As spring is about to dawn, KAIST braced itself to welcome the new international students joining in the spring semester of 2012. On February 1, the official orientation was jointly conducted by the Office of Advising and Support for International Students (OASIS) and the International Relations Team (IRT).

One of the striking features of the orientation program was that it made the freshmen international students break all the shackles of the culture shock that they have experienced. As part of the orientation, they were given some brief presentations about KAIST, including academic and administrative information, life in and around KAIST and the basic requirements to lead a happy student life at the university. During the orientation program, international students were also provided with some useful tips that would help them during their stay at KAIST.

Apart from the orientation ceremony, the international students were also given a chance to explore Korea. On February 2, the students were taken on a campus tour to familiarize them with the campus. Also on the same day, they were taken on a city tour to explore some of the best places in Daejeon. As part of the city tour, they were taken to places like Eunhaeng-dong, which is quite famous for low-cost shopping. During the city tour, students were given enough time to look around the various places and also do some shopping.

The next day was marked by the welcoming reception, which was co–organized with the KI House. During the welcoming reception, they were introduced to the various student clubs that exist in KAIST. The reception was supposed to instill the exact feeling expressed in the famous saying “when in Rome, do as Romans do.” The newcomers had a chance to try on traditional Korean costumes and practice the Korean traditions.

On February 4, they were taken to Jeonju, a traditional Korean city where the reigns of the royalty and many dynasties have been preserved with utmost care. For the Jeonju city tour, the International Students Organization also took part in the event’s organization along with OASIS, IRT and the KAIST International Student Association.