Gachon University president hosts 120 international students at traditional hanok
International students of Gachon University pose at Gachonjae, a traditional Korean house in Incheon, Wednesday.
Gachon University President Lee Gil-ya invited about 120 international students from countries including China, Vietnam, Myanmar, Mongolia and Uzbekistan to Gachonjae, a traditional Korean house in Incheon, on Wednesday, the university said.
The event, part of the university’s Gachon Global Leadership Program for international students, was organized to encourage the students and strengthen their sense of belonging to the school. The students first toured Gachon University Gil Medical Center, a memorial hall for Lee’s former obstetrics clinic and the Gachon Museum.
Gachonjae is a “hanok,” or traditional Korean house, that Lee, founder of the Gachon Cultural Foundation, built with master carpenter Choi Ki-young for traditional etiquette education, tea culture programs and exhibitions on traditional medicine.
Sharing her experience of studying abroad and Korea’s development, Lee told the students to have confidence in their countries’ futures.
“Just as Korea, once poor, achieved its current development, your countries can create a better future if you believe and work hard,” she said.
The university also presented scholarships to Nepalese students affected by large-scale floods in Nepal in August. It will give 200,000 won ($140) each to about 120 students in the spring semester next year, totaling about 24 million won.
The students gave Lee gifts and performed taekwondo routines, K-pop dances, Korean songs and a traditional Vietnamese dance.
Gachon University opened Korea’s first college exclusively for international students last year. About 7,300 international students are currently enrolled, including in its undergraduate and graduate programs and Korean language center.
This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.