June 29th, 2015 was graduation day for King Sejong Institute (KSI) Vilnius Korean language students who studied at Mykolas Romeris University (MRU) during the past year.
MRU Rector Assoc. Prof. Algirdas Monkevičius and Korea's Dongseo University President Dr. Jekuk Chang presented certificates to about 50 students who successfully completed the courses.
President Chang addressed students who completed the course in Korean saying if they didn't understand him, then they were in trouble.
He also thanked Rector Monkevičius and KSI Acting Director Assoc. Prof. Lora Tamošiūnienė for their "hard work."
"It feels very special to be here again," he told those gathered at the ceremony. Dr. Chang was at MRU last fall to inaugurate the activities of the KSI.
"We are glad that there is interest in Korea in this region," he said.
The KSI Vilnius is the first and only such Institute in the Baltic states.
Earlier in the day, President Chang had signed an agreement with MRU Rector Monkevičius to establish a new joint study programme, "Informatics and Visual Contents." It is expected that students will be able to begin studies in the new programme this fall.
In order to prepare to accept MRU students in Korea, President Chang said a new building is being erected. Construction will begin in July and be completed by the end of April, in time to accept MRU students.
Dr. Chang headed a delegation of Dongseo University (DSU) representatives from Busan. Others included: DSU International Cooperation Office Dean Dr. Chan Chung and DSU Future Strategy Office Head Dr. Kyongho Hahn.
Also, members of the King Sejong Institute Foundation were on hand to congratulate students completing the course.
"The world became a friend of Korea through the King Sejong Institute," said KSI Foundation Researcher Prof. Dongeun Lee.
She said the Institute is "an oasis" for those wanting to learn Korean.
During the ceremony there was a video shown highlighting the most important activities of the KSI during the last year with testimonies from students. Also, Korean language students spoke and shared their experiences.
The King Sejong Institute Vilnius was established in October 2014 when the first groups of students began studies of Korean language. Korean Language Lecturer Hyunjung Kim teaches Korean, a popular language course, at MRU.