1. Hello, first of all, please introduce yourself and briefly introduce the dispatched university.
Hello, I'm Kwon Hyun-jae, a 21st grader in the Department of Global Business, and I'm currently a third grader in global bba at the emlyon business school through a multi-degree program at the university. emlyon business school is a private business school established in 1872, located in Lyon, France. It is a highly recognized business school in France and Europe. And it has the advantage of being able to take classes in a new building in a good location because it moved to a new campus last September!

2. How did you participate in the multi-degree program?
The fact that it is a top management university in France certainly had an impact, but I think it was the most attractive that I could go ahead and take the path that is not yet known. Since it is a new program and no one has been dispatched yet, I strongly felt that I could go and find my own way. Since I enjoyed studying various disciplines in various ways while studying in the Global Management Department, I decided that going to a very different place and experiencing different cultures and different educational methods would have a good impact on my life.

3. What is basic life like in France? Basic living in Lyon
Lyon is a large city located in southeastern France. Like a French city, it is often cloudy and drizzly, but the weather has been really nice since April until now. It is less cold and hot than in Korea, but it is a typical European weather.
Because it is the second largest city after Paris and Marseille, it is equipped with almost all the amenities such as hypermarkets, department stores, and movie theaters. The subway and tram are well established, and because you can enjoy unlimited access for only 25 euros a month, transportation is also very cheap. Security is really good, except for certain neighborhoods. It's okay to walk around late at night, and most of the neighborhoods are clean and safe.

4. Do you have any tips for finding accommodation?
The number of dormitories affiliated with schools is so small that there are no dormitories. Therefore, it is not easy to find a place to live in in person, and due to the nature of the French system, it requires a guarantor living in France when looking for a house, so it is not easy to find a house by yourself. However, unlike Korea, France has a large number of private dormitories run by private companies. These dormitories are also available to foreign students because they are not guaranteed by guarantors, but by guarantors who provide guarantees for a certain amount of money. Lyon has a variety of private dormitories, and I live in one of them. Unlike Korea, the period of notification of whether you are leaving is one month before the departure, so even if you want to find a house in advance, you cannot. You can email each private dormitory about a month and a half to two months before you leave, or submit an application through the website. At first, it was a little cumbersome, but the whole process of finding a house could be solved by email or phone.

5. I'm wondering if you need to speak French. And do you have any learning tips?
I can't speak French, but I only speak English at school, so there's no problem! However, due to the nature of France, if you know how to speak French, it will be helpful in every way. Internships that you have to do during the semester will be easy to get if you can speak French, so I recommend you to take the time to learn. In administrative processing and daily life, it's not too inconvenient if you can only speak very basic levels of French.

6. What is the cultural difference between France and Korea?
In France, there are mid-term vacations in the semester. Unlike Korea, where students learn all the subjects from the beginning to the end of the semester collectively, classes were conducted by dividing one semester by vacation. For example, during the two months of February and March, they took four subjects and took the final exam at the end of March, and after taking 1-2 weeks off, they took three subjects again during April and May and took the final exam at the end of May. When it comes to classes, there were many teams and presentations as in Korea. What was a little different was that students were a little more active in expressing their opinions and having a lot of conversations with professors in class.

7. Please share your feelings and concerns as a student participating in the multi-degree program.
I think it's all up to you! If you want to spend a lot of time alone, you can spend more time than in Korea, and if you want to hang out with your friends, you can do as many activities as you want through the city's infrastructure and exchange student communities. There are times when I feel lonely and hard to be away from Korea, but I'm also learning a lot how to go out for a walk, organize my thoughts, and go on a vacation to relieve such loneliness.
I think the language barrier is the biggest one compared to other things. I often ask for French for internship positions, so I think my restrictions will be even greater when I look for internships for spring semester next year. However, some foreign students are seeking internship positions that require only English, not French, so I am preparing with the intention of giving it a try.

8. Please tell me your experience as an actual dispatched senior.
I may be inexperienced because I've only experienced one semester since I was dispatched, but it wasn't as hard to adapt as I thought. I think it was okay because students of the Global Management Department have become accustomed to taking classes and exams in English for two years, and they already have enough ability to study here through various presentations and assignments. I think it is a part that is more concerned with language barriers and cultural differences than with academic parts.
I don't think it's easy to live alone in a faraway place that is not a familiar place. The process of preparing everything on my own, from visa preparation to dormitories and air tickets, has been quite complicated and difficult. There is a lot of way to go. However, in the process, I think I learned more about how to pioneer life on my own. While living with foreigners, I learned more about how to actively reach out to others. I think there will probably be more changes during the remaining three semesters.


9. Lastly, if you have anything you would like to share with your business classmates who are considering participating in the multi-degree program, please.
If you want to get more diverse options through overseas experience, not from Korea, it may be a good choice. You get a chance to live in France for two years at a similar cost to attending Sungkyunkwan University. It is difficult to live alone and there are language barriers, but it is a program that has the charm of growing up by overcoming such uncertainties. You should also consider that you have to give up what you can only get in Korea because you have to endure two years of overseas life. Think about it enough, and if you are attracted to the things you can only get from living in France, you can apply!