Gao Jhia Vang
OYIS Marketing
OYIS Alumni Chat Series Episode 3: From a Small World to a Big World
Just from the other side of the pond, we recently got in touch with In Hyuk of the Class of 2023!
In Hyuk began his post-OYIS life at Waseda in Tokyo before transferring to Sungkyunkwan University in Seoul, Korea shortly after. He recently finished military service in Korea and has resumed his studies, intending to focus on studying business.
Gao Jhia: How have you changed since graduation?
In Hyuk: Compared to other schools, OYIS is a very small and tight community. Universities are much bigger communities and that changed my relationships a lot, how I view relationships and how I meet lots of different people. I hope that it matured me. It was a very helpful experience in terms of getting lots of tips to interact with other people.
I was influenced by a lot of international people in an international community. I didn’t feel I necessarily had a Korean identity back in high school in Japan, but now I do feel I have more of a Korean and Japanese identity inside of me again.
The Diploma Programme (DP) is for two years and you have to share knowledge with friends, share tips, and share sources with friends. That was our model, to succeed together. In a lot of other schools, there’s a lot of competition but I think you have to be willing to share and collaborate with each other to succeed together. I think that’s really the best skill I learned in high school.
GJ: How do you think that OYIS prepared you for life after high school?
IH: I’ve stayed in contact with lots of friends from OYIS like Yixiao and Grace. Grace actually goes to the same university as me now. We all say the same thing, that university is just an extension of the Diploma Programme (DP). It’s just DP for another four years! We all have said that we’re used to it, it’s writing reports and finding citations on those reports like we did in DP. That was something other students didn’t have as they entered university. So I think we had a very good advantage in that sense.
GJ: How did you feel going from a small school to a really big college?
IH: It’s hard to integrate at first but it’s also fun because Waseda is especially a diverse community and you have people from all over the world there. You get to meet up with a lot of people doing music, people who studied a whole lot of different things. I think you might feel awkward for the first time. I felt very awkward at first, you know, interacting with hundreds of people. But it’s a really good opportunity. To be honest, you have many more opportunities in a big community, because people give each other opportunities. You get to be a part of more projects and you get to have a lot more experiences overall.
GJ: What about going from a big college to military service?
IH: In the military, we had a very small community. We had about 20 people at our base. What I love about small communities is that we all bond so much together. I had a good time.
GJ: What are you studying?
IH: My Korean university doesn’t give you a major as a freshman. You usually have to finish the first year and in the second year is when you decide what you want to study. I was studying different things like philosophy, maths, and history. I had a lot of different choices. Right now I am aiming for business.
I took global politics at OYIS so at first I wanted to study global politics, but I moved to Korea and I was part of a marketing business with my friends. I focused a lot on that and that was how my interest began in the business world. The classes I took in Korea kind of influenced me and my experiences. My personal experiences with marketing and business also influenced me. I think it’s hard to expect what you want to do. I never expected I would be looking at charts and trading stocks. You never know.
GJ: Have you got any advice for OYIS students?
IH: Our class, the Class of 2023, was so lucky because we were so well-bonded. DP is for two years and you have to share knowledge with friends, share tips, and share sources with friends. That was our model, to succeed together. In a lot of other schools, there’s a lot of competition but I think you have to be willing to share and collaborate with each other to succeed together. I think that’s really the best skill I learned in high school.
I’m not going to say, “I hope you enjoy OYIS,” but I want to say that friends are everything, you know? I think that relationships are what stays in your mind the most. I hope you have good relationships with your friends.
GJ: What do you remember the most about OYIS? If you say “Maid Cafe,” I’m just going to tell you that everyone used to say “Maid Cafe” in interviews…
IH: You know what? I actually haven’t thought about the Maid Cafe for about three years. Actually, I didn’t even remember until now about it! Now I’m going to say “Maid Cafe.” That was crazy! I want to go back in time to be honest! ∎
Interview has been edited for length and clarity.
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