Seoul Global Center recruits participants for a four-session basic Korean class starting with Hangul letters

Seoul Global Center is recruiting Seoul-based foreign residents and international students who are beginning Korean for its October basic Korean program. Applications are open from September 23 to October 1, and final participants will be notified by text message on the afternoon of October 2.

Classes will be held four times, every Thursday on October 8, 15, 22 and 29, from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. The venue is Room 405, Seoul Global Center, 38 Jong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, near Exit 6 of Jonggak Station on Subway Line 1.

What is Seoul Global Center?

Seoul Global Center is a comprehensive support organization under the Seoul Metropolitan Government, established in 2008 to help foreign residents and international students settle into life in Seoul. It provides language and daily-life adaptation support as well as employment and entrepreneurship training, professional counseling and a support desk for international students.

This class is a short introductory course for beginners at Korean Level 1 or below. Unlike the long regular semesters offered by university-affiliated language institutes, it focuses on the starting point of reading Hangul and building basic sentences.

What will participants learn?

The class begins with practice distinguishing Hangul consonants and vowels and pronouncing them accurately. It then expands into reading and writing with basic vocabulary and learning simple sentences for everyday use. Textbooks, videos and presentation materials are used, and each class ends with a review using the smartphone quiz tool Kahoot!.

For Korean beginners, letters and pronunciation form the foundation for later vocabulary study. If learners cannot connect letter shapes with sounds, they continue to struggle with reading traffic signs, menus, addresses and school notices. Once they understand how Hangul letters work, however, they can sound out unfamiliar words and look them up directly in a translator or dictionary.

The course can also be useful for people who have just arrived in Korea and have not yet chosen a regular Korean program. Over four classes, they can gauge their current level and learning pace and gain a basis for choosing a next-step course such as a daily conversation class or a university language institute. Basic greetings and reading practice from the class can also be applied immediately when communicating simple needs at a school office, hospital or store.

Who can apply and how?

Eligible participants are foreign residents and international students living in Seoul who are at Korean Level 1 or below. Applications can be submitted through the online application link in the official recruitment notice. Before applying, participants are advised to check the dates and travel time to make sure they can attend all four classes.

Questions can be sent to the Seoul Global Center Korean-language education email at sgcwekc@gmail.com. Applicants must enter an accurate contact number on the form so they can receive text notifications and must check the participant announcement on October 2.