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Sungkyunkwan University

South Korea 2022/2023 Partner universities

Personal data
Mobility type:
study

Faculty at MU:
Faculty of Informatics

Field of study:
Visual informatics / Digital Game Development

Level of study during period of placement:
Master

Language used:
English

Summer/winter school?:
no

Period of studies:
spring 2023

Period of placement (from-to):
2023-02-15 - 2023-06-13

Number of months:
4

Activities before my departure abroad
Where can information be found about courses taught at the foreign school?:
You can find everything important related to the courses on the SKKU website. There might be problem to find courses for the semester you want to attend, since they release the courses table quite late. There is usually no need to worry, because most of the courses are the same ones as in the previous semesters.

Which documents were needed for acceptance at the foreign university?:
You need to write a motivation letter and you need to ask any teacher to write an Academic Reference. You also need a transcript of grades and proof of your language level. If you don't have any language certificate, you need to take a test provided by MUNI.

How far ahead did you have to organise your acceptance?:
There are always two rounds of applications. I filled the application in second round, so roughly 6 months before departure.

Did you need a visa?:
yes

Documents and materials needed for a visa:
Bank statement, Certificate of Admission, Certificate for Business Registration, photo, a copy of the cooperation agreement between the two universities, passport and copy of passport, proof of reservation of accommodation, proof of air ticket reservation.

All information related to visa can be found on their website.

Length of wait for visa:
Less than a month

Fee for the visa:
60 USD

Studies
Did you have a Learning Agreement signed before your departure?:
yes

If not, why not?:

Before your departure did you know how your courses would be recognised by your home faculty?:
Yes

During your stay did you change your Learning Agreement?:
No

When and how did course registration take place? Are there any restrictions? Possibilities of making changes?:
Registration starts one week or so, before the start of semester. You can change the courses in the first two or 3 weeks of the semester.

Did you take any examinations at the foreign school?:
No

Does the school use the ECTS system?:
- choose option -

If not then explain how the credits there were recalculated into ECTS:
3 Korean credits correspond to 5 ECTS

Describe the teaching methods (theory, practical and projects) and assessment of students:
All of the courses had lessons every week, usually one 3-hour-long lecture. There were projects and tasks almost every week.

Foreign students were usually very talkative. When it comes to Korean students, most of the time they didn't communicate with us at all.

Quality of teaching in comparison with home school:
More or less the same. Some teachers were way more enthusiastic about teaching than at the home uni.

How did you receive study materials?:
Teachers put all the study materials to the school system.

Can you recommend an interesting course/subject/teacher?:
All the courses I had were very good. The best one was probably Interactive Video by Cho Young Sang

other courses:
Media UX design
Understanding Asian culture
Comparative thought and culture: Horizons East and West

How well is the school library equipped?:
It's very good, but I haven't used it.

Availability of computers, internet access, level of software needed, requirements on notebook:
There is wifi everywhere on the campus and there are also computers in the library. However, I would suggest bringing your own laptop.

Options from printing and copying:
There are many places all over the campus.

Does the foreign school/student organisation arrange special events for exchange students?:
yes

If yes then what?:
Hi-club plans trips and other events.

How would you assess your integration with the local students (evaluation like in school from 1 to 5 with 1 as highest):
4

or describe in your own words:
I usually spend most of my time with other exchange students. Most Koreans are too shy to speak with foreigners, although there are some exceptions. 

Practical questions on your placement
Where did you live?:
Guest house near SKKU - Bong House

Cost of accommodation - monthly:
470 EUR

Additional comments to the price of accommodation (as to what the price includes):
I had my own room and the rest was shared with other flatmates, including the kitchen, toilet and showers.

Describe the equipment. Tips for future students – what should they bring with them?:
Bring the usual. Everything you don't bring can be bought there.

How and how far ahead should accommodation be organised?:
It depends on what accommodations you have. The sooner, the better when it comes to the price. I used Airbnb.

There are a lot of different options. A lot of people stayed in goshiwons (small room with your own shower and toilet). Goshiwons are way cheaper, but some have only one little window and the rooms are very small in general.

What are the catering options?:
I mostly ate in the school cafeteria. There are 5 cafeterias at the Seoul campus. The price range for a meal is from 5000 WON to 6000 WON. Most of the meals were very good for such a price. There are also a lot of restaurants all around the campus with prices from 5000 to 1000 WON for a meal.

What are the rough costs of groceries (compare with Czech prices):
It is way cheaper to eat out than to cook. Meat and dairy products are very expensive in comparison to Czech prices. Fruit and some veggies are also very expensive. You can save some money by shopping in the late evening since the markets usually have lower prices. It is also a good idea to shop in bigger malls, for example, Lotte Mart on Seoul Station.

Transport to location of placement:
You can either use train to Seoul and than subway or bus. There are also options for busses from the airport, but it costs more (around 15k WON) than train. The train to Seoul station costs around 4k WON.

Rough prices for transportation:
I bought my two-way tickets for around 22 000 CZK.

Tips for purchasing cheap tickets and other recommendations:
For the flight tickets, it's a good idea to look for tickets on Kiwi or similar websites and then buy it directly from the airlines.

What are the local transport options (public transport, cycling, on foot, rough prices):
Around 1200 WON for ride, but it depends on the distance. You can rent bikes and scooters. Taxis are everywhere and if you split it in the group of more people, it's not even that expensive.

Try to not use subway in the rush hours, however it's a cool experience to do it at least once.

What kind of formalities have to be arranged before arrival, for example residence permit?:
You have to apply for Alien Registration Card, all information is sent from SKKU.

What health insurance did you use? (rough price, advantages, disadvantages, is it necessary to arrange insurance at the university other than your home (Czech) insurance?):
I bought ISIC insurance for a year.

In addition, you have to pay for Korean insurance as well. It's around 56k WON per month. You can ask for exemption, but the process is very painful and you have to have unlimited coverage in your insurance.

Did you have any experience with medical treatment abroad?:
Thankfully no

Did you work during your studies?:
No

What are the conditions for working for MU students?:
I think you can work after 6 months in the country, but I'm not 100% sure.

Tips for free-time activities:
Travel, spend time with friends and discover Seoul.

Financial support and expenses
Total grant from Centre for International Cooperation:
70000 CZK

Monthly grant in CZK:
20000 CZK

Number of supported months:
3.5

Total number of months:
4

What other sources did you make use of to finance your placement?:
My savings

If you received another grant, state which and how much in CZK:

 
Total fees associated with enrolment at the university:
0 ???

a/ amount of enrolment fee:
0 ???

b/ amount of tuition fees:
0 ???

c/ amount of other fees (which):
0 ???

 
What was your average monthly expenditure?:
23000 CZK

a/ of which for accommodation:
11500 CZK

b/ of which for catering:
7600 CZK

c/ travel and recreation:
3900 CZK

Any comments to the average monthly expenditure:
Traveling around Seoul is very cheap, since most of the entrances are either cheap or free.

Recognition of foreign studies at the home faculty
How many credits did you gain during your studies (in the system of the foreign school)?:
12

How many ECTS credits were recognised at MU?:
20

Did you know in advance which of your courses would be recognised by your home faculty?:
Yes

What problems did you have with recognition?:
None

Overall assessment
Assessment of personal benefit (1 = excellent):
1

Assessment of academic benefit (1 = excellent):
2

Evaluate the information and support provided by the foreign school (1 = excellent):
2

Did you encounter any serious problems during your stay:
Thankfully no

What would you recommend to take with you:
Your favourite food from home. Maybe some typical Czech foods or beverages to share with your friends. Also, bring some medicine. You can get sick very easily, since the AC is on everywhere in the summer. It's a good idea to take a laptop with you.

What most surprised you at the partner university in a positive way:
There were a lot of events throughout the semester, including festivals with big K-pop bands or for example PSY. I loved the campus, it was always clean. There are also a lot of school clubs, I advise you to join some.

Professors are very friendly and helpful.

What most surprised you at the partner university in a negative way:
Sometimes the administrative stuff was a little bit hard to deal with. Uni sent out bad info or every person said the opposite of the one before.

Further comments:
Whoever is reading this and thinking about going abroad, I highly recommend you go. It's one of the best decisions I've made in my life. You will make a lot of new friends and broaden your views of the world. Sure, it will be hard in the beginning, but it will be worth it!