Stony Brook University SUNY Korea

Three students who recently graduated from SUNY Korea shared their thoughts about SUNY Korea. Two out the three students started their own business after graduating from SUNY Korea, and one student has been accepted by one of the largest accounting and consulting firm.

Here is a short interview with the students about what SUNY Korea means to them.

   Youngho Kim

Youngho Kim graduated in 2022 with a degree in Computer Science. He started his own business named TMR Founders.

Why did you choose SUNY Korea?

The biggest reason was that I could experience the curriculum of an American university in Korea. When I first decided to enroll, I worried a lot, but SUNY Korea provides the same professional courses that I have experienced in the United States, and the environment gave a familiar international feeling as I was in Korea. Even though I had the chance to go to a university in the States, I felt that I could experience various cultures with the same education here, so I decided to join SUNY Korea.

What experiences from SUNY Korea helped you start a business?

Students can apply to lab courses starting from their second to third year. In my junior year, I joined the Computer Science professor's research lab and finally got the chance to turn my thoughts into reality. I was able to experience certain technologies for the first time, such as autonomous driving and the recognition of objects through cameras. The professor participated in our research as closely as my tutor, and I was able to write 3 to 4 thesis papers. This experience helped me develop the confidence to create anything, and that's how I decided to start a business.

What do you think is the unique strength of SUNY Korea?

The phrase ‘minority elite member’ comes to mind. There are many talented professors compared to the number of students. One professor will work on a new project every semester with 5 to 15 researchers. I think it's a big advantage that I can experience new technologies and companies outside of class with the professors.

   Soomin Seo

Soomin Seo is the founder of Livable and graduated from SUNY Korea Department of Technology and Society in 2020

Why did you choose SUNY Korea?

I went to a high school abroad, and when I was thinking about going to college, I wanted to continue my foreign academic classes, but at the same time, I wanted to go to Korea because I was abroad for a long time. While I was searching for a university, I chose SUNY Korea after seeing a promotional article that said I could study foreign academic studies in Korea.

What experiences from SUNY Korea helped you start a business?

I think my study in Technology and Society helped me start my own business. I am currently operating an IT service, and a lot of the knowledge comes from what I learned in this major. One example is cases where I develop services by converging technologies and maintaining communication with developers. In addition, the school provided a lot of support for the start-up after graduation, to the extent that I received help from the president when preparing for my start-up.

What do you think is the unique strength of SUNY Korea?

All faculty, staff, and team leaders provided various support in different fields. The high faculty-to-student ratio gave more detailed and practical support. Also, I think it could become a strength if students actively participate well in school events as they can achieve more opportunities.

   Jihun Gwak

Ji Hun Gwak majored in Technology and Society and graduated in the year 2022. He has been hired at Deloitte Anjin LLC. 

Why did you choose SUNY Korea?

In addition to communicating in English like any American university, SUNY Korea has linguistic and cultural strengths that cannot be experienced in ordinary high schools or universities in Korea, such as writing essays or having a presentation daily. Of course, these days, native English instructors and English-speaking classes are common, but I think the biggest appeal of SUNY Korea is communicating with professors and colleagues in foreign languages in everyday life.

What do you think is the unique strength of SUNY Korea?

I think it is to find the meaning of learning rather than getting good grades or achieving a graduation certificate. I remember participating in Professor Neil Dreamson's graduation project and thinking deeply about what I wanted to learn and what I learned from this class. Through that process, I still remember the professor's words: 'Design your own life beyond class with a sense of ownership'. Having a good job and grades are important, but I think it is more important to have the purpose mentioned above.