From brewing tea to badminton battles, Ewha’s clubs are recruiting international students

K-campus

Published: 09 Apr. 2024, 18:30

From brewing tea to badminton battles, Ewha’s clubs are recruiting international students

Members of amateur orchestra club, Esaos, practice Brahms’ pieces for a freshmen welcome concert. [PARK YE-EUN]

Many students dream of taking part in diverse club activities throughout their university life.

As the new semester begins, a variety of clubs at Ewha Womans University have kicked off their recruitment of new members. The clubs range from music and arts to sports and academics, with many of them welcoming international students as well.

Esaos creates harmony with their passion for classical music

Music is a passion for many people, and Ewha students are no exception. Esaos, which stands for Ewha Symphonious Amateur Orchestral Sounds, is the only central amateur orchestra club at Ewha where anyone interested can join. Founded in 1993, Esaos has been active for 30 years, holding its 61st concert on March 2.

Esaos performs every March and September, according to club president Shim Kyu-sol, a junior majoring in nursing. Students who wish to join must have their own instrument and take an in-person audition after turning in an application.

“Many students think playing classical music is complicated, but we consider one’s passion and interest as the most important values when recruiting new members,” Shim said. “I would like to invite Ewha students to join our journey of musical harmony.”

The club also offers a unique opportunity for students to try popular classical pieces.

“We performed Symphony No. 1 in C minor and Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor by Johannes Brahms, which we practiced for two months,” said Choi Hye-jung, the club's concertmaster studying in the Department of Consumer Studies.

“One of the advantages of our club is that members are given an opportunity to play classical pieces that professional artists play, presenting a challenging yet rewarding repertoire.”

As members communicate in the language of music with their instruments, the club also welcomes international students as new members.

Maria Jose Munoz Leon, a Costa Rican student who recently graduated from the Department of Food Science & Biology, said that being an orchestra member was hard for her at first as she was not familiar with Korean musical terminology.

Eventually, she was able to fully adjust with the help of the club members.

“Playing the violin at Esaos was one of my most precious and joyful memories in my university life,” Munoz Leon said. “Foreign students may hesitate to apply for Esaos due to their Korean fluency, but there are many foreign members and members who speak various languages, so there is nothing to worry about.”

DAE welcomes debate lovers to freely speak their mind

DAE members pose for a group photo. [IRIS KIM]

The Debate Association of Ewha (DAE) is an interdepartmental debate club composed of members from diverse majors and ages with a shared love for debate.

The history of the DAE goes back to 2003. A speech and debate class was taught by Professor Peter Kipp from the Division of English Language & Literature. After a positive response, students formed a debate club in 2005 by recruiting students from the major. Since then, it has continued to have regular debate sessions every week.

DAE focuses on three types of activities: interscholastic tournaments, regular sessions consisting of lectures and debates and special joint sessions.

The club is a member of the Korean Intervarsity Debate Association (KIDA), and members debate with more than 10 different university debate clubs and network with students. DAE is a debate club that has won many awards at both local and global debate competitions, including the KIDA Open Rookie Finalists and Kyushu Debate Grand Finalists.

“Our training focuses primarily on parliamentary debate,” said Iris Kim, the president of DAE. “However, we believe that learning to debate also instills lifelong skills like organizing your thoughts, articulating your arguments clearly and concisely, and coming up with ideas on the spot about topics stretching from international politics to love and relationships.”

Regular sessions at DAE are held biweekly. There is an in-person session in which students can learn debate through lectures held every Monday. There's also a shortened online session on Wednesday, where members have mock debates.

“DAE is a club with no language barriers making it easier for adaptation,” said Fatin Alya, the vice president of DAE. “As long as you have an interest in debate, anyone can join, including beginners.

"DAE will teach you from the beginning, and you will be able to improve your debate skills as well as your confidence in speaking English.”

Dayeon gathers tea-loving students to bond over a brew

Dayeon members prepare tea at their tea ceremony. [LEE WON-JOO]

A tea ceremony, involving brewing and drinking tea, is a traditional way for many people to relax and relish its soothing flavors.

Dayeon is a Korean tea ceremony club that consists of students who love tea. The club has a history that started in 2001, with the club's name referring to “a group of people who love drinking tea” in Korean.

Anyone who likes tea can join the club, even if they are not familiar with tea or the tea ceremony. There are no age limits or any requirements regarding majors, allowing every student at Ewha, including international students, to join.
Dayeon recruits on a first come, first served basis, allowing anyone to apply without the burden of an admission interview.

Dayeon has five regular meetings every semester. Students learn about tea and the process of the tea ceremony, gathering together to talk while drinking their favorite tea.

“There is no difficulty in participating in club activities,” said Nagao Mina, co-president of Dayeon. “I am very happy to meet many friends through Dayeon. I believe my time at this club will provide me with positive memories of my university life.”

During the Daedong Festival, the university's spring festival held in May, Dayeon sells homemade milk tea and black tea syrup.

Members of Dayeon also go on a trip to Hadong to experience how tea is made. During the fall semester, there’s a Homecoming Day where members get to meet alumni of Dayeon and have a meal together.

“For me, joining Dayeon was the best choice I made at Ewha,” said Lee Won-joo, former president of Dayeon. “The meaning of 'yeon' in Dayeon means 'correct' in Sino-Korean, but until now I thought it symbolized 'connection' [since both are pronounced as yeon and because] there are so many kind people in the club.

"I think the best part of being a member of Dayeon is that you can meet kind and caring people.”

Ewha badminton in full swing

Members take turns practicing badminton at a gym. [ECOCK]

Engaging in sports in college not only helps people build a healthier physique. It also build a stronger mentality to face life’s challenges and to find a group of colleagues to share those experiences.

Ecock, Ewha’s badminton club, offers these benefits with badminton practices held twice a week.

“Regardless of age or nationality, Ecock is a club where everyone can gather together for badminton,” said Im Yu-bin, the co-president of the club and a junior from the Department of Climate and Energy Systems Engineering.

Badminton practices usually takes place at a gym near Hongdae in Mapo District, western Seoul. Students take turns based on the number of courts available, and those who are waiting also warm up for their turn until there's an empty court.

Ecock also holds friendly competitions with badminton clubs from other schools. Last year, it participated in a match between schools from the north western regions of Korea. The club also participated in a mini seasonal league with Hongik University, where members from each club were mixed into two teams.

“There is often a more intense atmosphere and attitude when playing with new players,” said Lee Chae-eun, another co-president of the club and a junior majoring in Environmental Science and Engineering. “Also, we get to interact with them after the match.”

The club also doesn't miss out on special holidays. During the Christmas season, members decided to dress up according to the holiday’s theme for their badminton practice.

“I remember it was quite an intense match where teams were divided and a prize was awarded to the winning team, but only with red Santa hats on,” said Im.

Siti Hajar Asyiqin Binti Fazillah, a Malaysian student who goes by Hajar, and currently a sophomore from the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, shared that she joined after discovering the club on Ewha’s official website and its social media account.

“The two main reasons why I decided to join Ecock were to meet new friends and to have opportunities to exercise,” Hajar said. “To be honest, I was a little worried about fitting in as the only international student, but there was nothing to worry about after meeting the members.”

As the current publicity and engagement team leader at Ecock, Hajar also added that she recommends the club to those who want to enjoy college clubs without much pressure, especially international students who want to participate in at least one club during their time at Ewha.

This article has been contributed by Park Chae-youn, Kim So-eun, Kwon Yu-jeong and Oh Se-rin of Ewha Voice, an English-language publication from Ewha Womans University.