After a grueling 6 hour red-eye flight seated near a crying toddler, i made my way from Incheon Airport to my accommodations by the subway. Luckily, the Seoul subway has english translations on the signage so it was pretty easy to navigate around. However, keep in mind that in Korea, majority of the places do not offer english translations so be prepared with a offline translator app on your phone.
I am sharing my accommodations with 4 other SUTD students who are also attending Hanyang University. The apartment is pretty small, but at least it is within walking distance to the campus.
Hanyang University usually offers a Buddy program to exchange student, which pairs up incoming foreign students with local students. This is a great way to learn more about the korean culture, meet new people and it doesn’t hurt to have a korean translator around.
Hanyang University sits on top of a pretty steep hill so be prepared to climb lots of stairs! The only good thing about this is that this will help you keep fit after eating all the korean bbq and fried chicken.
For the first week, you should not miss the orientation that the international office holds as it provides a lot of important information like where to pick up your student card, administrative matters to settle, etc.
Other than that, the classes that are held on the first week tend to be pretty chill so just take the time to settle down and prepare yourself for the next 15 weeks!
