<p>I'm a freshman at UT and I've been looking into study abroad programs. I know for sure I want to study abroad seriously, but I'm not sure where I would like to apply. I would like to go to either Seoul, Madrid, or Tokyo. Seoul is probably best for me because I've been trying to self-study Korean for about 2 years now because it really interests me, but the thing is after searching there were many stories I found on people saying that in Korea the people aren't as nice as other places. I would really like to learn Korean, but I'm scared that going to Korea my not be enjoyable. So, after reading those stories I started thinking about studying in Tokyo, though Japanese doesn't interest me as much as Korean does I hear that the people are nicer and it's a more enjoyable environment. Lastly there is always the easier route, and that's studying in Madrid. I'm Mexican-American and very bilingual, so there wouldn't be much of a language barrier there yet I can still improve my Spanish and be in a new place that interests me a lot. Korea is still my first choice though.</p>
<p>Which do you all think would be better? Is Korea really not that bad and it's just me thinking too much? Any input on which is more enjoyable?</p>
<p>In a heartbeat, I’d say Korea, though I haven’t been there in years. The culture is a bit more outgoing than Japanese culture. This country needs people who have familiarity with the Korean language and culture-look into the state department money for summer study there. If you’re from Texas, hopefully you like scaldingly spicy food! </p>
<p>However, Japan has a sweetness and beauty about many aspects of daily life that are very pleasant. It can be breathtakingly lovely and appealing. It also can be a little warmer weather wise. </p>
<p>But I love Korea, Korean culture, language, and food. More impassioned, more honest in some ways. My time is Asia tends to date me a bit. But after much travel time in Asia, I felt very much at home there, mostly because of the more down to earth frankness and friendliness of the people.</p>
<p>I’m more than half sure I will end up choosing Korea because I’ve been interested in Korean language and culture for a while now. Which school would you say would be best to study at Yonsei, Hanyang, Seoul National, or Sungkyunkwan?</p>
<p>What’s your prospective major? Yonsei and SNU pretty good (two of the top schools) I heard Sungkyunkwan is good for engineers. Would pick SNU for Seoul! <3</p>
<p>My major right now is Political Science, but I’m thinking of switching to International Relation. Yonsei and Hanyang are the schools that have programs for those classes. I would also like to take Korean classes of course.</p>
<p>Well, there’s more to Spain than Madrid. S is in Barcelona at the moment. A very cosmopolitan city with lots of culture and history. And you could still widen your language vocabulary, because Barcelona is a bi-lingual city - Spanish and Catalan.</p>
<p>Korea and Japan would be completely different experiences from Europe, I would think. It depends what you decide you ultimately want. I would think Japan would be fascinating.</p>
<p>being korean i am biased to say visit Korea hahah. I went last summer with my family and although it is a completely different experience visiting with family and studying abroad i know a bunch of people who studied abroad there and said they loved it. The “party scene” is fun and although you wouldn’t expect it there are actually a hand full of Korean-Americans emphasizing americans because they were born in America… and Americans that go and study in Korea especially over the summer. I haven’t been to Tokyo or Madrid so i cant really compare but to me it really doesn’t seem like you can go wrong from those 3 places.</p>
<p>Can’t comment on Seoul or Tokyo but I know a few people studying in Barcelona/Salamanca and they’re having a ball.
The fact you’re bilingual is a huge advantage.</p>
<p>Yeah, I have a friend in Madrid, Spain, that’s why I said Madrid, but I hear Barcelona is much more gorgeous. Most in Barcelona speak Catalan though? I just got back to school for this semester, I’m excited to visit my SAO.</p>
<p>i studied abroad at yonsei last summer, and to be honest…i wish i had chosen to go somewhere else. it was a great learning experience, but it is true that the people there aren’t very friendly towards non-koreans. maybe if you choose another university, such as seoul univ, it might be a different experience. mostly everyone at yonsei during the summer are korean-americans from california, so you don’t get much diversity there. the people were mostly there to party and go out. i felt like everyone came with their high school and college friends, making it a little hard to make friends. the classes were very easy, and they transferred over for me. and for poli sci and international relations, yonsei offers a lot of courses that might transfer over for you, which is great. but if you’re looking for a worldly experience, i wouldn’t choose seoul.</p>
<p>I know a nice study abroad program in Spain. I personally had A GREAT experience and this program included all services you can expect:
Airport Pick up, Orientation, Spanish courses, Nice and Professional Staff, Housing, Activities and excursions. It was more than I expected and I really learned a lot about the language, culture and Spanish people. I had a great time. If you are interested visit their web and contact them: </p>
<p>Everybody that speaks Catalan speaks and understands Spanish for sure, even old people. I studied abroad in ALcoy, Alicante, Spain ([Study</a> Abroad Opportunity in Alcoy](<a href=“http://www.studyabroadopportunity.com%5DStudy”>http://www.studyabroadopportunity.com)) and most of the locals spoke both languages. This fact enriched my experience abroad as people speaking in Catalan inmediately addressed in Spanish to us when they saw us. It was great, and we also had the opportunity to practice Spanish a lot, because no American students were in that city. This is perfect for those that really want to be immersed in the culture and the language</p>
<p>I studied abroad at Korea Uni last summer and had a good experience. I think Seoul is a good place because they’re very used to foreigners and you’d become a “token foreign friend,” which is not bad unless you think it is. The only time people were un-friendly were usually people that are much older and obviously not students. It’s very easy to travel outside of Seoul as well, the subway system has stops at buses so you can take a bus to other cities. It’s not expensive at all either.</p>
<p>I’d recommend either SNU or Yonsei-- I’ve had friends (that were not Korean American) that had great experiences at Yonsei, but like blackandwhite said, it’s very true that there are a lot of Korean Americans that go there. A lot of Korean American students get sent to Yonsei/Korea/SNU, as these are the top three schools in Korea (they make SKY, it’s like Korea’s Ivy League.) There are a lot of partiers, but isn’t it like that almost everywhere? Anyway, you might find it to be fun-- to experience Korean-only booking clubs (do a google search if you’re curious ;), Korean hoff bars… they even have regular dance clubs that if you’re a foreigner, you can get in for a discounted rate or even free.</p>
<p>You can just ignore the KA’s if you don’t like them though, as I’m sure if you’re in a foreign country, you would rather experience it by making native friends. Plus making Korean friends is easy. They want to learn English and if you can speak Korean and/or like Korean food they’ll love you even more. :)</p>