As globalization has become more and more important in Korea, proficiency in a foreign language has become an important part of evaluating a person’s ability. For this reason, university students in Korea have tended to attend exchange student programs and duel degree programs with universities in foreign countries.

If not, students want to go to study abroad and experience foreign countries’ culture at their own cost. As this tendency is seen in not only students in Korea but also those in worldwide many foreign countries, the number of foreign students studying in Korea to learn Korean language and culture has increased.

The Korean national statistical office released up-to-date statistics showing that 5,326 people, the number of foreign students in Korea in 1998, sharply increased to 49,270 people in 2007.

To satisfy the increasing demand for learning Korean language and culture by foreign students, the University of Seoul (UOS) started the Korean Language and Culture Program (KLCP). The KLCP center which is located in the 1st Engineering Building on the UOS campus had its opening ceremony last September 22 and started giving lectures to 55 students from China, Mongolia, Morocco, USA, Japan, and more. The KLCP offers intensive Korean language courses and a cultural orientation to Korea.

The KLCP includes four terms on a yearly basis and each term runs for 10 weeks. The courses emphasize speaking, listening, grammar, and writing and they are provided everyday for 6 levels which range from a basic course to an advanced course to teaching Korean language and Korean history and culture.

The KLCP offers many benefits such as studying Korean in a serious, yet fun, environment with experienced and professionally-trained teachers, and practicing Korean with a buddy, a volunteer student from the UOS. Also, because the class size is small (maximum 15 persons), each student receives personal supervision and encouragement. A variety of methods and materials are used to provide a high-quality language learning environment.

In Sang-jun (the KLCP coordinator) said “Our advantage is that the curriculum of the KLCP offers not only Korean language courses but also culture classes and various activities which are cultural orientation to Korean life. So we can try to differentiate from other universities which offer only a Korean language course”.

In offering field trips and cultural classes, such as visiting cultural sites like the Korean Folk Village, home to numerous collections of Korean cultural artifacts, and learning Taekwondo (designated as an official Olympic sport), the KLCP allows foreign students to combine a university learning experience with cultural and social activities in a friendly Korean-speaking environment.

The UOS, which has produced students with some of the best minds society has demanded for 90 years, plans to strengthen globalization as well as offer a teaching Korean language and culture course by the KLCP.


Contact the UOS representative for advice
E-mail : klcp@uos.ac.kr
Tel : +82.2.2210.5115~5117
Fax : +82.2.2210.5118
저작권자 © The UOS Times(서울시립대영자신문) 무단전재 및 재배포 금지