(Photo Credit: imagetoday)
Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, many first-semester freshmen are having experiences far different than their expectations. The majority of universities in Korea, including George Mason University Korea (GMUK), announced that face-to-face classes will be canceled for the rest of the Spring semester. The Voice conducted interviews with Spring 2020 freshmen who newly enrolled at GMUK and other Korean universities to receive feedback regarding online class meetings and postponement of face-to-face classes.
The online class has a significant advantage of flexibility; four interviewees were satisfied that they can choose when and where to study. Seoyoung Choi (GMUK, 24’) pointed out that ‘Ultra Collaborate system,’ a platform that GMUK is using at the moment for online lectures, is useful in a sense that “students can share their opinions and ask questions immediately just like they do in face-to-face classes.”
Despite these advantages, every student interviewed with The Voice expressed difficulties in starting college life. According to an anonymous freshman of the Korean university, it was not easy to “[get] tips about campus life and applying for courses” since there weren’t “any chances to meet colleges and mingle with other freshmen such as orientation or welcome parties for the freshmen.” Similarly, Choi (GMUK, 24’) expected to communicate with people with diverse backgrounds and join various activities and events that would be held by the university. However, as the school events were canceled, she is now struggling with joining extracurricular clubs known as registered students’ organizations (RSOs). Sieun Lee (GMUK, 24’) was disappointed by the lack of information about various school events and extracurricular activities as well. Even though freshmen could get information on RSO via the GMUK Kakao group chat, many of the freshmen interviewed were unsatisfied with a lack of face to face interaction with these RSOs.
First-semester freshmen must be puzzled as they face this unexpected and complex situation. For many, it is difficult to get helpful tips and pieces of information on campus life, RSOs, and apply for the proper courses. Since they have never experienced college before, universities are required to come up with plans that would ensure fruitful campus life for newly enrolled students. In an attempt to address these concerns, George Mason University Korea has begun to offer a variety of new online social interactions on the gaming social media platform, Discord. These events, while small, have begun to offer critical opportunities for GMUK students to interact and develop bonds - a critical part of college life. With more schools across Korea developing different ways to connect their new students digitally, hopefully, the Spring 2020 semester will be a good start for many newly enrolled students.
Written by Jaheon Koo | Staff writer
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