After studying in Kyung Hee University for more than one month, I have already realized that a lot of things that are different from my home university Arcada. There are a lot of good things in both universities and since the first day in school in KHU, I have started to appreciate my home institution more and more. Many things works a lot better at home compared to here in Korea, but then again, many things are a lot better here than back home.
Kyung Hee University
To start with, the campus is a very inspiring and peaceful area to achieve some great grades in. Since the campus is huge, there will a lot of walking and KHU is not a place for lazy people that's for sure! (I will probably take a video at some point, so you can see what I have to go through every morning!).
If I continue with the studies (and I am focusing on the English courses) the professors are mostly from America but also Australia and UK, which means that they have good teaching techniques and they make the most boring things very interesting. Professors from the West expects that the students participate and discusses what we are going through in the courses. This can be a technique that the students from Korea are not used to. Professors from Korea have a special way to lecture. They talk and their students are quiet and taking notes. Students from Korea do also think that reading means memorizing every single word, but the truth is, that they have to understand what they are reading aswell and be prepared to tell about what they have read. Apart from the Western professors, there is also professors from other countries, for example China.
The study techniques are also different. In KHU it is very important to be prepared to the lecture, which means that you should have read the chapter before entering the class and also when the lecture is over you should read the same chapter again.
In KHU we have 2 semesters, 16 weeks of studying per semesters. In my opinion, not so many courses to chose from for the english speaking students. Lectures can be in english and partially in korean, so it's important to see the professors name and also be prepared to change the course.
There is an International Office where exchange students can turn if there is any problems. I got to say that me and other exchange students don't have any good experiences from the office. It can be hard for an exchange student to be understood at KHU. There is people who speaks english, but not that good unfortunately. Luckily there is a lot of helpful korean students who are willing to help us foreigners out whenever we are in trouble.
A confusing part is that all professors are using different webpages. There is at least 3 or 4 different websites to remember. Some professor send the teaching materials through email. A lot of things to keep in mind.
Arcada University
The campus, well what campus? Arcada University has only one big building. Everything you need according studies is close and under the same roof, which makes it quite easy to focus on the studies, not to walk around and find the right person to talk to. There is an area close to the university with student apartments but I wouldn't call it the campus area.
The studies in my home uni are in swedish, but there are also some courses in english. Our professors are very organized, they know what they talk about and since it's a small uni, the communication between professors and students are excellent. Students and professors know each other very well and call each other by their names. If you ask for help, you will get all the help you need or all the tools to solve the problem.
Our semesters are separated into 4 intensive periods. During these 6 weeks you will study 3-4 subjects and have lectures in the same subject many days a week. The subjects are already chosen for you and some courses you will be able to chose depending on your interests. The Uni uses only one webpage for the course material and for handing in assignments, which makes it easy to find all the information you need for the courses.
If you are a student from Finland, there is a lot of benefits. Every month you will get a certain amount of money (that you also receive if you decide to apply for an exchange abroad). This is a really a helpful thing. It's nearly impossible to work and study at the same time, especially as an exchange student. My home university also offers the exchange students scholarships that is also helpful and makes the life easier for us in the new country.
I have probably forgot to mention something, but I just wanted to write a short overview about the universities. These are only my thoughts, experiences and what I have discussed with other students. If there is any questions you might have, don't hesitate to ask.
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