As of Spring semester 2023, Seoul National University offers a total of 7,492 courses, among them 1,369 liberal education courses. Through these courses, students are able to broaden their perspectives and develop competencies outside of their major by taking various courses offered by different departments. Taking advantage of a large campus area of over 7 million square meters and 15 colleges with a total of 83 departments, SNU boasts a diverse and unique list of liberal education courses. These courses provide students with unforgettable experiences, ranging from learning to play instruments and performing pieces to gathering together in the mountains for hiking.

“Saxophone,” a Hobby Course Offered by the Department of Instrumental Music

Every Wednesday morning, the sound of saxophones fills the rehearsal room at the College of Music. Among the twenty-odd students playing on a recent Wednesday, not one was a music major. “Saxophone” is a course offered to beginners by the Department of Instrumental Music. Although the saxophone seems intimidating upon first impression, it is in fact a widely enjoyed instrument that is relatively easy to learn. On May 10, when the course was roughly halfway through, students were performing Frank Sinatra’s “My Way,” and Ailee’s “I Will Go to You Like the First Snow.”

Generally, the price of a saxophone is more than 1 million won, which might be burdensome for casual players. There is no need, however, to purchase your own instrument to take the saxophone class, since the College of Music has provided 20 alto saxophones. Students only need to individually prepare mouthpieces and reeds at the beginning of the semester. At the beginning of class, students head to the instrument storage room to fetch their saxophones. The stored instruments are cleaned every week to ensure they are hygienically maintained.

An alto saxophone provided for the class

“Saxophone” started as an elective course of the College of Music. At first, it was run as an individual lesson of around 15 minutes per week. This, however, resulted in significant differences in the skill level between students as the course included both students from the College of Music and other colleges. To solve this problem, the professors and the College of Music supported the purchase of 20 alto saxophones, paving the way for the establishment of the current version of the course. Yeonyi Na (Department of Sculpture), who took "Saxophone" in the Spring semester, explained that her interest in playing instruments motivated her to enroll for this course, expressing “it’s great that I can easily access and learn to play the saxophone through university courses.”

Instructor Taeyong Kim commented “I hope that students enjoy taking this class without feeling nervous and regardless of their skill levels. The goal is to introduce music in an easy and entertaining way.” The course’s final exam is conducted by having each student perform their favorite song for around three minutes. This way it aims to encourage students to participate autonomously and to develop the skills they have learned into a continuous hobby.

Learning from the mountains: “Mountains and Life”

“Mountains and Life,” offered by the Department of Physical Education, provides students with five hiking experiences, including climbing Gwanak Mountain, located next to the Gwanak campus. The planned activities last semester also include a Samseong Mountain hike, a Dobong Mountain hike, bouldering at the campus climbing facility, and a free group hike. The Dobong Mountain hike is planned as an overnight camping trip. In the course introduction, instructor Jehoon Sung explained that the course allows students to discover ways of life from nature and ultimately aims to guide them to be morally healthy individuals.

Students practicing bouldering during “Mountains and Life”

“Mountains and Life” is not about simply hiking mountains during class time. The course has a systematic curriculum which enables students to learn and enjoy hiking properly. Through pre-hike lectures, students are instructed on essential topics such as preparing for the hike, safety rules, and climbing techniques. After hikes, students submit their reflection papers. Outside organizations and individuals also lent a hand. The University Mountaineering Association assisted the class, and Songhee Baek, an acclaimed hiking YouTuber, was invited as a guest speaker to give a lecture on “Mountains and Youth.”

The course provides backpacks, hiking poles, and emergency medical kits for students. The students are divided into groups of eight, where each student is assigned a role such as hiking leader, assistant leader, treasurer, medic, record keeper, photographer, food manager, and entertainment manager. Subin Hwang (Department of Child Development and Family Studies), who took the course last Fall, mentioned that the advantages of the course was that the hikes to the summit helped students form intimate relationships with each other. As an effort to ensure safety in a class of more than 60 people, the instructors conduct a preliminary survey of the hiking route and constantly monitor the students using walkie-talkies at the front and rear of the formation when hiking. One member of each group is required to complete CPR training at the university Health Service Center.

SNU is hosting a competition where students propose ideas for liberal education courses that reflect their own preferences. The competition, now in its fourth year, has resulted in the opening of new courses such as “Understanding Laughter,” and “Queer Literature.” These courses are a snapshot of the diverse liberal education that SNU offers.

Written by Jaeyong Lee, SNU English Editor, moonn6pence@snu.ac.kr
Reviewed by Professor Travis Smith, Department of Asian Languages and Civilizations, tlsmith@snu.ac.kr