College has never been all about just studying. Of course, education is what we are here for, but what really makes our student life memorable are the people surrounding us. KAIST is well-known for hosting intellectually capable students, but it so happens that KAISTians are not only book-smart, but also quite talented in many other extracurricular areas, such as sports, arts, and music. The more well-rounded you become, the better your overall performance in academia and career is; therefore, it is in any institution’s best interests to foster the balanced growth of its students. If you do not find yourself interested in any extracurricular activity, however, merely appreciating others’ talent might already bring some satisfaction and joy. There is a large number of student clubs at KAIST, all focused on a specific sport, hobby, or field of interest, so events such as concerts, dance performances, and athletic competitions are organized during the entire duration of a semester.

I’ve seen the benefits of appreciating others’ talents myself.. Before coming to KAIST, I’ve never listened to any metal or hard rock music. During one of my early semesters at KAIST, my friends invited me to Santa Claus, a bar which hosted a performance of the KAIST-born metal band INFINITE. I was skeptical at first, but after listening to a few of their live performances, I grew interested in this kind of music, which later became one of my favorite genres. Just like I explored my own interests by appreciating the talent of INFINITE, so could you. There are countless hobbies, activities, and pastimes outside of your own set of interests. You might find yourself comfortable only with what you’re used to; however, you never know whether you would enjoy other hobbies more unless you try. And what better alternative is there to start your exploration of a particular hobby or genre of music other than starting with your immediate surroundings — KAISTians?

Observing how clubs at KAIST perform does not necessarily have to be for the sake of adopting the hobby; attending concerts or dance performances might give you a better idea of what human talent is capable of. I myself have never had interest in dancing, but I still attended Real Lunatic’s performance last month. Real Lunatic is a street dance club composed of different teams who perform a particular street dance style. To my surprise, I did enjoy their performance, perhaps because I’ve rarely spent time consciously spectating a group dance before. I was amazed by the dancers’ excellent coordination, making the performance feel like one big dance as opposed to several individual dances. I am fairly happy that I got to witness what extensive group practice can result in. Nevertheless, even if I had not gone that deep thinking about the group mentality on the stage and the amount of effort put before the performance, I would have still acknowledged that I had pure artistic pleasure watching Real Lunatic perform, and that alone is worth the time spent.

The latest university-organized event that I attended was KAIST Got Talent. Just like the two aforementioned events, KAIST Got Talent served as a showcase of what academically successful students indulge in apart from studies. It did strike me that whatever I saw on the stage exceeded my expectations, as I assumed that students at KAIST would not spend too much of their time exercising their hobbies, but rather studying or working. It turned out to me that it is equally valuable to be productive in one’s career and academics as well as to frequently practice extracurricular activities, as they push our boundaries and drive us in all other aspects of our lives. Paying attention to such events is only beneficial to one’s spiritual well-being, as either seeing others do what they like or starting to exercise a particular hobby results in a more balanced distribution of one’s resources. The more hobbies one has, the more paths for improvement there are, leading to healthier self-esteem, which is particularly important in such competitive environments like KAIST. With that being said, I encourage everyone to not neglect club performances at KAIST and give them a chance at garnering your interest.