Today we had the unique opportunity to tour and visit one of Seoul’s most prominent, oldest, and prestigious universities, Yonsei University. The university is also one of three universities across Korea that could be considered an ivy league equivalent. Yonsei University is a top University in the world alongside Seoul National University and Korea National University. The school was founded in 1885 and consisted of a nursing program and has grown today to have multiple campuses, an engineering school, and welcomes international students.

When we got to the University, we were able to walk through the surrounding neighborhood of Hongdae, the Oakland neighborhood equivalent in Pittsburgh. There were shops up and down the streets and college students everywhere. The semester at Yonsei runs from February to the end of May so classes were still in session at the campus.

Upon arrival, we went on a tour and were greeted by a couple of the students who served as our tour guides. They took us on a visit around the campus where they showed us the old medical building from 1885, the newer hospital where the med school is located, the Union building for students, the outdoor amphitheater, the administration buildings, the library, and the various statues located around the campus.

For lunch we were served a student styled cafeteria lunch. We visited their dining hall where I was served a spicy soup with rice. It was very tasty, and it was interesting to see how the students came and went in the hall since the food was not buffet but rather pay to order.

Later we had the unique opportunity to visit the engineering building and the Electrical engineering department as well as the Bio engineering department. In the electrical engineering department, we toured the research facilities to see what students were learning as well as the electron microscopes that are used. In the bio engineering department, we saw some research being done on mouse brains and a bio printing company that does research at the university. Overall, the similarities of college life are close to those at Pitt but at the same time the differences were prominent. The Koreans focus heavy on education as well as research, so it was interesting to see how other students learn across the world and how they differ from those in the United States.