▲ SeoulTech implementing the second year of the ST Semester System in 2023

 

Last year, SeoulTech pursued various changes by implementing the ST Semester System. There are positive effects of the changes, but some students experienced confusion due to the sudden change.

We will look at how students reacted in the first year of the new system, what problems they faced, and how SeoulTech reacted.

 

What is the ST Semester System?

First, we will briefly discuss what this ST Semester System is. The ST Semester System includes a new school schedule that starts spring semester about a week earlier than in the past. The semesters are conducted in a 15-week curriculum by replacing make up week with online classes. Therefore, the summer vacation is longer by a few weeks. In addition to this characteristic, the Discovery Semester is added during this longer summer vacation. The Discovery Semester includes classes in various fields relating to modern society like artificial intelligence and coding. Through this Discovery Semester, students can study by themselves and make opportunities for self development through in-depth learning.

Therefore, by shortening the spring semester and adding Discovery Semester, the academic year now consists of three semesters (spring, Discovery, and fall). The Epic Graduation Requirement (EGR), which is now more detailed, is also added as part of the ST Semester System. Therefore, the ST Semester System in full consists of spring semester, Discovery Semester, fall semester, and EGR. The ST Semester System was created to achieve SeoulTech's educational goal of fostering creative and innovative talent by operating various academic opportunities. Moreover, the system achieves SeoulTech President Donghoon Lee's intention to encourage students to experience many more extracurricular activities during the extended summer vacation.

 

Conflicting opinions on the ST Semester System

At Everytime, the most active anonymous community app in SeoulTech, various opinions were exchanged on the ST Semester System. First, there were students who responded positively to the ST semester. The students said it was good to enjoy activities such as international activities and traveling abroad due to the longer summer vacation. Other students said it was good to enjoy the SeoulTech festival leisurely due to the changed school schedule.

Last year's festival was held in September, not in May and so the festival didn't overlap with the exam period. The cause of this is that the start of fall semester was delayed by one week by influence of the ST Semester System.

 

However, confusion could not be avoided as it was the first year of the new system. The students who experienced the biggest confusion were students who had an additional admission requirement, Jeongsi*. Many freshmen were confused due to dormitory complications as the start of the semester was only a few days after they knew that they had completed the entrance requirement. In addition, there were freshmen who experienced inconvenience in enrolling in classes due to delayed basic placement tests (e.g.,English, math and physics placement). One freshman said that "signing up for classes was difficult because I didn't know what subjects I could take based on my test results."

 

** According to a survey conducted last year, SeoulTech students including freshmen had more negative opinions than positive opinions on the ST Semester System. At the center of this was a lack of consideration for students and insufficient response from the university. As it was an advanced school schedule, all other tasks had to be pushed forward sequentially, but the academic notices were slower than usual. Even though summer vacation started earlier, the summer vacation semester did not start at the same time as the spring semester ended. It opened about a month later, adding to the confusion.

 

The start of the ST Semester System this year

Last year ST Semester System problems involved dormitory issues, registering for classes, and the later summer schedule. We will now look at the 2023 schedule to see how the problems have been addressed.

First, dormitory applications for regular admissions freshmen were accepted from February 10 to February 12. Second, Freshmen placement tests were conducted online from February 6 to February 17. Freshmen were able to check their test results right away, and the sections were assigned when students applied for courses.

Unlike last year, only the English test was necessary. Students were able to choose math and physics courses at will. Freshmen who missed the English test period could take the test during the third weekend of February. Freshmen who missed the February testing period can take the test in March through the Office of International Education or consult with a professor. However, freshmen who take the test in March are not allowed to take advanced classes in the spring semester. They can take advanced classes from the fall semester. Regarding the English test, there is no change from previous years. Third, there are changes for freshmen who had Jeongsi requirements regarding class registration and dormitory application. The announcement of 2023 February admission results began on February 9 and closed at 6:00 PM on February 16. This freshmen enrollment was conducted from 09:00 PM on February 9 to 6:00 PM on February 17. Students who completed their registration by 4:00 PM on February 17 were able to apply for courses through individual department offices on that day. Meanwhile, students who registered after that time were able to apply for classes with their own student number during the first week of the semester.

Regarding dormitory problems, the Dormitory Administration Office said it was difficult to solve the problems associated with the tight dorm admissions period because the start of the semester was earlier and the recruitment had to be completed before the semester began. Meanwhile, the document for freshmen who were granted university admission in February described the period of dormitory admission. Also, similar to last year, the entrance period in February was short and no early announcement for freshmen with Jeongsi requirements was made this year. The Admission Office said that this cannot be changed due to the Korean Council for University Education's directives, and that it will continue to be done similarly in the future.

Problems such as those described above are linked to the internal and external circumstances, so direct solutions such as period adjustment are impossible. But, like above, SeoulTech administrators knew the students’ inconvenience and tried to solve problems as best they could.

University listening to students’ voices, shortcuts for synergy

Last year, students pointed out that there was a lack of information regarding the implementation of the ST Semester System for freshmen who passed the entrance exam in mid-February.

SeoulTech accepted this and provided guidelines. For example, the College of Liberal Arts provided more detailed guidelines for liberal art lectures because the College of Liberal Arts processes changed this year. In 2023, the liberal arts curriculum system will change in that there are a minimum number of credits to complete, so students must be aware of this and register by themselves.

The administration understands that these are inconveniences and is trying to work with the students. For instance, the level testing for basic math and physics was discarded so freshmen could apply freely according to the schedule they wanted. Regarding the summer vacation semester, the administration said it may begin earlier this year than in 2022.

Through these examples we can see that SeoulTech is listening to the students’ voices and showing its willingness to actively accept the solutions students want as much as possible. In order for the ST Semester System to be implemented positively over a long time, it is essential to accept opinions from students and provide solutions as well. Last year was the first year of the ST Semester System, so there were issues. We hope this year the ST Semester will create better synergy for students.

 

*Korea has two university entrance methods: Susi (수시), and Jeongsi (정시). Susi is based on the university's own standards (high school grade, essay test, etc.) and this period is from September to December. Jeongsi refers only to the score of the College Scholastic Ability Test in November. Jeongsi period is from December to February. The article is concerned primarily with Jeongsi.

**For these contents and survey, refer to the article "ST Semester System, Towards Desirable Innovation" by SeoulTech Times Newspaper No.656.

Reporter,

Gayeon Han hgy1228@seoultech.ac.kr

Reporter 한가연

• 직책 :
• e-mail : hgy1228@seoultech.ac.kr