Yonsei vs SNU vs Sungkyungkwan

I have been doing tons and tons of research since July 2016 although I was planning to register for the winter semester (which happens around end of November or early December) to study Korean language in Korea's university. As some of you guys know, Korea's top 3 universities, SKY (Seoul National University, Korea University and Yonsei University) is famous not only among Korean students but also international students.

My dream was to enroll into one of the SKY university at first. Hey, it is not easy for Korean students to get into SKY so I want to take advantage of this opportunity being a foreigner and apply for it. However, along the way, I found out there are some other equally well-known universities in Korea that are offering great Korean language courses for foreign students. Namely, Sogang University, Sungkyunkwan University and Ewha Women's University.

My first choice would definitely be Yonsei University. I have consulted a few of my Korean friends who are living in Korea and they all recommended Yonsei University. It is a great place to study and to experience life as a student in Korea, thanks to its strategic location, right in the heart of Sinchon, near Hongdae. As most of you hardcore Korean fans will know, Hongdae is a place people enjoy their extreme nightlife as the place itself have so much to offer. People go there for picnics, for street performance, for drinking and for nightclubs! So students are more exposed to these kind of entertainments more than others. You can study and play hard!

Yonsei University campus (cr: KTO)

Besides that, Yonsei is well known for its fun learning environment with tons of activities and field trips. However, based on the reviews of students who studied there, Yonsei doesn't focus much on the speaking but more on the writing and general grammar. So students from, say Sogang University, who spent more speaking time with their students, are generally able to speak Korean better.

Plus, the tuition fee of Yonsei is the most expensive. Well, it is a prestigious university. But don't worry, students from Yonsei said the price you pay is definitely worth the material and facilities that you are able to enjoy as a student of Yonsei. Since I am still saving up pennies for my studies and my main objective of going to Korea is to enjoy life as a student, I will put Yonsei on top of my list, for now.

My second choice is Seoul National University (SNU). It is the top university in Korea. However, since I will be studying Korean language only, the top 3 universities are actually equally good, depending on what you would prefer more. For example, do you want to be better in daily conversation in Korean? do you want to be good in writing and scoring in exams?

Different universities have different ways of teaching and they focus on different aspect of learning. It all depends on what you feel comfortable with and what you want to learn or improve on.

SNU's tuition fee is slightly cheaper compared to Yonsei, and it is located further away from the town center, which is at Gwanak-gu (nearest station Seoul National Uni. station, Line 2). Since it is not in the hot tourist spot area, the accommodations are rather cheaper and affordable. I definitely fell in love with the university as soon as I watch the episode of "2Days & 1Night" where they went to SNU and did a university tour. Although it doesn't sound or look as happening as Yonsei, it is definitely a great place to study and enjoy life!

You can check out the "2Days & 1Night" episodes on SNU here:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

*Hotties alert*

SNU campus (cr: universityfairs)

Iconic logo of SNU (cr: campusasia)

Take note that both SNU and Yonsei offers Buddy program or mentor program that pairs you up with a SNU/Yonsei university student who will help you adjust to your stay in Korea and help you with your studies. In return, you shall teach them English/Mandarin or any other language you have signed up for!

My third option is Sungkyunkwan University. Well, for sure, it is the cheapest one of all the universities I did research on because they have changed their period of course. Sungkyunkwan offers 8 weeks of Korean studies rather than the usual 10 weeks so students can finish the semester faster, saving up more living cost in Seoul! So people usually finish the 6 level Korean language course in 1.5 years, you will be able to finish them all in a year, in Sungkyunkwan university. However, the study time per day will be slightly longer.

And Sungkyunkwan is one of the oldest university in Korea. Unlike other universities, Sungkyunkwan University still maintains a few its old buildings. So it feels like you are walking in a Korean cultural building area. It is really amazing!
There are a lot of foreign students in Sungkyunkwan who studies Korean language. There are a lot Sungkyunkwan students who did reviews on the course in Sungkyunkwan on their blogs and also on Youtube.

Samsung library of Sungkyunkwan University

After considering which universities to apply, I started looking out the registration process and application. Some universities need more detailed documents from you but some don't. So look out for their required documents and submit them before the deadline. You can do them online through their website, email or mail.

These are just a few universities that I had done research on based on ex-student's blog, youtube and websites.

As you all who have followed me on my personal Facebook and my Facebook page HYORIYA 효리야 스토리 know that I just came back studying at Yonsei University. I can only give the most feedback and suggestions/answers based on my experience at Yonsei University.

Feel free to email me or leave a comment below if you have any questions on studying in Korea!
I will try my best to help you out!