked someone who understands English, they were super nice and more than willing to help.

Throughout the semester, there was always something going on in Seoul. A lot of events took place either on campus or in the city, including K-pop concerts, cultural festivals, hiking trips, etc. You can never run out of places to explore with your friends and new food to try.

Also, there are countless ways to experience Korean culture while being in Seoul. A visit to one of the many palaces and dressing in traditional Korean clothes (hanbok) is highly recommended. Also, I really enjoyed visiting the demilitarized zone at the borders between South and North Korea and getting to learn more about the Korean war. Getting to see panoramic views of such a mysterious country like North Korea was a memorable experience.

Also, a trip to Jeju Island, a volcanic island which is one-hour flight away from Seoul, is a not to miss experience while being in Korea.

Some tips for a smoother exchange in South Korea

• During the application process, South Korean universities ask for a lot of documents as requested by the South Korean government. The university requests to send them physical copies of legalized documents (student status and financial forms) by regular mail. Personally, I had a hard time preparing for the documents required by the university because I wasn’t in Lithuania during the period of the application.

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  As for accommodation, it’s extremely important to plan out housing early enough before going to South Korea. The university didn’t offer any places in dormitories for exchange students, so you have to find housing on your own. The most common option for exchange students in South Korea is kind of dorm-like style buildings, which are called “goshiwons”. You can find all the options near the university through this website goshipages.com. However, this type of accommodation is known for having really SMALL rooms. Personally, I lived in one of those places and it was quite uncomfortable or at least it took some time to get used to it.  So, I would recommend searching for Airbnbs early enough. I know fellow exchange students who managed to get apartments or rooms in shared flats through Airbnb for the same or less price than Goshiwons.

• If you are going to South Korea, do some research on what are the don’ts in South Korea since there are small gestures the locals, especially the older generations might view as inappropriate or offensive, so try to avoid that. 

• After arriving in South Korea, it’s mandatory to apply for a foreign registration card (FRC). Fortunately, the university handles this by hiring a third-party agency to do it on behalf of students. There are 2 deadlines to submit your documents. Try not to miss the quick pass deadline which was quite early (2 or 3 days after the start of the semester), but it’s totally worth it and will make your life much easier in South Korea since you can’t do a lot of things without it. 

• The living expenses in South Korea are quite high. In my opinion, you should expect to spend around 1000 euro/month. Keep in mind to have enough money with you beside the Erasmus+ scholarship.

To sum up

This exchange gave me a lot of memories which will remain for lifetime. Studying in South Korea was one of the most unforgettable experiences in my life. Even though I’ve been back home for almost a month now, I can’t forget all the memories I had in Korea. After two semesters of studying abroad with Erasmus+, I believe I’ve grown much as a person, boosted my resume with new skills, and most importantly, made amazing friends from all over the world.

Obviously, I can’t mention every single detail about my experience, so if you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me on Instagram: ahmed_shata51.