Hanyang Language School experience share.
魚
5 days ago
I enrolled in the Summer term at Hanyang University Korean Language Institute in June 2026. The whole application process through Creatrip went really smoothly. They kept helping all the way until I actually moved into the dorm, and any updates or notices were sent to my email, so I could get new information very quickly. They even helped handle the dorm process too, which felt super convenient and reassuring.
The biggest reason I chose Hanyang University Korean Language Institute was actually because I want to apply to Hanyang University’s undergraduate program in the future. I figured I could first build up some real experience studying at this school, and the language institute graduation certificate can also be used for applications as a strong supporting document. Also, I have a TOPIK Level 5 certificate, but I’ve never felt confident about my speaking, so I thought while waiting for the school application period, it would be perfect to attend the language institute, improve my speaking skills, and make friends from different countries too!
At the beginning, there’s a placement test, split into a written test and an interview, so there’s no need to be too nervous. It’s just to assess your level so you can be placed into the class that fits you best. The written test is fill-in-the-blank style, so even if you’ve never studied before and have zero basics, it’s totally fine even if you leave it blank! For the interview, you meet the teacher one-on-one in a separate classroom, face to face. It felt like they asked questions based on level. Since my speaking isn’t that strong, I kept telling the teacher, “I don’t know XD.” In the end, I was placed into Level 3, afternoon class. Morning vs afternoon classes are decided based on registration order, and students who have taken the course before and are re-registering get priority for their preferred schedule, then new students come after that.
At first I was sad because it felt like the afternoon class took up my whole day, but later I realized it was actually perfect for me since I could sleep in, great for a night owl like me XD. There are two teachers, one teaches on Monday, Wednesday, Friday (main teacher), and the other teaches on Tuesday, Thursday (assistant teacher). They take turns teaching, and classes are conducted entirely in Korean. The teachers are really patient, they speak slowly and use vocabulary that we can understand at our level. Every week they ask what we did the week before, encourage us to speak, and often tell us that if we don’t know a word, we should just describe it instead. Over time, I stopped being afraid of making mistakes, and it became really natural to express what I wanted to say in different ways.
Besides the regular midterm and final exams (listening, reading, speaking, writing), near the end of the term there’s also a speaking presentation session. They tell you to start preparing around the time midterms end. Each person prepares about a seven-minute presentation and presents it with a PPT they made. I chose to introduce Taiwan. After you present, the teacher asks a few questions based on your content. There’s no need to worry too much about this either, you can treat it as a small challenge and a quick test of your own abilities.
Because I’m a bit slow to warm up, when I first came to Korea and during the first month after classes started, I actually felt pretty lonely. I often cried quietly by myself in the dorm late at night and really wanted to go home. But later, as I got closer with my classmates, we started going out, traveling, and eating together, and we helped each other practice Korean (we even chatted in Korean all the time, it still feels kind of amazing thinking back!). As time went by, I grew really attached to everyone, and on the last day, all of us, including the teachers, cried, hahaha.
It was such a valuable experience. Not only did my language skills improve, but I also grew a lot as a person. It was my first time living alone overseas, and it gave me a clearer idea of what it will be like to come here alone for university in the future, plus I could prepare more. Even if you’re studying there simply because you want to, I still think it’s an amazing experience. Thank you to Creatrip for being so attentive, it let me enjoy this language institute experience with zero worries!