I fell in love with Seoul
At the start of 2022 I flew out to Seoul, South Korea in order to start my study abroad journey. I expected it to be a lonely four months studying the hardest I could and seeing how my degree was taught in another country. I could not have been more wrong. Leaving for Seoul was the best thing that I ever done.
I attended Sungkyunkwan University (성균관대학교) (SKKU). It is a truly stunning university in the heart of Seoul that was designed hundreds of years ago as a place for Korean royalty to study. Originating in 1398, it is the oldest university in the country. You can even still hang out in the beautiful traditional dormitories used by the nobles. At Reading I study graphic design, but in Korea I chose to study more of the business side of design and Korean language. I really benefitted from the different perspectives offered by the professors here.
I also got help from the Turing Scheme, which enabled me to live life to the fullest out here. I could experience everything that Seoul had to offer without the fear of how much I was spending. It meant the world to me that I could say yes to everything that came my way.
But the best part of this experience was the people I met along the way. I have made friends here that I will likely have for life, and the strangest part is it was so unlikely we would ever get to meet at all. An experience like this allows you to live next door to people from halfway across the world. With the people I met on this trip, I have travelled most of Korea going to places like Pohang, Busan, Jeju, Incheon and more. But it wasn’t just other exchange students, the students at the host university have been nothing but accommodating and friendly. I now have plenty of friends in Korea for if I ever wish to come back. (And I definitely do.)
I can say truthfully that I fell in love with Seoul and everything that it has to offer. In fact, I am writing this from Seoul months after my studying ended because I simply don’t want to leave this incredible country. Study abroad is scary and stressful and lots of things go wrong, and yet I would do it a thousand times over. If you are considering it, then let this be the sign to do it despite the doubts. I think it’s better to regret doing something rather than regretting never doing it all.
