Experiences unique to your host country/university
One fundamental reason why I chose Korea is that Korea is affordable. If one wants to go on exchange, but is afraid that the living expenses in Europe or America will be too costly, then Korea is a good choice. It has similar living costs to Japan, and sometimes it’s even cheaper!
Hanyang University is one of the best universities in Korea. The students are very intelligent, and they motivated me to study more. Furthermore, there is a diverse array of interesting and challenging courses. The transportation is convenient as the university has its own metro station. Also, many off-campus dormitories and rental properties are available nearby. The campus is quite hilly but I considered it to be good exercise. Most importantly, I think the Hanyang University staff have a lot of experience in managing exchange students, as I hardly faced any difficulties during my stay there. They provide various forms of support from arranging a health checkup for you to helping you get a phone number.
In conclusion, my exchange life at Hanyang University was comfortable and the help desk was always available for immediate support.
Words of advice/encouragement for students who want to go on exchange in the future.
One of my tips to enjoy your student exchange life to the fullest is to make sure you are ready to embrace your host country. Unlike many of the other exchange students I met there, I joined a student club where there were no foreign students and everyone used Korean to communicate. It’s true that the students there all are very talented and can speak English well, but they encouraged me to speak in Korean with them, and that helped me a lot. If you are too shy to make Korean friends, Hanyang University has many exchange students, so you will have good company from all around the world. (P.S. Don’t miss the Fresher’s welcome party!) Additionally, I counted my credits way before I departed and completed quite a lot of the required credits while I was at APU. Thanks to that, I didn’t need to take too many credits during my exchange, and I had spare time to do activities which helped me learn more about the country and people.