Yonsei University’s Best Study Abroad Courses

My study abroad experience has officially ended after 30 hours and three flights to return home. It was a wonderful experience and the courses I took at Yonsei played a part in that. I took five of Yonsei’s study abroad-only courses designated with the IEE course code. Below is my review and experience in each course to help future Yonsei University students. I will also scale them based on my enjoyment of the course and how much new information I learned.

Korean Popular Culture and Korean Wave (IEE1154) with Steven D Capener

This course, along with the other course Professor Capener teaches, was my favorite. In the beginning we had a few weeks of learning about Korean history, including deeper focuses on the Japanese Colonial Period (1910-1945) then the Korean War (1950-1953). In the second half, we spent time focusing on more recent trends and issues. These included Hallyu and competing interests, multiculturalism and migrant brides, and misogyny. The professor was great at engaging students through his many anecdotes. He was my only non-Korean professor, being a white American who has lived in Korea for 40 years. There were a few short readings for homework and grades were based on two tests and attendance.

Enjoyment Rating: 9/10

Knowledge Gained: 9/10

Korean Food and Culture (IEE2084) with Park Joon-Sung (Peter)

This course focused on eating and drinking etiquette and different Korean dishes. We learned about kimchi making, regional delicacies, and Korean culture surrounding food. The professor brought in different Korean foods for his 85 students to try each week. He did this voluntarily, with his own money, which reveals the kind of person he was. The course was assessed through five open-book pop quizzes, two short writing assignments, attendance and two mukbangs. The mid-term was a solo mukbang and the final was a group mukbang. It was a super low-stress, fun course.

Enjoyment Rating: 7/10

Knowledge Gained: 7/10

Introduction to Korean Studies (IEE3103) with Steven D Capener

This course was a history and literature course. There was a short reading each week for homework, usually around 30 pages. A major chunk of the course and readings were centered around the Japanese Colonial Period, and a few from the Korean War and the following decades. We learned how these periods shaped the current identity of Koreans. I really enjoyed this course as the professor was great, and I learned a lot of information that helped me form more educated views on Korean society and culture. This course had some overlap with the first course I mentioned and was graded the same way with two tests and attendance.

Enjoyment Rating: 9/10

Knowledge Gained: 10/10

Korean (1) (IEE3341) with Woo Boeui

Before I discuss this course, I have to acknowledge that it was designed for students with zero Korean language knowledge, which wasn’t me. However, it was the only Korean language course that fit in my schedule, so I decided to take it to see what else I could learn. It is the only non-KLI (Korean Language Institute) language course and doesn't require a placement test. This course started with three weeks of learning the Korean alphabet, then a few short conversational phrases focusing on topics like family, schedule, and ordering food. If you are a beginner, this course is a great place to start, it just wasn’t for me. The teacher was nice and the grading was based on two vocab quizzes, a short midterm, and a final interview.

Enjoyment Rating: 5/10

Knowledge Gained: 2/10

Understanding K-Pop [Online] (IEE3371) with Park Jieun

This was my only online course, offered both in-person and online due to high demand. It consisted of two lecture videos and one zoom lecture a week. We learned about the origins of K-Pop, then focused on 1st-5th generation idols. Honestly, this course was kind of a disappointment as it felt pretty surface level. There wasn’t much discussion into deeper issues like idol life and misogyny. In fact, my Korean Popular Culture and Korean Wave class did a better job discussing issues with K-Pop in the week or two where that was the focus. This was another very low-stress course, with open-book worksheets and tests. It also included two projects which required you to attend a concert in Korea and review music videos with a partner.

Enjoyment Rating: 6/10

Knowledge Gained: 5/10