Experiencing School Clubs in Korea

When I came to Yonsei in spring of 2024, my biggest worry was “how am I going to make friends?” as is a typical thought for anyone moving to a new place. I was lucky enough to come with some friends from my home university in the U.S., but still, I wanted to be able to make friends and connections here in Korea, as it was a part of why I wanted to study abroad in the first place. During the first week of classes, along the main walkway through the center of campus, I saw a long line of tents. Little did I know, the next day these tents would be filled with ambassadors of the campus clubs, promoting themselves to the student bod and looking for new members. They had clubs of every variety from sports to journalism, STEM to religious, and cultures to arts, there was a club for just about anything. What caught my eyes last year was the girls lacrosse club and the hip-hop dance club. Throughout my childhood I played lacrosse for 8 years, and the last place I expected to see it again was while I was studying in Korea. I immediately inquired about the club and they let me know it’s open admission, any and everyone can join! They offer equipment rentals, which was great because it would have never crossed my mind

Throughout my childhood I played lacrosse for 8 years, and the last place I expected to see it again was while I was studying in Korea. I immediately inquired about the club and they let me know it’s open admission, any and everyone can join! They offer equipment rentals, which was great because it would have never crossed my mind to bring my old lacrosse equipment from home. Signing up was simple, all I had to do was fill out a Google Form and I was in.

As I walked further down the line of tents, many of the clubs would call my friends and I in. Most clubs had games or activities for the students curiously walking up and down the sidewalk, often with prizes like candy or stickers promised for participation. Most would would speak to us in English which really just added to the fun, friendly vibe of the whole club fair. After winning some snacks and meeting so many people, I saw the tent for Harie.

Harie is Yonsei’s street dance/hip-hop dance club. Dance is also something I’ve done for a better part of my life, and something I definitely wanted to continue here in Korea. Especially with how many famous studios are here in Seoul. The members at the booth were so welcoming and I immediately knew I wanted to join. They let me know there was a short audition process, and you can audition with any choreography, K-pop included. After the audition I got a text saying I was a new member and we quickly jumped into activities for the semester.

Joining these two clubs would be the best decisions I made during my time and impact me to this day, as I am here a second time.

The girls lacrosse team is made up of about 20 girls, some experienced, but most joining the sport for the first time in their life. It is a majority domestic Korean students, but most with great fluency in English. The coaches are both from America and some of the most kind motivating coaches I have ever had. The girls on the team are so hard working and made practice so fun. We would practice twice a week and outside of that we became good friends, often grabbing coffee and meals together. I was starting to feel like I began overcoming the worry of making friends here.

Shortly after joining Harie, they hosted their MT, which stands for member training. If you've watched a university kdrama, you've probably seen the characters have an MT episode. MTs consist of going to a place, usually a house with the purpose of hosting MTs, and cooking food and eating together, playing games and in true Korean fashion, drinking together. We took a shuttle bus there and immediately got to eating samgeopsal (pork belly) and chatting with the other members of the club. There's a huge mix of foreign and domestic students in Harie so finding people to talk with was no challenge. Once the games started, we were put into teams and did dance challenges and song games. When we finished those, they brought out some soju and snacks and we danced, talked, and drank until the morning when we left back for campus. It was so much fun and I met so many good friends that would stay with me the rest of the semester, even to now.

Throughout my semester, I grew closer with those in both of these clubs, continuing to make friendships that would impact me so deeply. These connections are part of why I came back to Korea for a second time.

Coming back to Korea, I knew I wanted to be a part of both of these clubs again. I told as many people on the program that being in schools clubs was one of the defining parts of my semester last year and that I would recommend it to anyone. At the club fair this year, I was welcomed back with open arms and now have begun my activities in the clubs once again. It's been great to see old friends, and meet new ones that may have joined this or last semester. These activities continue to shape me and my experiences in Korea and I hands down without a doubt recommend it to anyone and everyone.