When my host professor, Dr. Park Nam-yong first invited me to come to Korea as a visiting professor I was a bit hesitant to accept the invitation. I had no idea of what awaited me in Korea, since I only knew what I had read in tourist brochures or heard from the news. I finally accepted the invitation when Dr. Park personally came to my office in the University of the Philippines, Los Baños, College of Veterinary Medicine. His personal visit to me assured me of my safety and his concern for me. It was not an easy process, because being invited as a visiting professor under the Korean Brain Pool Program is based on merit and qualifications. I found out later on that I am the first Filipino visiting professor here in Chonnam National University.
I am staying at the Professors’ Apartments inside the school campus. The unit is cozy with two furnished rooms, and the heating system is excellent during winter. The location is very convenient since it is just a stone’s throw away from a grocery and a bus stop.
My responsibilities and duties as a visiting professor include giving lectures and laboratory exercises in veterinary pathology, guiding students in necropsy examination of cases, and the research and writing of papers and articles for publication. My first lecture was very memorable because after a brief introduction, the students requested me to sing before the class. I guess this is a tradition here in Korea. I admit that I am tone-deaf but I tried my best to sing some popular Tagalog songs. The lecture rooms in the College of Veterinary Medicine are impressive compared to what we have in the Philippines. What I particularly like is the unlimited access to the Internet, the connection is fast and very efficient. The lecture topics are also easy to study because most of the lessons are found in easy-to-access websites. The website of Dr. Park contains not only lessons written in Korean but also other links to international websites of other foreign veterinary schools. One of the main aims of Dr. Park is for the students to be trained to listen to lectures in English. I found out that most Korean college students can understand English but most of them are shy and do not answer back in English when asked some questions. This is a sharp contrast to Filipino students. In our college I give lectures and laboratory exercises completely in English and the students can speak fluent English when asked. English is the medium of instruction in most Philippine educational systems from elementary level to college. Koreans are now realizing this big opportunity and are flocking to the Philippines to study English. Aside from not being expensive compared to going to the USA, Canada, the UK or Australia, distance wise, the Philippines is also very near to Korea. Most Koreans who have studied English in the Philippines have found that the quality of English instruction is of high caliber and the people are very friendly and not discriminatory to foreigners.
A month after arrival my wife Julie followed as an accompanying person. The graduate program in the College of Veterinary Medicine is excellent so I encouraged my eldest son Jordan, who is a DVM graduate, also from the University of the Philippines, Los Baños, to come and pursue a graduate course in Veterinary Pathology. At present he is now in his 2nd Year of MS program and hopefully will graduate in March of next year.
My overall impression of CNU as a learning institution is excellent. As a foreign visiting professor I am equally impressed with the facilities and infrastructures in the campus. As a family we also take the opportunity to listen to concerts regularly scheduled in the university concert hall. I am a health buff and I found the wide and expansive campus a fitting place for my daily walks and exercises. In the Philippines I usually drive to work daily but I do not own a car here in Korea and I think it is healthier to use my feet to go to nearby places.
As part of the Korean Brain Pool Program we also had an opportunity to enjoy and appreciate a three-day industrial and cultural tour to Hyundai Motors, Hyundai Ship Building Facility, LG Electronics, Korean Atomic Energy Research Institute, SK Petrochemical, Pohang Steel Company, and Gyeongju Museum and Historical Park. This tour is very memorable for us because it showed us that Korea is not only strong in industrial and technological capabilities but also gives emphasis and importance to its ancient culture and history.
Oh, yes, last but not least, I hope the University Museum, with its superb collection of antiques and artifacts, will provide English translations on the displays so that foreign visitors can appreciate them. It is really frustrating to be looking at good specimens and historical items without understanding the descriptions.
Our stay in CNU will be for a total of two years by the end of November, 2005, and I consider this period of stay in Korea as a very fruitful and rewarding experience not only in terms of educational and scientific gains but also in social, human and cultural understanding between the Philippines and Korea.
