Rise and Shine, Welcome Orientation Trip
After nearly four years of lockdown, universities held various freshmen welcoming events this year. For example, the College of Social Sciences (SSC) held a three-day orientation trip in Gangwon Province to support newcomer adaption to the school. Freshmen orientation, safety education, and recreation took place on the first day, and major fairs were held on the next day. Also, Night of Interaction was held with the School of Global Leader, which conducted the event in the same place. The two units provided special memories for Kingos by exchanging performances of each unit’s bands along with special performances by club associations like Ggun and Kinggo Cheerleaders. On each trip’s night, “mingling” was held where students could party around other rooms to interact with more team members. Unlike in the past, this was the first event where everyone attended the welcome orientation along with the seniors. Student president of the College of the SSC, Hyun Ji-yun, told SKT, “I met newcomers as a freshman guide last year and as the president of the College of the SSC for this year. The freshmen’s bright and delighted faces made me look forward to campus life this semester.” Moreover, the 55th student council SKKUP promoted establishing the 2023 College Life Settlement Scholarship named Stepping Stone. The scholarship provided 100,000 won to those with financial difficulties to encourage them to attend the event.
Mystery of The Journals of theRoyal Secretariat
Shinbangrye, an event that only freshmen of Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU) can experience, came back with the theme of Gwanghaegun of the Joseon Dynasty. Back then, Shinbangrye was the rite of passage where newcomers served seniors with food and parties. Today, it is still an unofficial welcoming party for SKKU freshmen. SKKU’s Shinbangrye consists of the following: Almyo – a ceremony for Confucius disciples, Sangeuprye – a greeting event for Sungkyunkwan dormitory incomers, mini Shinbangrye – a ceremony sharing foods, and Myunshinrye – an event for solving missions around the campus. In the 2023 Shinbangrye event, a campus tour program was newly added to explain about the Munmyo buildings at SKKU and their meanings. Furthermore, participants could solve missions to discover the secret of the missing 15 days of The Journals of the Royal Secretariat and make an appeal to stop Lee Yi-cheom and Jung Yin-hong’s misdeed. The missions consisted of eight games, including posing games and matching famous drama and movie lines. As part of the event, students also received stamps on a map for solving small missions with the Chungrang members. Kim Shin-jae (Freshman, Electronic and Electrical Engineering) said, “The most memorable part was when seniors spoke in Joseon Dynasty dialect in mini Shinbangrye . Watching Chungrang leading the traditional culture of SKKU and making a final stage with them was a meaningful experience.” As it is an event that only SKKU can host, experiencing the tradition and venerable history of SKKU made freshmen feel pride and a sense of belonging.
