What is i-SP?
NUS provides options to do summer or winter exchange at partner universities. i-SPs provide a alternative to the flagship Student Exchange Programme (SEP) by offering shorter durations. These programs allow students to explore unique destinations in East Asia, Europe, and Latin America, immersing themselves in diverse cultures and lifestyles. One of the notable advantages is that i-SPs can be completed without interrupting the regular academic term. The experiences gained through studying abroad via i-SPs hold equal importance for prospective employers and play a crucial role in shaping students’ career paths.
Yonsei International Summer School
To make up for the missed opportunity of attending Yonsei University, which had been my dream university since I was younger (had applied and got accepted but family were against it), I decided to embark to Seoul, South Korea during the summer after my freshman year. This led me to participate in the Yonsei International Summer School (YISS) program.
There are a variety of courses offered which may change according to demand and class size. All lecturers seem to have studied at Yonsei at one points wherether it be at a undergradute level or master level. I’m taking Introduction to Psychology (PSY2103), Marketing (IEE2028), and a Corporate internship currently and will add on my reviews of the the courses after I’m completed with them.
Process of Application
Unlike the normal semester long SEP, i-SP is pretty much guaranteed unless your CAP is very very low. You’ll be required to apply both on NUS’s side as well as Yonsei’s side. (Make sure you apply BOTH SIDES, if not NUS won’t approve your mapping of courses!)
1. NUS
Log onto Edureg > Academics > Global Education and you should be able to see the option to apply. I don’t exactly remember the time line for applications but just ensure that you apply by the deadline.
2. Yonsei
You’ll have to make an account on the official YISS Webstie which should have all the instructions for you to follow. When you click on “my page” in the top right hand corner, you’ll be led to this page that keeps track of all the details of your application. It takes about 2 weeks for YISS to process your application so don’t procrastinate too much on this. In the event that you change your mind, it’s possible to get a full refund up to a cretain date so if you ever change your mind you can just request for that 🙂
Housing
Yonsei offers two places for housing, SK Global and International House (all girls). If you’re a guy, you’ll probably have a higher chance of securing housing since you’ll not have much competition. However, for girls, it’s way more competitive beacause there’s only housing for maybe around <1000 people? I’d personally recommend just sourcing for an Airbnb outside rather than the dorms since the dorms are like a 10-20min walk away from the class buildings themselves. (Especially if you don’t manage to secure a single room due to the uncertaintices of having a roommate you don’t vibe with) I was offered International House as I didn’t manage to secure a room at SK Global and took it up because I thought it’d be more “convenient”. However, I requested for a refund due to having a roommate that affected my productivity (very loud, allergies, etc). Hence, I lived in an Airbnb for the rest of the trip. If you’re considering a double room for cost efficiency, just be sure that you know your roommate before hand (well enough) and have knowledge of their life style habits.
Documents
For Yonsei I was required to submit a official Transcript on the application with the school stamp on it (which I didn’t have at the time). Make sure you request for an official transcript on Edureg early as it’ll take a few days for them to process and get your transcript. I do recall that it’s possible for them to email you the copy but for me I went down to the office to collect it physically as it’s faster.
If you’re living in dorms, it’s required for you to submit a Tuberculosis test. Just simply go down to UHC and request for them to do an x-ray to prove you don’t have tuberculosis. I know many people who went to actual hospitals to get it done but I think this was the most convenient option for me. It cost around $25 if I recall correctly.
If there were things that I missed out, feel free to comment down bellow ^^
Click here to read my Year 1 Semester 1 ay 22-23 review
ujiru 