Kim Hye-joo (Global Business Administartion 18), University of Reading Exchange Student Story
- 경영대학
- Hit507
- 2021-08-20
1. Hello, please introduce yourself first.
Hello, I'm Hye-joo Kim, a freshman in Global Business Administration who went to University of Reading in the first semester of 2021. I always wanted to go as an exchange student, but I postponed it once due to COVID-19 and finally got to go!
2. Despite the difficult situation, I heard that you have successfully completed your University of Reading exchange in England.^^
In fact, I thought a lot about it before leaving the country due to the COVID-19. In January, when I left the country, the number of confirmed cases in the UK was well over 60,000, and vaccines were not supplied as active as they are now. In fact, most of the students who applied for exchange students canceled or postponed it. I hesitated a lot at first, but I thought I should do things that I think I will regret for the rest of my life if I don't do it now. In the end, not hundreds of reasons why I shouldn't go, such as "Will COVID-19 be caught?" and "Will racism be worse against Asians?", but one reason why I should go made me go. And I think that was the best choice I made during my college life.
In my case, I went alone without other students, but it felt like I was adventuring alone and the experience of doing it alone without leaning on anyone became a great asset to me. Due to the COVID-19, I paid a lot of attention to hygiene such as distancing, mask, disinfection, etc. during my daily life or traveling, and I think I came back safely because I was ready to move like this.
3. How is the University of Reading like? How did you lived in there?
University of Reading is located on UK Reading, this is the first time that our school sent exchange students. Perhaps they started student exchanging with most Korean universities in recent years. And It was very hard time to me because even one essay do not exist. University of Reading is quiet and a thinly populated town. In particular, campus of University of Reading is very large, population density is much lower than downtown. So, I felt rather not dangerous, when I go to there at the peak of pandemic. The campus is well-matched with nature and has many green grasslands, and you can often see blue squirrels and cats as you walk by. I liked this quiet University of Reading because I usually go to crowded tourist attractions anyway. Another advantage of Univ. of Reading is that it is close to London. In particular, it's a half-hour drive from Paddington Station in London, a stopover to downtown London, and you can go to downtown in about an hour, so you can take a one-day trip without any difficulty. So I often traveled by train.
Due to COVID-19, every class in the University of Reading goes on online. The teaching method is not much different from SKKU, but there is a tutorial/session that is conducted by video every week.
During this time, case analysis and discussions are usually held, and it was refreshing to be able to share opinions directly with local students in the UK.
Friendship usually consisted of flatmates who lived on the same flat, and I remember receiving a lot of comfort by leaving a note in front of the door when it was hard to adapt to the new situation. After that, we cooked and shared food together. We were really comfortable. Also, unlike other British universities, Reading offers its own meal services, and it seems that it was used very often because of the opportunity to eat various local foods.
4. What did you prepare for the selection of exchange students? If there are any good tips for business school students, please share them.
In fact, many people think it will be difficult to be selected as exchange students, but it's not like that at all. The two criteria for selecting exchange students are English grades and credits. The English grade required for exchange students (mainly TOEFL, IELTS) is not that high, and if anyone studies a little bit (especially if you're a vocal cords student!) I think it's not that difficult to prepare for English grades in English. In particular, schools with low competition rates, or schools that do not meet the English grades required by the schools, can be considered to be accepted if they apply. Some schools don't even require English grades at all, so I don't think it's necessary to give up from the beginning even if you can't speak English.
If you apply to a school with a high competitive rate, grades are the most important. Even if there is an interview, it is not that difficult, and other applicants are similar in their skills, so I felt that they are not that distinguishable, and in the end, they are determined by their grades. So if you have a low grade, it is important to explore enough schools on the list to find places with low or under-competition rates and take a strategic approach. If you consider your conditions and practicality and come up with the best scenario to pass, you can expect good enough results.
5. Was there any difference from what you actually experienced from the exchange student activities you thought?
It wasn't just the joy that I had when I went as an exchange student. Many people have fantasies about foreign countries, and I also left with such excitement, but in fact, those fantasies disappear quickly after a month or two. In particular, the first month was very difficult because I had to take responsibility for everything by myself while working in a safe zone surrounded by family and friends. Also, it was hard to accept that the system and benefits that were familiar as locals in Korea are not natural here. In addition, there were many times when communication was difficult because I wore a mask with a British accent that was hard to understand.
But despite all this, meeting new people, new lifestyles and new places is attractive enough to offset all this. Staying in a safe zone is comfortable and secure, but at the same time boring and refusing to change is the same as not being able to grow any more. While I was an exchange student, I felt left out that I did not belong here as a stranger, but at the same time I felt freedom and freedom. Just as everything has pros and cons, it seems that the experience of exchange students can become richer and grow through these two-family feelings.
Also, what I realized while living abroad is that there is a big difference between traveling and living. I thought this is the reason why I need to experience as an exchange student. It's because it's obvious that an exchange student will be a very good "vaccination" for students who are thinking about whether to go abroad and build their careers in the future.
6. What is your plan for the future?
I think the future plan is a very difficult question. In particular, older friends who are about to graduate are also worried about their careers. In fact, I don't really like the motif of what to do at this age. Of course, you need to think about what you're going to do, but I don't think there's anything more tragic than vaguely being a guide to define your path and fit it in. So I still want to stay at the stage of thinking about what I really want, and I'm trying to be an empiricist who leaves many possibilities open rather than a perfectionist. The immediate plan is to gain more experience including internship activities. If you focus on the present, won't you get the answer at some point?
Finally, it was nice to have the opportunity to look back on myself after going to exchange students. I think it's the best experience I've ever had in college. If I had had anxiety about an opaque future before I left, I think I've come to believe in my possibilities even more now. Again, we can go anywhere and do anything. If you have a classmate who is wondering whether to go or not even after reading, please close your eyes and shout.