Ewha Language Program Placement Examination Day

As I enrolled and registered for the three week Korean language program at Ewha Woman's University, I had expected the range of 15-30 people also enrolled. My expectation was prompted by 1) Warnings on the website that listed insufficient enrollment as a reason to cancel classes and 2) I couldn't imagine there being an abundance of individuals like myself; Me being only available due unusual circumstances like graduating early/ semester off/ but only wanted 3 weeks of studying. To my surprise, the auditorium to take the placement test was filled with a good 200 to 250 students.

ECC- Main and Iconic Building of Ewha

The test itself had two sections: Beginner and Intermediate. The beginner section composed of images to identify such as an apple or dog and a listening and speaking section to be done in front of a teacher. The intermediate section had large passages in 한글 and corresponding questions. I attempted my tiny chisel of Korean reading capabilities at the blocks of texts but eventually figured there's little use in trying to fake that I am better at reading than I was.

Therefore, I folded my test and headed upstairs. Sitting down in front of the teacher, I was asked my name, where I am from. She soon realized she could carry out a normal conversation with her so she ditched the script she was suppose to follow. She told me it's always difficult to place Korea-Americans because of the mixed experience and proficiency in writing/reading vs. speaking/ listening. 

There's 3 levels, two parts to each, then further divided into two more parts. She put me in the Level 1 Part 1 of Part 2... Simple 1-2. She gave me the option of just being placed on speaking which she said was level 3 but she suggested that learning the basic grammar and structure would be beneficial. 

Inside the Ewha Language Center Building

After the exam, tours divided by languages were given. Out of 250 students, 12 were in the English group. I met people from Egypt, Netherlands, Romania, Australia, UK, 2 from United States, Austria, Germany, and France. The students ranged from college aged to middle age with reasons for studying mainly for business and job opportunity.