A lot of the times, the first thing that people think about when they leave to go on vacation or stay in a new country for a long period of time is ‘Where am I going to live?’ Luckily for me, Yonsei University has 2 dormitories just for international students – International House (I-House) and SK Global House (SKG).

Going on exchange is really stressful, you know? You want to do everything, and you want to make sure you’re registering for everything correctly, and you want to not make any mistakes – because any mistakes you do make are just a bit bigger of a deal when you’re out there by yourself. Housing is one of those stressors.

 

First step: applying for a room in the international dorms.

Applying for housing made my friends and I all so nervous – we all wanted to get the room we wanted, in the building we wanted. Luckily, 4 out of 5 of us did okay with the application – 1 of us couldn’t get the website to work until 40 minutes after the applications.. so she didn’t get the room she wanted (but at least she still got a room!) My choice was a double-room in SK Global House – and I got it!

 

They give you a period to request for a roommate if you have a preference, and of course I requested to room with Stef (and she with me). Before we arrived we’d already planned so much about our room (what we were going to buy, share etc.) that we would have been absolutely devastated if we weren’t put together…

 

What are the differences between I-House and SKG? Click here. The main factor for me was the communal washroom thing – I don’t really want to share my washroom with other people, and I don’t really like showering at the same time as other people either. Not something I’m really comfortable with. Although it is (significantly) cheaper… I’d rather be secure than cheap.

 

Second step: pre-departure.

Before you get to Korea, make sure you do a tuberculosis test in your home country. For me, I did it at the clinic on Granville Ave. in Richmond; they just inject some gel underneath your skin, and if you don’t react to it then you don’t have TB. It does cost money though so make sure you’re ready to pay. If you don’t do it before you arrive, there is a clinic that you can do it at in Seoul as well. Make sure you bring your TB test results as well as a copy of your passport when you arrive!

 

Third step: arrival.

I’ll make a blog post about how to actually get to the dorm from the airport at a later date. But, as mentioned above, make sure you have a copy of your TB test results as well as a copy of your passport. If you don’t have a copy of your passport, there’s a photocopier at the front desk so you can just make a copy right there. They will provide you with a keycard (try not to lose it, it’s your way into the dorm itself as well as your room and it costs 5000KRW to replace), a booklet of rules and regulations for you to read, a paper stating how much you’ve underpaid (if you underpaid) as well as another paper telling you other things (like how there’s a housing orientation the next day, where to get a TB test done if you haven’t done so yet, etc.) There will also be a bag of linens (blanket, pillow, duvet, fitted sheet, pillowcase) for you to grab if you choose to do so, but I wouldn’t grab them just yet. Make sure you bring back the last page of that booklet that they gave you by the end of the day as well.

 

Fourth step: settling in. I would really suggest putting your suitcase(s) in your room first, and then going back down to grab the linens. I’m a small person, so moving the suitcases and my carryon was already a big effort for me. Now before you get super excited and start unpacking everything, see if your room is clean first. If it’s not clean (ie. dusty, grimy, etc.) clean it before you put anything down. Our room was relatively clean (my side being significantly cleaner than Stef’s side), but Vivian said her room was really gross. She literally spent 4 days cleaning the entire thing from top to bottom – even the ceiling. A temporary solution would be to first lay some plastic bags down on all the surfaces you plan to put things on, until you manage to get to Daiso and buy some cleaning supplies.

 

More later on the room itself! It’s late and Stef’s finally finished showering so it’s time to end my night.