Recently, a delegation of TKU faculty and staff, led by the Vice President for Administrative Affairs, Dr. Po-Yuan Kao, visited several Korean universities, including Kyungnam University, Hangyang University, Sung Kyun Kwan University, and Sungshin Women’s University. The purpose of the trip was to better understand the administrative measures in place in overseas universities, and to partake in academic exchange and interaction with TKU’s Korean partner universities.

The recent trip was TKU’s first visit to its Korean sister schools in five years. Vice President Kao noted that in the past five years, Korea has taken on a more “international” feel. Not only have Korean universities drafted detailed plans for future development, but they are now taking significant strides toward achieving them, he commented. The impetus for change has come partly from the broader Korean society, with its firm emphasis on education, and partly from Korean universities themselves, which exhibit a strong sense of ambition and possess concrete blueprints for the ongoing promotion of internationalization. Vice President Kao voiced his encouragement of students considering going overseas for student exchange, which he feels helps to “broaden students’ horizons”.

The Director of the TKU Office of International Affairs, Dr. Pei Wha Chi Lee, said that this was TKU’s first visit to Sungshin Women’s University since TKU and Sungshin became partner universities in 1983. During their visit, they toured the campus and were shown a recently completed building that featured glass curtain walls. The interior was also unique, and contained a pianola (a self-playing piano) and a rotating art gallery. “It created an incredibly artistic atmosphere”, commented Director Lee, who was also greatly impressed by Hangyang University. In particular, she pointed to Hanyang’s range of academic achievements, its policy of internationalization, and its system of industry-academic cooperation.