Seonyeong Park

Hello, my name is Seonyeong Park and I am studying business administration at Ewha Womans University. In this summer, I went on an extended trip to Tokyo and Honolulu during the month of July after the end of the 2024-1 semester. I went on the trip because I wanted to experience the lives of my friends who live a different life from mine in another country, but I learned more than I had initially expected. In Hawaii, I tried swimming, snorkeling, and surfing, however I realized that surfing is the most similar to life. In surfing, there’s a saying that claims “you never get the same wave”. ' This saying reminds me that just as you can not get the same wave; these moments are once in a lifetime. Just like the interpretation of the saying, I chose to seize every “wave” of opportunity I had been blessed with and lived in the moment.

Ever since I entered university, I've been studying a path I never thought I would. While it's been challenging at the time, I've found it to be a great asset. I entered the HOKMA college (Ewha Womans University's non-major undergraduate program) and majored in Economics with the intention of becoming a diplomat. After taking Principles of Accounting Information as a credit-bearing course, I fell in love with accounting and applied to transfer to business administration. However, as I prepared for the Korean Institute of Certified Public Accountants (KICPA) for almost two years, I gradually lost my purpose and my health started to degrade. Since I didn't want to be stuck in this situation, I applied to return to school for the first semester of 2024 and wanted to participate in various activities in the business administration course.

In previous semester, I took Management Information Systems, participating in the Ewha Fintech Society which discusses cryptocurrencies and blockchain, and worked on a thesis with a teammate for the Winter DB Contest over the break. As my interest in fintech grew, I took Business Capstone Design I and analyzed the securities industry of fintech. At the end of the semester, I wrote a draft AI portfolio proposal for a startup proposal report which I developed into a personal academic report after receiving feedback from former Oracle executive Lee Kyung-hee. Once I was finished the edits, I submitted the proposal to the business administration major academic fair. I also wrote and submitted a joint report comparing the success factors of virtual to metaverse with a fellow business administration student who was interested in the data. Since I am also interested in art and AI, I joined the Management Arts Undergraduate Research Program in July, had been working on strategic planning, writing a proposal for government investment, and discussed the launch of the ArtLinker site.

At the beginning of the semester, I participated in a lot of activities with the business administration major thinking that I wanted to find the proper fit for me. I am going to continue my studies in data processing by learning about machine learning so that I have the ability to conduct my own experiments for my thesis. I am still exploring what skills are needed for my field of interest. I feel that I especially need a diverse view of the world and I saw my trip in July as a way to get a glimpse into the lives of my local friends which will prepare me to make the journey from nothing to something. As an extension of this, the exchange student program in the first semester of 2025 will be a great opportunity to satisfy my curiosity and enthusiasm.

In every course I've taken as a Business Administration major, I've taken the initiative to recruit study mates at the beginning of each semester in order to gain a deeper understanding of the class. It was easy to recruit teammates because the classes frequently form teams, and the chemistry was always great which made it easier to adjust to the major after switching majors. We would look up references when we had any questions and we shared the materials we needed to understand the course. When our study group wasn't as active, I took the initiative to share more materials and coordinate schedules. As a result, my initiative helped me gain a deeper understanding of the subject and helped each of us get the grades we wanted. Interacting with my study partner helped develop my own interests in academics since I studied for ADsP exam related to the MIS content in summer. Even though the language is different, I will be able to easily adapt because the classes have the same fundamentals and core concepts. Due to my exposure of various English lectures, I will be able to keep up with the classes in my exchange country. If I have difficulty understanding in lectures, I will study with other classmates and actively participate.

I have a curious personality and I have no problem making friends, but I tend to need time to settle in. When I came to Ewha Womans University as a freshman, I was very nervous about starting a new life in a different environment. However, during the summer of my freshman year, I participated in the Global City Life, a summer exchange program with Keisen Women's University in Japan, hosted by HOKMA, which helped me make friends, feel a sense of belonging, and adjust quickly. I know my personality is quite sensitive to changes in environments, so I tend to push myself into new situations. For example, in 2022 I moved out on my own in Seoul where I had no ties. Although it took me a while to adjust, I was able to integrate by filling my space and trying out my favorite hobbies one by one. Throughout my life, I've always prepared myself which helped me adapt quickly in any situation. In 2025, I want to face my fears and curiosities through the experience of living in a foreign country.

I applied to the exchange program to broaden my horizons in my field of interest, so it was important to me that the school had a lot of professors who specialized in Fintech and big data, or that it had a lot of relevant courses. As a student in my senior year, I will be able to participate in master’s classes, so I am eager to take more in-depth courses to further my academic achievements. Additionally, having the opportunity to participate in an internship program at my exchange school would allow me to focus on my interests in the future. I also felt that if the school had a well-developed buddy program, I would be able to settle into my new environment quickly. I would like to experience new countries beyond Asia. I felt that an experience in France, with its diverse art galleries and museums, would deepen my taste for Western art, which would help me grow as a research student in my current undergraduate program in Business and Arts.

In IÉSEG, I will learn the language of the country as I would be often exposed to it and would also be interested in learning it. In the previous semester, I have been constantly improving my English conversation by visiting the English lounge at my school. I also learned Japanese Hiragana for my travels. I usually make an ongoing effort to learn the language of whatever country I visit. I will continue that interest by working towards obtaining a language certificate.

I intend to enjoy the wave that I have been given through this business administration study abroad program, no matter what the challenges, because I know that the same wave will not come again. I will seize the opportunities that I am given, always act in a way that is not arrogant, and live in the moment.