Global Experiences
As an International Scholar, I made it a goal to be involved with the many global campus events and cultural organizations that have a home at the University of Florida. Read below to learn about some of the ways I grew my knowledge of the international world!
Korean Language
I never grew up speaking Korean. "You live in an English-speaking country. We are teaching you English." That was the mindset my family had when it came to my experience Korean culture in my youth. Scarred by the isolation and distance that came with growing up Asian in the United States that was only exacerbated by using a language different from the norm, my parents decided that I was to learn English first...and only English. I had heard Korean in my household, but it was not until 8th grade and onward that I decided to make the conscious effort to connect with a part of me that I had grown apart from.
It started simple. Learn Hangul - the Korean phonetic alphabet. I did not understand what the words meant, but at least I could pronounce them properly, read them properly, and write them properly. I sat with my dad and my cousin after thoughtful consideration, and we began learning. It took me less than an hour to memorize and consistently read the language - a sign of the second nature of the journey I would later embark on.
I began speaking at home too. I talked with my parents, learning how to discuss my day to day life from a new perspective. More importantly, I had a new world of cultural heritage to learn and explore. I learned the real names for the dishes I grew up with, had conversations with relatives I had previously been unable to understand, and connected to a whole network of others with Korean heritage since I could finally communicate with them.
I grew an interest in Korea as a nation and a culture, as well as a future place of employment. So, after finishing my Sophomore year, I studied abroad in Korea on an internship program. The rest of this portfolio delves into the professional side of my experience there, but the personal - and linguistic - experiences were their own world. I knew I would be different and foreign, I just did not know to what extent. I masked my discomfort in front of my coworkers - a giggle or an apprehensive smile to fill the gap in my communication. Despite the concerns I had, it turned into more of a blessing in disguise.
My confidence grew as my time in Korea elapsed. With no other Korean-speaking students in my sections of the cohort, all the translation work when I was with my fellow UF students fell to me. I ordered at every restaurant, talked to every store employee, and helped the native Korean friends we met along the way feel more comfortable with someone to truly understand them. I am still progressing on my journey to become fluent in my heritage language, but every conversation, order, or request at work was a valuable step on the right path.
Namsan Tower:
A Symbol of Seoul
KUSA and AASU
The Korean Undergraduate Student Association (KUSA) and the Asian American Student Union (AASU) it is under became a hub for community in a way I had never experienced before.
The area I grew up in had little in the way of cultural or ethnic diversity, meaning that I grew up with very few connections to the racial group that has so often been used to define me. In short, I had very few Asian friends in my youth and always felt a bit disconnected from the people around me as a result. It is a common tale - the ethnically different becoming isolated and encouraged to assimilate into the norm. I did as was expected. I made friends with those around me, my popularity grew and I found my own connections. I had not been able to embrace my culture in the presence of these others, but I had found a community and discovered my passion for working with people.
When I moved halfway across the country to attend the University of Florida, I was starting from scratch. No community, no shared upbringing - everything was new and I was alone. I needed to find my people and create a space for myself. Luckily, I discovered KUSA in my freshman year, alongside the other cultural organizations under the AASU umbrella. I found mentors that have guided my career and university development in my first year, and the connections and community I had around me led me to become KUSA's President leading into my second year of university.
It is in this year that I truly began to let this activity and its community into my life and fully embrace the culture I came from. For the first time in my life, I was working consistently with others of Asian heritage, and consistently had friends with the same Korean background that I had. Through my time in KUSA, I have taken that culture and used it as a means of expanding that community to the incoming years alongside the officers who became my best friends. I worked with AASU to collaborate with other cultural organizations around the UF campus to put on shows, cultural events, and banquets with the central goal of uniting the Asian American student body and making space for that community for years to come.
I have now passed the torch in terms of KUSA leadership, but I am forever grateful for the experiences in connecting with those of a similar yet distinct culture from my own, and the growth I have experienced in being able to communicate my own culture to those who are unfamiliar with it. In a future where I am both a representative and teacher of my own culture, I am grateful for the globally inspired experiences I have had with UF's cultural organizations.