Yonsei University

About Yonsei University

Yonsei University (연세대학교 (延世大學校)) is a private research university in Seoul, South Korea. It is one of Korea's three SKY universities, considered the most prestigious in the country. Yonsei was established in 1885 and is the oldest university in South Korea.

The student body consists of 38,725 students: 26,731 undergraduate students, 11,994 graduate students, 4,518 faculty members, 6,788 staff, and 257,931 alumni. Today, Yonsei operates its main campus in Seoul and has extensive programs in Korean and English.

The university was formally established in January, 1957 through the union of Yonhi College (연희전문학교; 延禧專門學校) andSeverance Union Medical College (세브란스 의과대학; 세브란스 醫科大學). This was a result of a lasting bilateral cooperation between the colleges that began in the 1920s. The institutions were new to Korea at the time of their inception. Yonhi College was one of the first modern colleges, founded originally as Chosun Christian College (조선기독교대학; 朝鮮基督教大學) in March 1915. Severance has its roots in the first modern medical center in Korea, Gwanghyewon (광혜원 廣惠院, House of Extended Grace), founded in April, 1885. As a tribute, the name 'Yonsei' was derived from the first syllables of the names of its two parent institutions, 'Yon; 연; 延' from Yonhi College and 'Sei; 세; 世' from Severance Union Medical College.

In the symbol of Yonsei University, there is a shield. In the shield, 'ㅇ' means sky, 'ㅡ' means land and 'ㅅ' means human. On the left side of 'ㅇ', the book is truth; on the right side, the torch is freedom. The shield defends these two ideologies.

• College of Liberal Arts

  Since its establishment, Yonsei College of Liberal Arts has always played a crucial role in building the tradition of academic excellence and developing liberal arts in Korea. With outstanding faculty, the college has served as a destination for international scholars and students interested in Korea and has also long been Korea's window to the academic world. The alumni are serving in leadership positions in both public and private sectors across the globe. They are key players setting new international standards in their respective fields.

• College of Business and Economic

  The College of Business and Economics can be traced back to the former department of commerce of the Chosun Christian College which was established in March 1915, making it the oldest business school in Korea. It presently consists of the department of applied statistics and the department of economics.

• School of Business

  As the first modern institution of higher education to be established in the barren land of Chosun(Korea), Yonsei School of Business (YSB) first began to teach commerce in 1915. This was when the field of commerce was still new even in the western world. Our founders had the vision of repelling poverty and developing the country by educating the Korean people. The courage to dream in the face of adversities and the warmth to share the fruits of those dreams with all people were traits that have been engraved in the DNA of YSB. 
  YSB now emerges from its proud Centennial year with an ever stronger commitment to be at the forefront of business education and research. And as a means of expressing this commitment, we have set Entrepreneurship Education, K-Management Research, and Convergence as the School’s new direction. 
  Today, the global economy is being led by newly founded enterprises with unique ideas and innovative business models. YSB will strive to offer innovative education and to foster a start-up ecosystem that encourages students to grow to be global leaders with a strong entrepreneurial spirit. YSB seeks convergence among diverse disciplines and will spread management knowledge applicable to the national environment through business research of Korean enterprises. 

• College of Science

  The College of Science, which has been playing a central role in the development of basic science in South Korea during the last century, is maintaining its preeminence in education and research with its current 130 professors, 1,177 undergraduate students, and 649 graduate students. Specifically, we are working toward our vision of “cultivating creative elites with stewardship” and “creating research frontiers in basic science.”

  The College of Science is attracting superior students by radically improving its scholarship programs for undergraduate and graduate students. Moreover, we are promoting interdisciplinary and multi-disciplinary education by reforming the number of incoming students, curriculum, and teaching systems, and ceaselessly improving the conditions for education and research by enlarging the College of Science buildings and increasing the number of newly appointed professors. The College of Science is leading Yonsei to stand together in the world with excellence and integrity. And we will continue to press on this year as students, professors, and employees join every thought, effort, and devotion together to fulfill our vision and enlarge our boundary.

• College of Engineering

  Yonsei University’s College of Engineering takes pride in educating world-class engineers who are committed to achieving technical excellence based on the Christian spirit of truth and freedom. Over 50,000 engineering alumni around the world are exemplifying these ideals as the leaders of the society and global organizations. We are confident that our students, who walk our corridors and fill our classrooms today, will become the leaders of tomorrow.
  The College of Engineering of Yonsei University sets its priority in solving new technical challenges in the areas of energy, health, IT (Information Technology), biotechnology, and built and natural environment. In 2011, we launched our 8th school, the School of Integrated Technology in Yonsei University’s International Campus located in Songdo, Incheon. This new school is committed to fostering Da Vinchi-esque students who will become leading creative researchers for Korea and for the global society.

• College of Life Science and Biotechnology

  The College of Life Science and Biotechnology is going to become a world-class education and research institute leading the future technology in life science through an integrated research for basic life science, applied biotechnology, and medical bioscience.

• College of Theology

  The College of Theology has produced around 2,004 graduate students who are working in diverse fields of academics as well as media and education.

• College of Social Sciences

  The College of Social Sciences has its origins in the former Department of Political Science of the Academy of Arts and Letters (now the College of Liberal Arts), founded in August 1946 as the Yonhi professional school and was raised to the status of Yonhi University. Later the Department of Law, established in May 1950 as the Academy of Arts and Letters was reorganized into the College of Liberal Arts, was added in 13th April 1954, to establish its present form.

• College of Law

  Since its founding, Yonsei University has sought to educate leaders who will make a difference in the world. Following the proud heritage of the College of Law, Yonsei University Law School embraces this tradition. Through the pursuit of truth and freedom, we seek to train global legal practitioners who will provide servant leadership - ethical leaders who will promote democratic values and the rule of law, capable leaders who will thrive in the global arena, and creative leaders who will lead a knowledge-based society. 
  We train the next generation of leaders for both the public sector and private sector, whether in the judiciary, academia, business or public service. For this purpose, Yonsei University Law School is committed to providing the finest legal education to the most talented students in Asia and beyond. Rapid changes in our world demand new types of knowledge needed to practice law and legal education must adapt accordingly. We provide an ideal congregation of diverse people, perspectives, and opinions.

• College of Music

  The College of Music aims to cultivate its students to be excellent musicians who have deep understanding in liberal arts and will actively participate in society.

• College of Human Ecology

  The College of Human Ecology combines theoretical and applied approaches to address human concerns from the ecological perspectives. Selected physical and behavioral sciences in conjunction with liberal and creative arts are used to study how people interact with each other and their environments.
  There are five departments in the college: Clothing and Textiles, Foods and Nutrition, Interior Architecture and Built Environment, Child and Family Studies, and Human Environment and Design.
  Four research institutes are associated with the College of Human Ecology; the Human Ecology Research institute, the Research Institute of Foods and Nutritional Sciences, the Research Institute of Clothing and Textile Science. The college has close ties with the Child Development Research Institute affiliated with the university. Through the research, education, and service activities of the institutes, the College of Human Ecology contributes to improve the quality of life.

• College of Sciences in Education

  Based on the Christian aspirations for truth and freedom and the national education ideals, the college seeks to meet the educational needs of modern times and the challenge of integrating formal and non-formal education.

• University College

  The freshmen of Yonsei University (with the exception of student majoring medicine, dentistry, music and physical arts) are assigned to respective undergraduate colleges. University college has obtained expertise in liberal arts and academic guidance through its own professors who teach Understanding of Christianity, Writing, College English, Physics, Chemistry, and Biology, and academic advisors who take care of the education of the freshmen.

• College of Medicine

  Yonsei Medical College enrolls 150 students every year, has more than 400 full time faculty members and over 900 attending staff. It operates a 2,000-bed teaching hospital equipped with modern therapeutic and diagnostic facilities and handles more than 3,000 patients a day in its outpatient clinic. The excellence of the college in the area of research and education was finally confirmed by the first national survey of medical schools conducted in 1996. Yonsei University College of Medicine was singled out as the only medical school to receive the highest rating in each of the 6 survey categories. Yonsei University College of Medicine strives to grow continuously with a spirit of Creativity, Christianity, and Cooperation and it maintains its high standard of education, research and service for the benefit of Korea.

History of Yonsei University

Beginnings (1885–1916)

The Yonsei University Medical School dates to April 10, 1885, when the first modern hospital to practice western medicine in Korea,Gwanghyewon, was established.

The hospital was founded by Horace Newton Allen, the American protestant missionary appointed to Korea by the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. (from here on 'the Church'). The hospital was renamed Jejungwon (제중원 濟衆院, House of Universal Helpfulness) on April 26. As there appeared difficulties, the Church appointed Canadian Oliver R. Avison to run Jejungwon on July 16, 1893. Initially, Gwanghyewon was financed by the Korean government, while the medical staff was provided by the Church. However, by 1894 when the First Sino-Japanese War and Gabo reforms (갑오개혁) took place, the government was not able to continue its financial support and thus, management ofJejungwon came fully under the Church. In 1899, Avison returned to the U.S. and attended a conference of missionaries in New York where he elaborated on the medical project in Korea. Louis Severance, a businessman and philanthropist from Cleveland, Ohio, was present and deeply moved. He later paid for the major portion of the construction cost of new buildings for the medical facility. Jejungwon (제중원) was renamed Severance Hospital after his name.

Jejungwon (later Severance Hospital) was primarily a hospital, but it also performed medical education as an attachment. The hospital admitted its first class of 16 medical students selected through examinations in 1886, one year after its establishment. By 1899, Jejungwon Medical School was independently and officially recognized. Following the increase of diversity in missionary denominations in Korea, collaboration began to form. Jejungwon began to receive medical staff, school faculty and financial support from the Union Council of Korean Missionaries (한국연합선교협의회; 韓國聯合宣敎協議會) in 1912. Accordingly, the medical school was renamed as Severance Union Medical College in 1913.

The rest of Yonsei University traces its origins to Chosun Christian College, which was founded on March 5, 1915, by an American Protestant missionary, Horace Grant Underwood sent by the Church. Underwood became the first president, and Avison became the vice president. It was located at the YMCA. Courses began in April with 60 students and 18 faculty members.

Underwood died of illness on October 12, 1916, and Avison took over as president.

During World War II

On August 22, 1910, Japan annexed Korea with the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910. The first Governor-General of Korea, Terauchi Masatake, introduced theOrdinance on Chosun Education (조선교육령; 朝鮮敎育令) in 1911, and subsequently Regulations on Professional Schools (전문학교 규칙) and Revised Regulations on Private Schools (개정사립학교 규칙) in March, 1915. These were intended to stifle private education in Korea; any establishment of schools, any change in school regulations, location, its purpose, coursework or textbooks must all be reported to and authorized by the governor-general, and all courses must be in Japanese.

Severance Union College struggled to meet these requirements; school regulations and coursework were altered, faculty evaluated and enlarged, its foundation and its board clarified. It received its recognition as a professional medical school on May 14, 1917. In 1922 the governor-general Makoto Saitoissued Revised Ordinance on Chosun Education (개정조선교육령). It called for more strict qualification of the faculty, and Severance reacted obediently and further recruited more members with degrees from credited institutions in North America and Europe. Japan did not completely ignore the competence of this institution; in 1923 Severance recovered its right to give medical license to its graduates without state examination, a right which had been lost since 1912. Moreover, in March 1934, the Japanese Ministry of Education and Culture further recognized Severance in allowing its graduates the right to practice medicine anywhere in Japanese sovereignty.

Oh Geung Seon (오긍선; 吳兢善) became the first Korean president of Severance in 1934.

Ordinances in 1915 and 1922 also affected the fate of Chosun Christian College. First intended as a college, it was not legally recognized as such, since the Ordinance (1915) did not allow the establishment of Korean private colleges. Hence Chosun Christian College, now renamed Yonhi College, was formally accepted only as a 'professional school' on April 17, 1917, then a joint project from diverse missionary denominations. However, Yonhi had formed the organization and faculty becoming a university. It consisted six departments: humanities, agriculture, commerce, theology (this department did not open due to differences among the founding denominations), mathematics & physics, and applied chemistry. The ordinances, furthermore, prohibited coursework in Korean history, its geography, or in the Bible outside the department of theology. The council of missionaries reacted with A Resolution on the Revised Educational Ordinance (개정교육령에 관한 결의문) which carefully pointed out that Japan did not apply such rigorous absurdities to its private schools in mainland Japan.

After March First Independence Movement swept the peninsula in 1919, Japan somewhat relaxed its grip on Korea, and this is reflected in the Ordinance (1922). It ceased the arbitrary control of governor-general over the coursework and the qualification of faculty members, and altered its stance on strict separation of religion from all education. It also recognized Yonhi as a professional school equal to its counterparts in Japan, and permitted the Christian programs and the Bible in its coursework. Nevertheless, Japanese literature became mandatory. Under Japanese intervention, Korean history was taught under the name Eastern History, and Korean language was taught whenever possible.

The department of agriculture was closed after 1922 when only its first graduates left Yonhi. There were efforts to revive this department, without much success. However, Yonhi installed a training center for agricultural leaders on campus, with impressive results.

Yonhi was liberal in its admission of non-Christians. Its policy was to admit non-Christians relatively freely and allow the majority Christian students to gradually influence and assimilate them.

In the late 1930s, Japan again shifted its policy towards Korea to incorporate it to its scheme of expansionism. In August 1936, the new Japanese Governor-General Jirō Minamibegan the assimilation of Koreans, to exploit them for military purposes; The governor-general enforced Sōshi-kaimei and Shintoism on Koreans, and began to recruit Koreans for Japanese war efforts. In April 1938 the third Ordinance on Chosun Education ordered the acceptance of Shintoism, voluntary removal of Korean language in coursework and further intensification of Japanese and Japanese history education. Yonhi Professional School did not follow suit and opened courses on the study of Korean language in November 1938. This was not tolerated for long: In March 1940, Yonhi was forced to open courses on Japanese studies for each department and each year. From 1938, English began to come under pressure following a deterioration of relations between Japan and United States; coursework in English was forbidden and texts of English writers were censored. In 1938, President H.H. Underwood accepted the practice of Shintoism to avoid the fate of Yonhi's termination. Governors-General pushed Yonhi to refuse financial support from United States and financial difficulties amounted.

On an individual level, Yonhi faculty members and its students were apprehended or investigated during this period for their involvement in real and alleged resistance movements.

In 1939, the United States government recalled all its citizens and missionaries in Korea; Underwood and some of the faculty refused to leave Korea until forced to in 1941–1942 following the outbreak of the Pacific War. Japanese military officers were dispatched to Yonhi for military training of its students in 1940 and forced labor began in 1941. Scientific equipment, building parts, and even the Underwood statue were seized. The school yard was turned into drill ground. Due to their value in the war, medical students of Severance were not a target of "voluntary recruitment," but Severance faced Sōshi-kaimei, military training, and constant surveillance by the Japanese authorities. Severance was coerced into changing its name to Asahi (旭) in 1942.

On August 17, 1942, the board was dismissed and Yonhi was designated as enemy property, and thus was appropriated and further managed directly by an appointee from the Governors-General. Yonhi ceased to be a place of education and was converted into a tool for assimilation of Koreans and exploitation of manpower. By October 1943, students were practically being conscripted. In 1944 dormitories were converted into barracks and the campus was occupied by the Japanese air force. Finally, on May 10, 1944, Governors-General closed Yonhi and replaced it with Kyungsung Industrial Management School (경성공업경영학교), the primary purpose of which was to train engineers required to continue the war.

Both Severance and Yonhi were closely involved in Korean independence movements. Many faculty members were directly involved in the March First Independence Movement, as were their students. Severance continued its contribution by printing The Independence in the basement of one of its buildings, and Yonhi was as active as any other school. By the end of the movement only 17 students were left. Yonhi students were active participants of Chosun Student Council for Scientific Research (조선학생과학연구회), which was one of the leading groups in the Mansei Movement of June 10, 1926. Yonhi Student Council and many faculty members belonging to the clandestine New Stem Association(신간회; 新幹會) gave full support to the Gwangju Student Independence Movement (광주학생독립운동). In the aftermath, students were apprehended, and the Shin Gan Society was exposed. Later on, students actively participated in V Narod (브나로드) and Student Enlightenment Movement (학생계몽운동) during 1929–1930.

The Yonhi School, under Japanese oppression in 1940s, kept producing Korean patriots who fought for independence. In 1942, the Japanese Colonial Government of Korea arrested 33 Korean scholars of Korean language including three faculty members of Yonhi and prominent Korean language scholars, Choi Hyun Bae (최현배; 崔鉉培), Lee Yun Jae (이윤재; 李允宰), and Kim Do Yeon (金度演; 김도연) and other graduates of the school including Jung Tae Jin (정태진; 丁泰鎭) and Kim Yoon Kyung (김윤경; 金允經) for organizing the Joseon Language Society (조선어학회; 朝鮮語學會; now Korean Language Society; 한글학회; 한글學會), studying Korean language, and attempting to publish a Korean language dictionary. Lee Yun Jae died in jail in 1942 from torture and harsh treatment, 11 were found guilty, and 5 including Choi Hyun Bae were imprisoned. The Japanese Colonial Court found them guilty because "behaviors such as publishing of a Korean language dictionary is a form of nationality movement to maintain the spirit of Joseon."

Yun Dong-ju (윤동주; 尹東柱), a 1941 graduate of Yonhi School, joined the Korean independence movement, left many poems about patriotism and self-reflection, imprisoned by Japanese, and died from torture and harsh treatment in 1944.

As tributes to their efforts, Yonsei University has constructed a monument called 'Yonsei Hangultap' (A Monument for Korean Language by Yonsei; 연세 한글탑; 延世 한글塔), a monument for Yun Dong Ju (윤동주 시비; 尹東柱 詩碑), and bust statues of Choi Hyun Bae and Kim Yoon Kyung on its Seoul Campus.

During the Korean War (1946–1952)

Severance was approved as a college by the liberated Korean government in 1947. Since the majority of medical institutions in Korea were run by the Japanese, medical staff and faculty were in short supply after their departure. Thus, many members of Severance staff and faculty left to assist other institutions. Severance took up the role of student leadership and was outspoken against US-Soviet occupation. In 1950, during the outbreak of the Korean War, Severance functioned as a field hospital until Seoul was overrun. Severance fled hurriedly but some faculty members and students were unable to leave in time; some were killed and others were captured then exploited by the advancing North Koreans. Severance seniors joined the military as army surgeons. Although Severance returned to Seoul for a while after its recapture, it had to flee again in December on a LSTin Incheon.

When Severance arrived in Busan, its medical school joined the wartime college, a temporary body. Meanwhile, the Severance facility in Seoul received heavy damage, as it was in the center of the city near Seoul Station. Severance Hospital again returned on April 1, 1952, and its medical college on June 12, 1952.

The U.S. military initially neglected the restitution of Yonhi and held other plans to use it as a military hospital or judiciary training center. With time, nevertheless, Yonhi came to be viewed as a missionary institution that was dispossessed by the governor-general.

Yonhi was able to open its doors again on January 21, 1946 and, on August 15, 1946, was recognized as a university. Baek Nak Jun became president. It was a period of transition, and Yonhi University faced obstacles including financial ones; after 1947 things settled down. At the time, Korea lacked teachers and Yonhi was asked to provide education and training; the Temporary Training Center for Secondary School Teachers in Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry (임시 수물화학과 중등교원양성소) was established. In December 1948, plans for unification of Yonhi and Severance began to take form. The Graduate School was formed in July 1950.

At this point, all progress came to a halt due to the Korean War. The university suspended all courses on June 27 and recruited student soldiers. The North Korean military advanced into the Yonhi campus and established its headquarters there. This was a cause of severe damage to the campus when the U.S. military recaptured Seoul in September. The university reopened following the recapture of Seoul, but it was once more on the run to Busan in December. In February 1951, Yonhi joined the wartime college; however, it kept an independent body and opened its own courses on October 3, 1951. On April 15, 1953 Yonhi began its work on restoration; Yonhi returned to its campus in the fall.

1953–1959

In 1957, Severance Medical College and Hospital and Yonhi University merged to form Yonsei University.

Source: The sections Beginnings, Under Japanese Rule (I), Under Japanese Rule (II): The War Machine, Liberation and the Korean War are largely based on 연세대학교백년사 100 Years of Yonsei University History, Yonsei University Press.

Accreditation

Institutional Accreditation or Recognition - Ministry of Education, Korea

Rankings

• Yonsei is one of Korea's three "SKY" universities, which are the most prestigious in the country, with the other members being Seoul National University and Korea University. Admission of these "SKY" universities is extremely competitive. Acceptance rate of Yonsei University in general admission(수시) is below 5%. In general, exhibiting 1% of academic achievement is needed to apply for Yonsei regular decision(정시). Inside Korea, admission to a SKY university is widely considered as a determination of one's career and social status.
• In 2012, Yonsei University was ranked 112th overall, 81st in Arts and Humanities, 12th in Modern Languages and 69th in Management and Social Sciences in the world by QS World University Rankings.
• The 2009 Academic Ranking of World Universities placed Yonsei University at the 23–42 range in Asia/Pacific region and 3rd in South Korea.
• Yonsei was ranked 96th in the world according to an SCI paper published in 2007.
• Yonsei is one of four Korean universities ranked in all three ARWU World University Ranking, QS World University Rankings, and The Times World University Ranking in 2010-13, along with Seoul National University, KAIST, and POSTECH).
• Yonsei University was ranked 16th in Asia in 2012 and continues to rise rapidly in global rank: 112 in the world in 2012; 129 in 2011; 142 in 2010; 151 in 2009; 203 in 2008; and ranked globally 236 in 2007 by QS World University Rankings.
• Yonsei was ranked the 1st Korean university to be in the Economist's 2011 Top 100 Full-time MBAs (#76); US News, 2011 World's Best Universities: Asia #18; and UK Financial Times' 2011 Top 100 EMBA (#57).
• Yonsei University was ranked 36th in Reuters' "The world's most innovative university", which was announced in September 2015.

Student life at Yonsei University

A large number of Yonsei degree programs, including UIC, ASD、and GSIS (in Seoul and YIC) have extensive tuition scholarships for international students that cover tuition and accommodation.

Akaraka is the official college festival for Yonsei students that is usually held on May. During the festival, many prominent singers and celebrities perform.

It is strictly forbidden by the university code of conduct to discriminate against students from non-Christian background yet, as a missionary school, Yonsei undergraduates are required to attend weekly chapel service for four semesters to qualify for graduation.

Clubs

There are more than 100 clubs at Yonsei University; the clubs listed here do not represent all clubs on campus.

• AFKN Listener's Club (ALC) is one of the largest and oldest Major Korean-International exchange student clubs in Yonsei University. Having the most biggest club room in Yonsei, students in ALC play dramas and various activities with foreign students. The club is also famous for its featuring at Reply 1994: The club room characters spend their time is ALC's.
• Yonsei European Studies (YES) Initially organized by Honorary Editor-in-Chief Siyoung Choi (Department of Law, Class of 08) in the name of Yonsei European Society or shortly EU society in May 2011, the Yonsei European Studies Editorial Board publishes the South Korea's only and oldest ISSN-registered bilingual (Kor/Eng) undergraduate journal Yonsei European Studies or YES (ISSN 2287-450X). Since its first edition in August 2012, YES featuring research papers among many on European and international affairs is biannually delivered to the National Library of Korea, Korea National Assembly Library, Yonsei University Library, and highly selective libraries of US/UK universities and institutions. For further information, refer to the coverage of the JoongAng Daily (중앙일보), one of the South Korea's three largest newspapers, on YES in September 30, 2014.
• Yonsei International Affairs Review (YIAR) was the South Korea's first ISSN-registered (International Standard Serial Number, 2092-7649) undergraduate review at Yonsei University, Seoul in 2008. Funded by the Institute of East and West Studies at Yonsei Univ., YIAR published Kor/Eng papers on international affairs. YIAR printed its volume biannually (first edition June 2009). Despite voices for its continuation, YIAR was discontinued at the decision of the last editor-in-chief, as of March 2012.
• The Global Management Track (GMT) is officially supported by the School of Business to systemically discover and train talented business major students. Founded in 1996, with the goal of globalization and a motto of passion, it has addressed many diverse topics worldwide and has increased the business competency of each of its individual member.
• Business Innovation Track (BIT) is a track aiming to foster innovative young generation regardless of the field they are studying.
• Avenante is the only mixed choir in Yonsei University, composed of both music and non-music majors. Concerts are given twice a year. The club practices songs in many genres, from Missa Solemnis to pop songs to traditional Korean songs.
• International Yonsei Community (IYC) was founded in 1995 for global, multicultural exchange in the Yonsei society, including among the hundreds of students on campus from around the world. It upholds a universal idea of contributing to the worldwide foundation of wisdom and knowledge; overcoming cultural, racial and academic gaps; and promoting unity based on deep understanding.
• SIFE Yonsei University was the first "Students In Free Enterprise" team in the Republic of Korea. Since its launch in 2004, SIFE Yonsei University has been playing a key role in SIFE Republic of Korea. Yonsei SIFE has worked on 16 projects that impacted thousands of people living in South Korea: from dislocated North Korean people to Vietnamese immigrant women. SIFE Yonsei University won the Korean national competition three times out of five.
• Major Assets and Development of Equity was founded in 2010 at Underwood International College. The main purpose and aim of M.A.D.E. is to promote and develop sustainable and diversified hands-on investment skills with actual funds among members. This development fund is aimed at providing financial aid and annual scholarship opportunities for UIC students in financial need that exhibit good academic and merit-based standings. The club holds a monthly lecture series that hosts a wide variety of distinguished business leaders, policy makers, and government officials.
• The Yonsei Annals is the monthly English student magazine of Yonsei University, founded in 1962. It is one of the top rated English university monthly magazines in Korea and is run entirely by Yonsei University undergraduates. Many Annals alumni have gone on to careers in fields including journalism, broadcasting, and politics. Annals alumni include Min Kyung-wook of the 25th class who is the news anchor for KBS News 9 on KBS. Currently, the Annals publishes an issue every month. Each includes one or more column from the five divisions: Campus Reporting Division, World Affairs, Photo, Culture and Research. The Annals is a nonprofit organization that is funded by the university. All decisions on content and day-to-day operations are made by the directors composed by the editor-in-chief and the editors of each divisions. There have been some occasions when guest editors were brought in to help develop the magazine. The Yonsei Annals as a branch under the Yonsei Chunchu, Yonsei University's official student-run weekly newspaper.

Services of Yonsei University

IT Facility

• Computer Room
• Multimedia Education Support Service
• Education Development Center

Health/Sports Facilities

• Women’s Lounge
• Walking Trails
• College of Music Library
• Classical music room
• Multimedia Center
• Ampitheater
• Muak Theater
• Multipurpose Gym
• Floor Exercise Room
• Table tennis court
• Tennis court
• Squash court
• Futsal Court

Restaurant/cafe/CVS

• Areum-saem (coffee)
• Cheongkyung-gwan
• Goreul-saem
• Academy Information Center rooftop garden cafe
• Note Cafe (coffee shop)
• Ara Saem (Songdo Dorm 2)
• Ara Saem (Songdo dorm 1)
• Naneul-Saem (Songdo Dorm 2)
• Naneul-Saem (Songdo Dorm 1)
• Booreul -saem
• Hanwool-saem
• Tresbian (Vision Hall)
• Delhiko( coffee shop )
• Tresbian (Goreul-saem)
• Soseul-saem
• Faculty cafeteria
• Sangrok-saem
• Global Lounge ( coffee shop )
• Iseul-saem
• DELICO(Songdo Dorm1)
• Haneul-Saem (Y Plaza)
• Haneul-Saem (Songdo Dorm 2 )
• Naneul-saem (Y Plaza)
• Raon Saem
• Cafe &
• Tresbian (Y Plaza)
• Tresbian (Songdo 1 Dorm)
• Haneul-Saem (Songdo Dorm1)
• Mat-na-saem
• Hayan-saem

Print/Bookstore/Stationery

• Bonteul Saem
• Seulgi-saem
• Bontteul-saem
• IT-Shop

• Underwood International College Scholarship: Admissions Scholarship
• Underwood International College Scholarship: Merit-based Scholarship
• Underwood International College Scholarship: Need-based Scholarship