Late last month, 39 international students set foot onto Marywood’s campus and entered an entirely new world.

The Global Practical Training Program is a government-sponsored program that allows South Korean students to study English through an immersive experience at an American university. Students are able to practice English literacy and communications skills in a semester-long program.

Marywood University is one of only 13 global universities to welcome international students from the Korean Ministry of Education’s exchange program.

Nursing major Hyunse Jo said that his time in America has not been what he expected.

“You know, in Korea, I heard a lot of things about the United States like ‘it’s dangerous,’ you know, the bad things, but I feel pretty safe [on] campus,” said Jo.

Fellow nursing student Sion Ryu agrees that her time at Marywood has been enjoyable as well.

“This Marywood life is new for me. New friends, new classes, new environments, new culture, so the whole thing has become a driving force in my life…I really love this life so I think this experience is the best in my life,” said Ryu.

Dr. David Kang, associate provost for global education, hopes that this program will not only be beneficial for international students but also domestic students.

“I’d like to globalize our campus so we have a lot of activities going on here not only for international students, but we are going to do a lot of things for our domestic students as well,” said Kang.

Kang also shared his worries about the integration of the students. However, he said he was pleased when the Marywood community went above and beyond to make the international students feel welcomed.

“A lot of students reached out to me and they would like to serve as peer mentors and volunteers, especially, of course, for activities, they would like to do something for our international students, so this is amazing,” he said.

The Marywood community has created a warm and welcoming environment for these international students and their excitement is palpable. Jo and Ryu both said the Marywood community has created a welcoming environment.

“I feel happy. I feel safe. I feel comfortable because the students are so nice and so kind and lovely to us,” said Jo.

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