For undergraduate and graduate students studying outside of Korea, the SNU International Summer Program (ISP) is an enticing opportunity for academic exploration at one of Asia’s leading universities, while offering a chance for SNU students to engage with their peers from around the world. Founded in 2007, the program has to date hosted more than two thousand participants. Spanning six weeks, the program boasts a diverse collection of course offerings, taught by SNU faculty members as well as visiting lecturers from around the world. This year, in light of the pandemic, the ISP will be hosted virtually, running from June 22 to August 2.
Even with the move to an online platform, the scope of the ISP remains robust. The program encompasses eight elective courses, along with ten major courses adapted from SNU’s regular curriculum taught by visiting lecturers. The course selection is organized around four major subjects: Korean Studies, East Asian and International Studies, Economics and Business, and Engineering and Life Sciences. Of these, the Korean Studies course content is a means to support the program’s cultural immersion initiative, with courses such as “Contemporary Korea in Narratives: Fiction, Film, and K-Pop” delving into various aspects of Korea’s culture.
The Office of International Affairs (OIA) has also announced that the program will feature various activities facilitating cultural exchange and allowing for students to connect with one another. These activities will help retain in an online format the intermingling of program attendees, a hallmark characteristic of the ISP.
The “Post Corona TripAdvisor” activity provides a platform for students to share photos and videos of their home country and make travel recommendations. The “Exchange Diary” activity is another means for virtual communication, where students can exchange ideas with one another through vlogs and comments. For those seeking to form a lasting relationship, the “Buddy Match” activity pairs students from different countries and arranges for them to meet virtually. Finally, SNU students looking to receive career and academic guidance may sign up for the “Mentoring” activity.
This year, the ISP will host 390 participants from 34 different countries.
Written by Min Seo Ki, SNU English Editor, mskey717@gmail.com
Reviewed by Professor Travis Smith, Department of Asian Languages and Civilizations, tlsmith@snu.ac.kr