Summer Program at Hallym University in Korea!!

I was in Korea from June 29th until July 20th to attend a summer program at Hallym University in  Chuncheon, Korea.

The very first day, at the airport, there was a singer or some famous person coming out of the same gate as me at the same time, so I could not find the person who told me that he would be there to pick me up.  I was calm enough to go to the information desk and ask to announce his name and to come meet me in front of the gate. Finally, I found the person and the driver. The person who came to pick me up (one of the mentors who I will explain later) and I talked for about 3 hours in a car until we arrived at a dormitory in Hallym University.  When I got into my room, there was no one but stuff so I could tell that I had a roommate. But it would've been really helpful if I had someone who I could ask questions near me... Luckily, I asked for WI-FI password so I was not bored or afraid to be alone!

The second day was the orientation day for the summer program students. There were people from United States, Australia, Austria, Malaysia, China, Spain, and Japan (only me). And here I knew about the existence of Korean mentors. They are Hallym University students and they joined the program to help international students who do not know about school or any other things they need help with. I thought it was such a good idea because they took us international students to their favourite restaurants, singing rooms, shopping, and helped us to get to know each other and have fun as much as possible during the stay in Korea. They were very friendly and kind!! So at the orientation, we learnt some rules about school and dorm, and listened to a brief explanation of this course, and took a test to divide us into beginner and intermediate groups. For dinner, we went to eat Korean BBQ and papingsu which is a shaved ice dessert usually served with ice-cream, fruits, rice cakes, or sweet red bean paste. I loved the papingsu very much so I ate it so many time during this stay!!

Fruits papingsu and cereal papingsu! Yummy!!!

The next day, we had a Korean language class in the morning until lunch time and there we knew the result of our Korean test. We were not told our scores but I was lucky that I didn't have to go to the beginner class because I already took a Korean 100 course at Camosun College. Our teacher was a very funny person and he talked mostly in Korean so at first, it was kind of overwhelming but i got used to it day by day and actually I enjoyed his classes even though sometimes I didn't know why people were laughing! haha He taught Korean slang and young people's life-style. He taught us not only the Korean language but also other useful places to stay or live in Korea.

Our Korean class teacher in the middle!

"Rethink your Classroom" - Go on Exchange!

Studying abroad is more than earning credits at another prestigious institute - it's a life changing experience! Camosun has exchange partners all over Europe, as well as in Asia and Australia.

While paying Camosun tuition, you can study abroad at our partner institutions. You won't add a semester or year onto your program length as all approved credits will directly apply to your credential and can even be transferred to another Canadian institution.

Our Field Schools students have studied in Mexico, Bolivia, China, Nepal, India Philippines, Tonga and Namibia. Phew!

If you’re an incoming exchange student thinking of studying at Camosun, you may be interested in seeing some of our international students on campus in our why come to Camosun video.

Visit Camosun study abroad for more information and scholarship opportunities and contact Vivian Trinh with your specific questions.