VISA Meet | Episode # 16 | A Report

VISA Episode # 16

A Report

By Ms. Lekhaa M. S

[Intern with the Office of International Programmes, MCC]

Speaker: Ms. Elkah Mariam Thomas, Hoseo University, South Korea

On the evening of 16th July, 2025, the Office of International Programmes, Madras Christian College hosted episode 16 of Virtual Interaction with Scholars Abroad (VISA), with Ms. Elka Mariam Thomas.

The MC for the event was Ms. Shrestha, intern of the Office of International Programs. The event started out with the college prayer by Ms. Shrestha, followed by a welcome address by Dr. Samuel Rufus, Dean of the Office of International Programs.

Professor Joshua went on to introduce the resource person of the day, Ms Elka Mariam Thomas. She is a teaching assistant and is part of the Office of International Studies, Hoseo University, South Korea. She is pursuing her PhD in Hoseo University.

Ms. Elka started by suggesting that interested students learn Korean before coming to the university, as it opens a lot of opportunities for part time jobs. She also informed that the Undergraduate program in Hoseo University is for 4 years. She stressed the need for a Korean Proficency Certificate, to ensure admission.

Then, she went on to talk about the English and Korean track classes. The English track courses would be taught in English and Korean track in Korean. 

She also said that Undergraduate students would not have classes on all days of the week, further freeing their schedules for part-time work opportunities. Masters and PhD students would only have 3 or 4 subjects per day.    

Ms. Elka spoke of her struggles learning Korean, stressing upon the fact that her PhD classes was in Korean. She said her guide and mentors were very helpful, correcting her when she made mistakes. She said that PhD scholars do not have regular exams, but rather have to present reports.

Then, she went on to talk about the admission process. It starts with application submission, then document screening, including marks, extra curriculars, and other achievements. After this, there is an interview before admission is confirmed.

She talked about the eligibility criteria for the tracks, then informed the gathering that TOPIK level 3 is compulsory for HoSeo Korean track classes, while IELTS or TOEFL is mandatory for the English track.

Ms. Elka further went on to surprise the group with scholarship opportunities, based on TOPIK, IELTS, or TOEFL scores. She also said that for Undergraduate courses, maintaining a higher GPA means earning a higher scholarship, while there is a consistent 40% reduction in fees from the second semester on in Masters courses. 

Then, Ms. Elka talked about the documents required to gain admission in HoSeo University. These documents need to be submitted through post. 

She then shared the list of courses for the English and Korean track for the Masters program.

Following her talk, Ms. Elka accepted questions. Dr. Millicent Serena, Associate Dean of the Office of International Programs started by asking about the cost of studying in HoSeo University. Ms. Elka replied saying that without a scholarship, the fees per semester would be around 3.5 INR, not including accommodation. Ms. Keerthana and Ms. Madeeha also asked a few questions.

Joshua asked how to learn Korean from India. Ms. Elka said that the Korean classes offered in MCC would help. Further, students can use Duolingo or Youtube videos to learn. She also added that she learned Korean in Korea, by speaking to Koreans.

Dr. Millicent Serena concluded the segment asking about the job opportunities in Korea. Ms. Elka said the opportunities depend on your Korean proficiency.

The event concluded with a vote of thanks from Dr. Millicent Serena.