Korean Language Program

Korean is spoken not only by citizens of the Korean peninsula and members of the Korean diaspora, but recently also by a growing number of non-Koreans for various purposes. Korea is a relatively small country, only slightly larger than Kansas, but its population, South and North combined, is twenty-times that of Kansas. Korean is the eleventh most popular language on the globe. Spoken Korean has served the native population for all colloquial purposes for several thousand years. Although the Korean vernacular script known as han’gŭl (great writing) was invented in 1446, it has enjoyed wide-spread popularity for only about a century. Han’gŭl is easy to master, which contributes to the nearly 100% literacy among Korean citizens. While more than half of the Korean vocabulary came originally from Chinese, the structure and grammar of the language are similar to Japanese. 

KU is the only institution in Kansas offering elementary to advanced Korean language courses. The Korean language program at KU emphasizes almost equally speaking, listening, reading, and writing at each level. The first and second year Korean language courses consist of lectures (Tue and Thu) and drill sections (Mon, Wed, and Fri); third year Korean of three class meetings (Mon, Wed, and Fri) integrating lecture and drill. Many major universities in Seoul and other cities in South Korea are centers of learning for Korean language and culture. 

Korean Placement Exam 

Placement exams help to determine the course in which you should enroll if you are continuing your study of a language with which you have had previous experience.  These exams focus on your abilities and knowledge of the language rather than the amount of prior coursework that you have had.  

Proficiency exams allow undergraduate students to gain exemption from the Non-English Language Proficiency requirement in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences by establishing that their ability in a second language is equivalent to that of someone who has studied that language for four semesters at the college level.

If you are enrolling at KU for the first time, have learned some Korean before, and want to continue studying Korean, you should take an on-line placement exam, ideally prior to your arrival on campus. Upon completion of the exam, you will be given a preliminary placement, which you should use to register for a specific Korean course. During the first week of classes, you should meet with your instructor to confirm the accuracy of the placement. If it is determined that another course would be more appropriate, you will be allowed to transfer to that course. 

For more information on placement and proficiency exams, please visit the OLRC page

Proficiency Goals for KU Korean Language Courses

The goal is to enable students to acquire basic communicative skills in Korean. By the end of the semester, students who have completed the course successfully should be able to:

  • communicate and exchange information about familiar topics using phrases and simple sentences.
  • handle short social interactions in everyday situations by asking and answering simple questions.
  • write short messages and notes on familiar topics related to everyday life.
  • recognize pieces of information and sometimes understand the main topic of what is being said.
  • understand familiar words, phrases, and sentences within short and simple texts related to everyday life.
  • understand various aspects of Korean culture

The goal is to expand students’ communicative skills in modern Korean to an intermediate level by introducing further grammar points and useful expressions. By the end of the course, students who have completed the course successfully should be able to:

  • participate in conversations on a number of familiar topics using simple sentences.
  • write briefly about most familiar topics and present information using a series of simple sentences.
  • understand the main idea in short, simple messages and presentations on familiar topics.
  • understand the main idea of simple conversations that they overhear.
  • learn useful facts about Korean culture and contemporary lifestyle
  • develop a solid foundation for further and independent study in Korean.

The goal is to equip students with proficiency in all four language skills, speaking, listening, reading, and writing, beyond the intermediate level. By the end of the course, students who have completed the course successfully should be able to:

  • participate in conversations on familiar topics using sentences and series of sentences.
  • handle short social interactions in everyday situations by asking and answering a variety of questions.
  • make presentations on a wide variety of familiar topics using connected sentences.
  • write on a wide variety of familiar topics using connected sentences.
  • understand the main idea of texts related to everyday life and personal interests or studies.
  • understand the main idea in conversations that they overhear.
  •  gain the cultural knowledge necessary for communicating across a variety of situations.

The goal is to help students acquire their advanced communicative skills in listening, speaking, reading and writing in Korean. By the end of the course, students who have completed the course successfully should be able to:

  • talk about events and experiences in various time frames.
  • handle social interactions in everyday situations, sometimes even when there is an unexpected complication.
  • make presentations in a generally organized way on school, work, and community topics,and on topics that they researched.
  • write some simple paragraphs about events and experiences in various time frames.
  • understand the main idea of texts related to everyday life, personal interests, and studies.
  • understand a few details of what they overhear in conversations, even when something unexpected is expressed.
  • demonstrate awareness of subtle differences among cultural behaviors and adjust their behavior accordingly in familiar and some unfamiliar situations.

Resources