Better Because of Illinois

#3 preferred institution for recruiters Wall Street Journal
#6 highest income potential from a Midwestern institution; the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign was the only public school on the list Payscale.com
Brigadier General Wilma Vaught was the first female, US General, and graduated from the College of Business at Illinois.

Korea University Business School - Seoul, Korea

Saly at KUBS

Saly's marketing group

Studying abroad at Korea University Business School was easily the best experience of my college career. Many fear the unknown of being in a country where people don’t speak English; however that proved to be one of the most entertaining parts of my exchange! Don’t get me wrong, all the faculty and students on campus speak English, but once you step off-campus, you get a scattered variety of English-speaking ability.

I highly recommend signing up for the Korea University Buddy Assistant (KUBA) program. Your buddy will gladly pick you up at the airport and accompany you back to the dorms to help you get settled. Within the first week of my arrival, KUBA welcomed me and provided me with the opportunity to integrate with local Korean students. They enabled the international students to gain a better understanding of Korean culture by accompanying us on our adventures around the country. KUBA is a very prestigious organization on campus, as those Korean students who participate go through a rigorous interview and training process. KUBA is broken down into smaller groups so that you can enjoy quality bonding on a more personal level with your own small group outside of the entire group activities. My group was extremely close; we had weekly lunches together on campus and even went to a festival together at the rival school, Yonsei University. Some of the best friends I made abroad were part of the KUBA program!

Classes at Korea University parallel those at the University of Illinois; they offer a wide variety of business courses taught in English, including general education requirements that transfer over. Professors, some of which earned degrees at the University of Illinois, teach all of the courses as opposed to Teaching Assistants. Something particularly nice is that professors often take their classes out for dinner or drinks once per semester. In addition to all of the international students, there are a handful of visiting professors from around the world that teach at Korea University.

Having traveled around various parts of Asia, I have come to learn that foreigners are often treated extra special. The international students were offered free tickets to participate in one of the major broadcasting station’s “Together Day” television special, where we watched numerous famous artists perform. Besides special events, even while waiting for the trains at the subway, locals would often come up to us and start conversations, fascinated that we were in their country.

The social scene is huge in Korea and easily accessible, especially because Seoul is a very large city. There are many dance clubs in the neighboring districts that are a fun way to spend a weekend out. If you enjoy the outdoor adventures, you can hike the various mountains around Seoul or enjoy Korean-style camp-outs with friends.

If you are looking for an extremely unique experience, studying at Korea University will be the perfect fit for you! One of my reasons for choosing Korea University was the realization that I would eventually travel Europe in my lifetime, but when would I ever really travel Korea so comfortably?

-Written by Saly Sebastian, Finance Major

Saly with a famous Korean actor

Saly's marketing group

Dorm cafeteria

Fun with friends

Gyeongbuk Palace in Seoul

Myeong dong