By Rut Labrada, Arts & Entertainment Editor 

Welcome to the first installment of Spectating Seoul! This past summer, I was lucky enough to spend a month exploring the streets of Seoul through a study abroad program at Dongguk University, located in the Jung district, right in the center of South Korea. 

As a writer, my time in Korea left me with a myriad of topics that I want to untangle and share with an audience: fashion, third spaces, K-pop, Korea’s AI craze, and so many more. But, alas, all good things take time, so I created this column to unravel them, one at a time. 

But before any of that, I want to share how the study abroad program worked; even if South Korea is not your interest, VSU offers many different study abroad programs, and I would encourage every student to go on one if they have the opportunity. 

So, today I want to go into detail about how to sign up, plan, and start your study abroad program off right, as well as share what the expenses could look like for such a trip. 

 

The Center for International Programs 

Any study abroad trip through VSU is going to begin here. Located near the Honors House and the Student Health Center, the Center for International Programs (CIP) handles all services relating to international education, including the organizing and managing of study abroad programs. 

Throughout each semester, the CIP sends out email communications to alert students to different study abroad programs and sign-up information, and the advisors of the CIP are typically the heads of the programs.  

As well as this, the CIP has many resources for students studying abroad, including scholarship and funding opportunities, which is helpful for students who need help securing a means to pay for their trip abroad.  

The specific program that I signed up for was the Dongguk International Summer School (DISS) program, advised by Assistant Director Irina McClellan.  

Signing up for the program was very easy and straightforward. After learning that there was an opportunity to go to Korea, I set up a meeting with Dr. McClellan, and she told me all about the different classes that were available, as well as the program events. 

Afterwards, I filled out the online application, which was user-friendly and required standard information, such as my name, contact information, and more. 

Before the trip, Dr. McClellan hosted a couple of meetings, where I was able to meet the other students who were going to South Korea and hear from students who had gone previously. I found this to be extremely helpful, and I appreciated the opportunity to form connections with students who would experience the same trip. 

 

Pricing & Expenses 

Figuring out how to pay for a trip is likely going to be miserable for any college student (as it was for me), but I will aim to provide a genuine, inside look into all the various expenses related to my study abroad program. 

The first cost was, of course, the program fee, which was roughly $920, and covered not only housing and program involvement, but also costs for the various cultural activities that the program included. This was paid in various installments throughout the spring semester, so I did not have to worry about having all the money immediately. 

As well as this, it is required to pay VSU tuition for the courses you take while abroad. I took two courses for a total of 6 credit hours, which, at the time, totaled $1,122. 

Next up was buying the plane tickets, and this part was very pricey. I chose Air Canada, which offered the cheapest tickets I could find to Korea, and I paid roughly $1,700 round trip. 

The last (required) expense is food, which was not included in the tuition costs. Food can vary greatly depending on one’s individual tastes and budget. 

Korea’s convenience store culture is highly advanced, and it is completely possible to live off of the wide variety of meals that these stores offer, for maybe $3-5 per meal. As well as this, Dongguk University has a cafeteria that offers students meals for roughly $5. 

With this budget, one can expect to spend around $450 on food if they were to spend $5 on every meal three times a day. 

However, for foodies like myself, going out to restaurants and trying all the different foods in Korea is a top priority. Thanks to the currency exchange, I found that most restaurant meals in the country cost between $8-15, and even some Michelin-star meals fit in this range. 

Following this budget, one can expect to spend closer to $700-800 on food alone.  

These cover all of the absolutely necessary expenses to survive while abroad, so a student on a lower budget can expect to need to save a little more than $4,100 plus their desired amount for miscellaneous purchases and shopping trips. 

 

Five Tips for the Traveler 

 

1. Plan your activities early: No matter where you are going, there will be many tourist activities to partake in and events to attend, so make sure you get an idea of the most important locations and plan where you are going to go ahead of time. Otherwise, you might do what I did and miss a few important stops, like seeing the changing of the guards at Gyeongbokgung Palace. 

1. Don’t overschedule: On the other side of the coin, don’t plan out every second of every day. Larger cities, like Seoul, have many hidden gems that you’ll only find if you go out and explore. Leave some time each day to wander around and discover something new. 

1. Learn how to use public transportation in the city: Whether there is a pass or a card you need to buy to use subways and buses, do your research before you get into the country, so you know how to get around (connections can be very confusing on the Korean subway). During my time in Korea, I loaded a T-Money card, which allows you to use most public transportation, and each trip was less than $1.  

1. Read up on local etiquette: In Korea, sticking your chopsticks into a bowl of rice is reminiscent of funeral practices, so it should be avoided at all costs. Many countries have their own cultural etiquettes that they follow, and it is crucial to be respectful when you are abroad, so read up on some of them and be willing to fix any mistakes. 

1. Talk to the older residents: This is not an absolute necessity, but if you are interested in learning more about the history or culture of a country, the best place to start is by asking those who have been around for a long time. At the National Folk Museum of Korea, an elderly tour guide treated my friend I to coffee and gave us some insights into the history of the Korean War, and it was one of my favorite experiences from the entire trip! 

 

That is all for today’s story, but I would love to hear what readers want to know about study abroad. For any questions or suggestions for the Spectating Seoul column, please email me at rmlabrada@valdosta.edu