Winter’s over: The 2018-2019 International Winter Campus draws to a close

On Friday, February 1, KU the International Winter Campus (IWC)’s completion ceremony at Ahn Young Il Hall, LG-POSCO Building marked the end of the 2018-2019 six-week program’s second session.

The KU IWC, which started in 2016 and has grown to become the best in Korea, offers lectures on various fields including management, economics, humanities, and science given by professors from both KU and from prominent universities all over the world, including King’s College London, the Australian National University, the University of Wisconsin and California State University.

The KU IWC 2018-2019 program, the largest program of its kind in Korea, commenced on December 27, 2018. A total of 740 students from 88 universities in 19 countries including Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, the United States, China, Indonesia, England, Brazil, Ireland, Netherlands and South Africa took part. In addition to attending academic courses, the students enjoyed various cultural activities such as a K-pop flash mob dance, a Korean cooking class, and a field trip to broadcasting station MBC.

In his congratulatory address, Kim Sunhyuk, Vice President for International Affairs and Dean of the IWC, expressed his gratitude to the students by saying, “Your passion and dedication made the IWC programs successful.” He continued, “Korea University was founded in 1905 under the belief that ‘Education Saves the Nation,’ and it was ranked 86th in last year’s QS World University Rankings. Thanks to the students who have enthusiastically participated in international programs including the IWC, now Korea University has become one of the leading universities in the world.” He finished his speech by saying, “Korea University boasts of its alumni’s strong friendship, and I hope that you will proudly enjoy your KU IWC network around the world.”

Vivien Mori from the University of Campinas (Unicamp) received a certificate as KU’s IWC student representative. In her address she said, “When I first came to Korea, I was afraid and lonely, but my teachers, buddies, and friends helped me gain interesting experiences so that I could feel at ease.” She also said, “I enjoyed various programs including academic classes, Korean food cooking, a flash mob dance, volunteer activities, but the most valuable part was having met various friends from many different backgrounds. I believe these experiences will be our precious memories.”

The KU IWC completion ceremony ended with students receiving Instagram photo awards and watching a video clip of activities from the program’s six weeks. The ceremony culminated with the students throwing their graduation caps into the air as a sign of congratulation. After the ceremony, the students took pictures with their professors and fellow students to capture their memories of the happy occasion.