Student review [#28543] for Biological Sciences
at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology - KAIST

This was my first time studying abroad as I was born and raised in Kazakhstan. Coming to KAIST as an undergraduate student was a good experience that made me maturate quickly as I was apart from my family in a new country where people don’t speak English. KAIST is a tough school with programs in natural sciences and strong engineering fields. If you wish to major in liberal arts, skip this one as KAIST is mainly a research institute rather than a normal Korean university as many Koreans themselves refer to it. The professors are great researchers but not always talented instructors. Though I had a great opportunity to take classes from amazing professors who inspired me to study bio hardly and with all my heart. Still, don’t expect much from them, sometimes you would need to study material yourself by reading a textbook or watching extra web material. The competition is high, and most of the students are extremely hard-working. You would see people studying in the library for several hours non-stop every day. This environment is quite depressive but it motivates you a lot as well. You should be a very diligent student who can learn quickly to have high grades as most of the other students are Koreans who were top students in their high schools. Though if you survive this academic hell, you’ll be grateful as the employment opportunities for KAIST students in Korea are very high because the school is the most prestigious STEM institution in Korea so you can go to big corporations like Samsung or LG. Talking about social life, for some people it sucks as most of the students in STEM have poor communication skills so it’s hard for them to socialize but if you put more effort or if you’re more of an extrovert, it’s not an impossible thing to do. I have many international friends along with Korean friends. Though, it’s still hard to make close Korean friends as they are not willing to open up even to each other. The school facilities are great, you can have everything on campus which is so beautiful with the natural landscape. If you would like to become a researcher, or engineer and wish to try new culture, language, and lifestyle, KAIST is definitely worth trying. Just be prepared to be always challenged!