Critical Language Scholarship Wonju, South Korea

As the countdown for when I leave for South Korea continues, I find myself becoming increasingly anxious with each passing day. What excites me about South Korea is experiencing culture in its raw form, the history, the food, the beauty of the countryside, the rekindled friendships, and also undiscovered friendships. As much as I love the city of Memphis, I can never really see myself confined to one location for too long. I think I have my dad to thank for this, because it’s always been his life long dream to travel to all the corners of the world.

Since classes have ended I’ve been keeping myself occupied by spending time with good friends, working at Rhodes in the Bonner Center for Faith and Service, and have been independently studying Korean. I don’t know what it is about languages, but whenever I begin studying Chinese or Korean, I become so immersed it’s as if I’m reading an addicting book. By the time I lift my head and return to the real world I always discover that day has become night and hours have passed in what feels like minutes. I don’t what it is, but there’s just something about languages that’s always intrigued me. Whatever it may be, I couldn’t be happier knowing that I’m studying what I love.  

Recently, friends and family have been asking what the Critical Language Scholarship is and what I will be doing in South Korea. I’ll try my best to thoroughly explain what the CLS entails and what I hope to accomplish. Since I’m still in the U.S., most of what I’ll be saying is what I’ve been told by the U.S. Department of East Asian Languages and Literature and mostly speculation on my part.

The Critical Language Scholarships for Intensive Summer Institutes is a program of the United States Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. The CLS is the U.S. government’s initiative to increase the number of Americans studying and mastering critical languages. Students are expected to continue their studies beyond the program, and later are expected to integrate their languages studies into their professional career.

In 24 days I’ll be leaving to study at Yonsei University in Wonju. Wonju is a rural city located in the Gangwon Province, roughly 60 miles east of Seoul, the capital of South Korea. The campus is supposedly located near the base of a mountain, along the side of a lake, and within a forest. If you ask me, this place sounds quite beautiful. The Wonju Campus is one of four campuses in the Yonsei university system. This campus is noted for their Medical College, Biomedical Engineering, Chemistry & Medical Chemistry, Modern Korean Literature, and Poverty Alleviation Studies.

Since it’s going to be the summer time, I really hope a lot of students will still be around for me to meet. No matter what, I want to foster as many friendships as I can. Even though I only have 8 weeks, I will make the most of this time. Two years ago my friend and mentor, Anthony Siracusa, taught me a quote from J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye. “Don’t ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody.” When I first heard these words I really didn’t understand the weight behind them, that was until I was overseas saying goodbye to friends I made while I was working in Shenyang, before I left to study in Nanjing. With these few words always imbedded in the back of my mind, I learned to cherish as many memories as I could, no matter how short they may be.

I leave for South Korea on June 14. Before I leave, though, I have to attend a pre-departure orientation in Washington D.C. from June 12-14. During the orientation I’ll meet all of my classmates and leave with them on the same flight. I’ll arrive at the Incheon International Airport in Seoul, and shortly after I’ll travel to Wonju. The program will last from June 17-August 10. On August 11 I’ll leave for the U.S. Here is a quick view of the dates for the program:

When I first arrive in Wonju, I’ll be introduced to the host institute staff and a Korean host family. A unique component to the CLS program in South Korea is that students will be living with a host family for the first week. Students are not allowed to speak English and must try their best to get acquainted with cultural behaviors. This is all the more reason for me to begin studying before I leave. I’m really excited to live with a different family for an entire week. It may be a shotgun version of culture shock, but I can’t wait to see what I’ll learn! Luckily, I think growing up in a Korean household and prepared me well for this component of the program. After the first week, students will then move into the university dorm halls, where we will also meet our Korean roommates. For the duration of our studies, we will have a native roommate that will help us in our progression and will also help us in immersing ourselves into Korean culture. I’m really excited about having a Korean roommate, because past experience has taught me how helpful having native roommates and friends can be.

We're all expect to take the program as serious as we can.  Every week students will have four hours of language classes each day, five hours of culture class, four hours of peer tutoring per week,  four hours of internship/community involvement per week,  and weekly cultural excursions to museums, theaters, and local events. Along with this, we are also expected to take a language pledge. In my opinion, anyone who wants to learn a foreign language should look for a program that has a strict language pledge. While I was in China I learned that following a language pledge was one of the most beneficial factors towards my language progression. So when I heard that we would have to take a language pledge for the CLS, I was pretty excited.

Right now all I can really do is continue to study the best I can and make the most of my summer. Words cannot begin to explain how excited I am to be in South Korea this summer, but I'll say that it's going to come and go faster than I can ever imagine.