Registration | Classes | Offline - Week 4

Aug 30, 20214 min read

Cheers to officially becoming an exchange student in a Korean university <3

^ In front of the famous Ewha's ECC Building ^

^ Taking a tour around my host university's campus with new friends ^

Course Registration: 08/27/2021 from 9:00 am - 5:00 pm

“Power and Speed be hands and feet.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

When registering for classes, anticipate fierce competition since there are limited spots per subject.

Even though you strive to take English-Taught courses (assuming that only foreigners take them, you couldn't be more wrong), there are up to 1-20 seats available amongst 300+ international exchange students. Regular university students can enroll in these courses too, so it is not only foreigners who take them. Many students were disappointed when slots filled up quickly within milliseconds. But there is an opportunity to try again during the add/drop period from September 1-7, 2021.

Important Dates:

Course Registration: August 27, 2021 from 09:00 - 17:00, online (first-come, first-serve basis)
Beginning of Semester: September 1, 2021
Course Add/Drop Period: September 1-7, 2021

What I Did:

Research available courses on Ewha's website (EWHA WOMANS UNIVERSITY | Academics | Course | Undergraduate)
Look at Shidler's previous approved courses to see if any classes have been petitioned already and how they can apply to your degree plans
Write down your top 4-5 classes with 1-2 backups since the slots fill up quickly
On the DAY OF, have a computer ready 15-30 minutes before registrations open. (ensure you are comfortable with stable internet)
DONE!! (Fun fact: I registered in less than 1 minute, that's how fast it was)

Main Difference for Course Registration (UHM vs Ewha)

UHM has a designated timetable for students to register a semester ahead depending on their credits while Ewha is standard and everyone registers at the same time regardless of status.

^ Ewha's Eureka Website (similar to Star Registration and Laulima combined) ^

Class Times + Format + Schedule

^ A Snapshot of my "Live" session course timetable ^

Extremely grateful that I got all the classes I wanted!!! Yay, let me know you more about how I feel...

For the Fall 2021 semester, I will be taking 2 live courses and 3 offline classes. All of them are business-related courses as Korean culture and language classes filled up the quickest with no spots remaining.

In the first week of school, I discovered that my live classes ended up being asynchronous. So I now spend each week watching 15-20 prerecorded lectures with additional assignments on the side. Here are the pros and cons about asynchronous class schedule and to see if you prefer this style. (But I honestly had no choice so be aware if you choose to study abroad during an ongoing global pandemic ( ͡ಥ ͜ʖ ͡ಥ) )

Pros

Flexibility: no required live attendance, plan your work around your schedule, and independence
Freedom: more time to explore and "work hard but play harder"
Accessibility: you can watch the lectures anywhere at any time on your computer or phone, pause the recording whenever, and start notes at your own pace (no rushing)

Cons

Work Ethics: feels like you aren't a student or studying and might be easier to miss a deadline
Restriction: lack of connection, harder to make friends or meet professors, and real-time conversations
Exhaustion: staring at a screen all day from your prerecorded lectures, unable to fast-forwarded, and computer glitches

****Remember you are to not only study but enjoy your time abroad. Plan your days ahead since time goes by quicker than you think.****

Moving Out for the BETTER

“Anytime you suffer a SETBACK or DISAPPOINTMENT, put your head down and PLOW AHEAD.” - Les Brown

In my last post, I talked about checking into the university's dormitory but... I have chosen to MOVE OUT ¯\_( ͡◡ ͜ʖ ͡◡)_/¯ (which was the best decision I ever made being here).

To put it briefly, the dormitory room conditions were filthy with black mold, duck taped floors, brown stains, blood-sucking mosquitoes, a broken AC system, and just super dirty in general. I have never dormed before, so I was not expecting any of these difficulties.

From my unsatisfactory experience, I sought out to move out by myself or find others to share a place with.

Tip: Don't UNPACK your luggage/suitcases until you are positively certain that you will live there. I cleaned my room and unpack within the first couple of hours at my dorm room, only to re-pack everything when I left.

^ A random picture that relates to how I looked in my dorm room when I was looking for potential places to move out to ^

To be FREE or to be RESTRICTED

Upon check-in day, everyone was given an I-House rule book that indicates what you can get a demerit for. The demerit points system is utilized to monitor student's behavior and if you get up to 10 points, you will be evicted. Something as small as forgetting to submit the daily health form will result in a 0.5 demerit. The staff will post a paper on your dorm door if you make any mistakes, which is very nerve-racking. For this reason, I was so afraid of doing anything that may result in a point deduction like talking to my dorm neighbors.

Thankfully, I met four other girls who attend the same university who wanted to share a place together. We went house-hunting to several places, where we eventually found a wonderful accommodation that met our requirements (5 beds, kitchen, bathroom, laundry, internet, air conditioner, heater, near the subway station, close proximity to the university, and affordable.) After examining the contract thoroughly, our next step was to sign the agreement, leave the dormitory, and ultimately move in.

Leaving the dormitory was as much as a hassle living there. They did not make it easy and many steps were required to take. Here is what I did...

Steps on How to Leave the Dormitory:

Pack up all your things
Return the sheets, pillows, and blanket if you rented one (I rented one a day before I left and was not refunded so it was a waste of 3,000 won)
Videotape your room with all the cabinets (this is their way of checking the room conditions)
Pay the invoice for the nights you stay (about 10% of the total dormitory cost) at the Shinhan Bank on campus
Bring back the payment receipt where they will make a copy of it
Return your building key
DONE! You have made it ¯\_( ͠ᵔ ͜ʖ ͠ᵔ )_/¯

To conclude, my experience may differ from others but it is safe to say that living in the I-House dormitory was not for me. I am exhilarated to have found somewhere safe, within my budget, and a great support system. My roommates are from diverse countries in Europe, which are Austria, Belgium, Denmark, and Sweden. Our mixed backgrounds make living together an adventure and I thank the universe for giving me a "true" dorming life. An interesting fact is that I am the youngest of the bunch so they are all intelligent, caring, and loving human beings that make my study abroad exchange 100x better.