Korea Univ. to Offer Free Classes Next Year

Korea University will offer from next year free undergraduate courses to all college students in the country.

The university said yesterday that it will allow students from other colleges to take its undergraduate courses for credit, starting from the first semester next year. The expected beneficiaries will constitute at least five percent of all undergraduate students.

In the United States, schools in close proximity to each other have consortiums that recognize each other`s courses. In the European Union, students and schools are encouraged through the Erasmus Program to take part in exchange programs, including those for credit.

Except for certain basic liberal arts and language courses that might be deemed insignificant for students from other schools, Korea University will open all of its courses to students.

The school will reportedly encourage students from other schools to take Korea University`s featured courses and highly rated major courses.

Considering 160,000 to 170,000 students take undergraduate courses every semester, approximately 8,000 students from other schools will enjoy the new privilege.

Korea University will give favorable treatment to “outside” students in courses conducted in spacious classrooms to attract more non-regular students.

In the regular term, all courses will be offered free of charge. For summer school, non-Korea University students will pay the same tuition as regular students do.

A non-Korea University student wishing to take a course should log on to the school`s homepage over the course registration period. If applicants outnumber open slots, a first-come, first-served policy will be used.

Twenty-two universities that have signed an accreditation agreement with Korea University are likely to acknowledge the credits their students earn at Korea University.

At the same time, Korea University will set forth criteria for credits that its students earn at other schools to encourage them to take more courses at other schools.

Korea University`s Academic Affairs Dean Nam Gi-chun said, “We want to contribute our educational capacity for social advancement. That’s why we’ve come up with the new system. Hopefully, other schools will join us and allow students to enjoy the merits of a diverse educational system of various schools.”

foryou@donga.com