Housing and field trip payments completed

I wired transfer two separate payments for housing and field trip to Woori bank (Yonsei branch) through Bank of America. The cost is $35 for each transaction (the transfer fee is not the same for all banks). The process was fairly easy. I basically brought information provided in YISS invoice and housing application to my bank; and a banker helped me complete other steps. There are two types of information that you should pay attention on:

• Virtual account numbers are different for [housing] and [field trip + excursions]. From what I've learned, these numbers are used to distinguish me from other students who also make payments for YISS. Thus, don't forget to clarify this to your banker before he/she sends out your payments to Woori to avoid unexpected delays. 
• There's only one swift code. Even if you make multiple payments, this code does not change. The swift code is used to wire transfer internationally. If you have a Korean bank account and transfer your payment using this account, you do not need to use this code.

Note: Bank of America can deliver the exact amount you want in KRW to Woori bank. The exchange rate is subject to change per day. 

I heard from previous students that it typically takes Yonsei approximately 3 days to a week to receive your payments, which seems to be true. I received a housing payment confirmation from SK Global four days after through email. I still haven't heard from them with regards to my field trip and excursion payment. I'll patiently wait till the end of this week with an expectation that they'll get back to me with a confirmation. Otherwise, I'll personally contact them to confirm.

Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship

My dream to study abroad would never come to fruition without the financial assistance from Gilman scholarship. If you are just like me who've never studied abroad before and are looking for some study abroad fundings, I would highly recommend you to look further into this scholarship opportunity.

My Gilman award letter on April 22nd! Felt incredibly lucky and excited :)

The Gilman scholarship requires students to submit two essays: a statement of purpose essay and a follow-on service project essay. I believe the essay component is the most crucial part of the entire application so make sure you put your best effort in these two essays to successfully convince the judges of why you deserve Gilman. As I were fortunate enough to become one of the recipients of Gilman for summer 2015, here are some of my tips that I'd like to share to those of you who are planning to apply for this prestigious award:

• Make an appointment with the office of scholarship in your school. Your scholarship advisor needs to verify the information provided on your Gilman application after you submit it so make sure you keep in touch with your advisor throughout the process.
• Get started with your essays as early as you can. Bring your essays to different writing consultants at your school and your friends so they can give you helpful suggestions on how to improve them.
• Be "very" specific with your statement of purpose [What are your goals? (take classes, learn culture and language, etc.), how will Gilman help you achieve your long-term goals? etc.]
• Be specific with your follow-on service project essay. List out your plan to promote study abroad and Gilman in great details upon your return from the country. Make sure your projects are doable and able to reach out to a wide population (your campus, local high schools, etc.)

Here is Gilman website: http://www.iie.org/Programs/Gilman-Scholarship-Program. The website contains all information that you need, including scholarship criteria, application deadline, essay samples, application process and so much more. 

If you have any questions specifically regarding Gilman scholarship, don't hesitate to leave your comments down below. I'll try my hardest to address your questions.

Apply now and good luck!

Yonsei application

The last two weeks of my Spring semester were quiet hectic. Although finals, presentations, marketing reports, etc. came all at once, I fortunately managed to pull through. I'm so glad that the first day of summer is finally here (Yayyyy!). I have more than a month to prepare for my trip abroad in South Korea; and I'm super duper excited. Words cannot describe how grateful I have been since I got accepted into Yonsei International Summer School (YISS) summer 2015. To start off my first blogging site ever with a meaningful post, I thought I should give you an overview of University of South Florida (USF) study abroad application (if you're a USF student, high five :p) and YISS application. If you are interested in the application process, read on :D

USF study abroad application

I assume that every university has a different internal application and so mine might be different from yours. I suggest you to make an advising appointment with your study abroad office as early as possible to figure out which program is suitable to your academic preference.

According to USF, Yonsei International Summer School is a short-term program. USF students who participate in this program are considered to be exchange students. For USF study abroad application, there are 4 main documents that you must submit to be considered a potential candidate for YISS (be aware of the submission deadline):

1. Personal statement (500 words max) - the reasons you choose South Korea, YISS and how this study abroad program will help you achieve your academic/ career success
2. 1 recommendation letter (must be from your past/ current professors) 
3. Your personal information (name, major, home address, etc.) 
4. Some short essay questions with regard to your passion to study abroad

Note: These documents can be submitted electronically (an advantage for me because I commute :D)

The reviewing process will last for approximately 1 to 2 months after you submit your documents. If you get admitted to USF study abroad program, you will receive an acceptance letter via email.

My acceptance letter from USF

After making commitment to the program of your choice, a brand new window will pop up asking for more information (scary right?). Fortunately, USF allows you to complete these information prior to your study abroad departure so no rush! You must submit course approval form, information of your airfare, passport, emergency contact, etc and attend a pre-departure session. After you submit everything, you are basically done! Anything else? You're required to stay in touch with your study abroad advisor while you're abroad for emergency purpose. 

Click here if you want more information about USF World's YISS program brochure

YISS application 

I have to admit that YISS application was the most simple application I had ever done in my life. It literally took me around 5 mins to fill in the application form. If I remember everything correctly, below is the list of information that is included in Yonsei application (of course, your first step is to create your account on https://summer.yonsei.ac.kr) :

1. Your personal information (name, address, school, etc.)
2. Field trip option (typically 700000 krw - this year we will go to Jeju island)
3. Passport picture (this pic will be used on your YISS student ID so make sure to submit a quality one for a smooth process)
4. Address that you want your Yonsei transcript to be sent to
5. Pre-registration for courses you plan to take at Yonsei (maximum of 3 courses)
6. An official transcript must be sent to Yonsei 

You can check your admission result by logging in to your account. YISS will also send you an admission letter via email. After your enrollment status is finalized, double check to see if you have to pay extra fees.

After several days of refreshing this page, I finally got my status updated :P

Tadaaa! You're done.  I hope I didn't overwhelm you with a ton of information. Thank you so much for reading! :)