Q : Did doing your military service as a KATUSA help you to improve your English?
A : Wherever you are, it depends on what you do. In the beginning I was allocated to a place with only Korean soldiers. At that time, it was hard to use English when senior officers were there. But I tried to get along with them privately (e.g. keeping in touch with them by e-mails, showing U.S. soldiers around Seoul, etc.) I think it helped me to improve my English.

Q : Then would you recommend that University of Seoul (UOS) male students apply to become a KATUSA?
A : If you want to go there only for convenience, you wouldn’t gain much during the two year military service period, but if you want to have a good experience then try for it.

Q : How can you make foreign friends?
A : There are many foreigners around us. “There is a foreigner. Oh my god, I am not good at English.” If you think that way you can’t make any foreign friends. When you walk down the street and see a foreigner who looks lost, then help him or her. Then you could exchange a phone number while you are talking.

Q : Give some tips on how to make a good speech and talk in English.
A : Speech - When I was young I went to English academy for a while. My native English teacher recommended me to write English speeches to help improve my English writing skills. So I started writing. At the beginning, I only wrote about the topics that I was interested in. After that the range of topics expanded. Ultimately I wrote a lot of speeches. I asked the teacher to correct my speech and then I memorized and performed the speech in front of my teacher. Then the teacher corrected my pronunciation and scored my speech.
It was pretty fun. After I quit going to academy, I wrote by myself as much as I could. When I write English speeches, I consider the topics but also the attitude of the people who will listen to my speech. Giving a speech needs much practice compared with other aspects of English. In my case, when I give a speech in front of a crowd, I do it like singing. It’s really important to maintain eye-contacting, a loud voice and express your emotion. You could find tips on how to give good speeches on Yahoo or Google.

Talking - I think it’s really important to find ways, by yourself, to expose yourself to an English speaking environment. For example, waking up in the morning and listening to English radio or watching U.S. dramas downloaded on your MP3, PMP or cell phone. If you have some foreign friends, chatting with them from time to time would be good.
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