Seoul National University

Seoul National University is a national research universitylocated in Seoul, the capital of Korea. Since its founding in 1946, Seoul National University has been widely considered to be the most prestigious university in the country and is on the 47th place from the 200 TOP universities of the world.  It is located on three campuses: the main campus is in Gwanak and two additional campuses in Daehangno and Suwon. The university comprises sixteen colleges, one graduate school, and nine professional schools. The student body consists of nearly 17,000 undergraduate and 11,000 graduate students. As Korea's leading research university, Seoul National University is committed to diversifying its student body and faculty, fostering global exchange, and promoting path-breaking research in all fields of knowledge.

• College of Humanities

  The College of Humanities at SNU is dedicated to teaching and fostering advanced research in all areas of the humanities. The College of Humanities is divided into fifteen departments ranging from language and literature to history and philosophy. The study of the humanities provides an intellectual and moral foundation for a human-centered information society.

• College of Social Sciences

  The College of Social Sciences at Seoul National University was the first social science college founded in Korea. The College is recognized nationally and internationally as one of the best research colleges in East Asia. Our aim is to advance knowledge and transform our lives through academic program, research, and outreach. Courses of the College provide our students with a wide range of perspectives and broaden their opportunities to become leaders in our society and beyond.

• College of Natural Sciences

  The College of Natural Sciences is not only responsible for educating natural science majors but also provides the fundamental scientific knowledge involved in science education for the College of Engineering, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, College of Education, and College of Pharmacy. The graduate program has received strong support from the Ministry of Education, which generously subsidized student tuitions and provided a better environment for research under the so-called Brain Korea Project (BK 21). Currently more than 200 faculty members and 1,500 graduate students are working hard to produce research results of very high caliber. According to World University Ranking 2009 of the Times Higher Ranking Education - QS, the College of Natural Sciences at SNU ranks among the top twenty to thirty colleges internationally. 

• College of Nursing

  The College of Nursing is  not only oversees the education in undergraduate, master’s and Ph.D programs in nursing, but plays a central role in nursing within and outside of the country. It is responsible for the education and training of nursing scholars and clinical nurses working in various fields. Overriding educational goal of the College is to educate students to become professional healthcare leaders with creativity and critical thinking, who contribute to the welfare of humankind based on the humanitarian ideal. To achieve this goal, students learn the basic skills, knowledge and attitude to assess the health problems of individuals, family and the community at large and plan and implement appropriate nursing care to solve the health problems, and evaluate the responses of the clients. 

• College of Business Administration

  The College of Business Administration is a Sustainable Leadership Academy. The motto of the college is to nurture global leaders with challenging mind, creativity and social responsibility. The College not only provides theoretical and practical studies that foster professionalism, but also offers extra-curricular programs that cultivate teamwork and leadership. Students that aspire to enter the College are those of highest capabilities in the country, and among them, the College seeks to emphasize virtue over talent in order to nurture moral leaders. Programs such as Global Community Service, Team Spirit Camp, Sports Leadership Camp and the Silk Road Project 21 are opportunities for students to face challenges and overcome uncertainties through teamwork. 

• College of Engineering

  The College of Engineering seeks to nurture leaders and engineers talented in the studies of science and technology. In the undergraduate program, the emphasis is on training engineers who will be instrumental in introducing new technologies and in improving productivity to fulfill the needs of high-tech industries. The graduate program, on the other hand, focuses primarily on training the next generation of engineering professors and researchers in pursuit of maintaining academic excellence and making contributions to society

• College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

  As the cradle of Korean agricultural science, the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) boasts a century-long tradition. The College aspires toward academic excellence by conducting high-quality research on the latest theories and technologies. The College also aims to nurture future leaders and professionals at the highest international levels of excellence. 

• College of Fine Arts

  The College offers both MFA and Doctoral programs for each major field. The College of Fine Arts emphasizes that students should be interested in human life and nature as well as develop a specialty in their major field. The goal of the College is to enable students to realize their full potential through creative activities.  

• College of Law

  The College of Law  prepares its students for success in their future careers. Students are encouraged to develop their critical thinking skills and to prepare to contribute to legal and social progress in Korea and on the international stage. As Korean law and international law rapidly adapt to the challenges facing modern societies, College of Law faculty members address the most complex and challenging issues. The achievements of faculty relate to a diverse set of intellectual endeavors. The efforts of faculty range from reform of civil law to the design of global legal frameworks for solving shared problems. 

• College of Education

  The College of Education aims to perform creative academic research on education, train good teachers, and thereby contribute to the development of education in Korea. The three key strategies to achieve such goals are as follows: 1) Train world-class teachers with the character and professionalism fit for the 21st century; 2) Strengthen research capabilities of the College and increase exchange programs with overseas colleges of education through international exchange program agreements in order to become a world-renowned educational institution and the education hub of north-east Asia; 3) Offer life-long learning to the local and global community based on the development of information and communications technology. 

• College of Human Ecology

  As a part of the leading institution in Korea, the College of Human Ecology (HumEc) is dedicated to the education and research to improve the quality of life for individuals and families, which is the fundamental value of Human Ecology. Our dedicated faculty strives to meet the demands of society with cutting-edge research and systematic education. The state-of-the-art building and facilities, where HumEc has recently resettled, provide the best environment for such effort. As one of the top programs of its kind, HumEc hopes to maintain standards of excellence in the field of Human Ecology.

• College of Veterinary Medicine

  The educational objective of the College is to provide students with the fundamental knowledge of how to control the diseases that afflict livestock, companion pets, wild animals, lab animals and aquatic animals and to promote the health of animals as well as the public health of humankind. 

• College of Pharmacy

  The College aims to play a pivotal role in national science and technology development by increasing research equipment, recruiting outstanding faculty, building up research achievements and starting up companies based on new technology. The College will do its best to maintain its reputation as a leading educational institution for pharmacy.

• College of Music

  The College of Music is the very top-ranking music education institution in Korea, with prominent faculty staff for each major subject. The College focuses on recruiting talented students and training them to become professional musicians equipped with theoretical breadth and strength in performance. The College of Music has prepared a comprehensive curriculum to educate future leaders in the field of music.  In Korea, most of the prominent figures in the field of music are SNU alumni. In addition, many alumni have gone abroad and have established themselves as world-renowned artists.

• College of Medicine(SNUCM)

  Training and education in SNUCM is more focused on the global medical education standards, thus rather than theoretical lectures, we put more emphasis on practical training. Moreover, instead of a large group teaching, we divide students into small groups or do individual training, while selflearning oriented education is the key to raising students' genuine interests in medicine.

• College of Liberal Studies

   This college is committed to providing ample opportunity for developing students' potential and creativity through close interaction between students and faculty members. As active learners, the students of the College of Liberal Studies are expected to pursue an imaginative, intellectual and independent way of study. Unlike their colleagues in other colleges, they enjoy the privilege of using their freshman and even sophomore years to find and cultivate their own talents and interests before deciding their majors. They are not only free to choose their majors, but also allowed, with faculty supervision, to design and initiate their own curricula. 

• 1895 - The National Law Academy and the Hansung Teacher Training School were established
• 1946 - Seoul National University was established with 9 colleges on October 15
• 1950 - SNU moved its campus to Busan and continued classes during the War. 
• 1968 - SNU set out to become a research-focused comprehensive university.
• 1975 - The Gwanak main campus opened.
• 2002 - SNU became renowned internationally as a top research university

Accreditation 

• Institutional Accreditation or Recognition - Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Korea
• Year of first Accreditation - 1946
• Other Specialized or Programmatic Accreditations - Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International)

International rankings 

• #36 - QS World University Rankings
• #16 - QS WU Rankings by Subject Modern Languages
• #8 - Asian University Rankings

SNU offers a vibrant array of activities and events to keep your social calendar full. Participating in these school festivities and social clubs will enable you to experience first hand the university life in Korea and get a taste of the Korean culture. 

• Museum of Art: 
• SNU Museum
• Kyujanggak(Archives)

SNU International Students Association  also provides international and Korean student with opportunities to take part in voluntary activities to help people in need. For example, in 2008 together with SNU professors SISA raised a fund for about $8,000 to help Chinese and Myanmar people and sent it through World Vision organization. 

The SNU Gwanak Campus is not at a walking distance from the Seoul National University station. But there is no need to worry, as there is a free shuttle bus that runs from the campus (Administration Building) to the subway station. Gwanak-sa is the biggest dormitory on Gwanak Campus. It includes the Undergraduate House, Graduate House and Family House.

Undergraduate Dormitory rooms are double rooms with large public restrooms, partitioned shower stalls, and laundry rooms located on each floor. Every room is furnished with a bed, desk, chair, bookshelf, and telephone for each resident. Each room is also equipped with a LAN for free Internet connection. Bed sheets and a laundry basket will also be provided to each resident at the time of check-in. All buildings have air-conditioned lounges furnished with a TV/VCR, community refrigerator, microwave oven, and vacuum cleaner - all free for resident use. Each building also has a reading room, which is usually located on the 4th floor and is open 24 hours. The living arrangements at Graduate House vary by building, with double rooms in Building 914, single rooms in Building 918, and clusters (shared accommodations with three double rooms) in the remaining four Graduate House buildings (Building 919). Family House accommodates 200 families with children. Each apartment is equipped with two bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen and a bathroom. For international students, the apartment is furnished with a refrigerator, gas stove, table, bed, and desk.

Cafeterias and Snack Bars

On-campus cafeterias mainly offer Korean cuisine, costing 1,700~10,000 KRW per meal. The menu includes noodles or rice and soup with 3~4 side dishes (Kimchi is usually one of these side dishes). Occasionally, western-style food is available.

SNU provides an array of restaurants on campus to suit various tastes. The Hoam Faculty House has a restaurant run by a hotel, which provides high quality, western-style meals. If you are in the mood for Japanese food, you can go to the 3rd floor of the Dongwon House to enjoy dishes like sushi, noodles and fried vegetables. If you would prefer a healthier meal, try visiting “Bibigo”, a restaurant located in Bldg. 501 and try out their Bibimbap (mixed vegetables on rice).

Computer Labs and Copy Shops on Gwanak Campus

To use the printers or copy machines, you need to insert a prepaid card into a card reader connected to the printer. The rechargeable card (5,000 KRW) can be purchased at any copy shops on campus and at the Central University Library’s snack bar. Printing costs 50 KRW/sheet and copying costs 50 KRW/sheet.

Health Services

The On-campus Health Service Center is the most conveniently located health care facility for SNU students. Present your student ID card and fill out a form from the reception window to receive medical care and/or prescriptions. Here is the list of medical services they offer:

• Medical check-up
• Prescription 
• Counseling 
• Health education 
• Various types of vaccine
• Group medical check-up
• Checking sanitation condition
• First aid
• Issuing medical certificate etc. 

Libraries

The story University Central Library houses a collection of 2.2 million volumes with over 4,000 seats to read from. There are also a variety of function-specific rooms for audiovisual, binding, map collections, micro-forms, newspapers, periodical, references, reserve books, rare books & archival collections, along with theses and dissertations. 

Shops

At the SNU Souvenir shop, you can buy SNU memorabilia such a as school shirts, cups, key-holders, bookmarks and traditional items, etc. with the SNU logos. It is located in Student Center, 2nd floor. 

Seoul National University welcomes and supports students from all over the world. In particular, SNU extends special invitations to students from developing countries who want to find inspiration in Korea’s phenomenal development. SNU is teaching 10~20% of courses in English, as well as running exceptionally organized Korean language training programs. A large number of international students in the past have enjoyed studying at Korea’s most prestigious university and learning about Korea and Korean culture. SNU annually accepts about 600 international students for exchange programs.