KOREA ECONOMIC INSTITUTE (KEI)
Seong-Il Choi

Seung-Il Choi attended Kyunpook National University in Daegu, South Korea, and he also studied at St. Mark’s International College in Sydney, Australia before applying to the Washington Internship Program in late November of 2005.  An economics and trade major, Seong-Il had completed his military service in the Korean Army and worked in both New South Wales and New Zealand as a conservation volunteer. He could speak Korean, English, and Chinese, and he had been an intern at the Baxter Company within the human resources department in Australia. Seong-Il was an interpreter at EXCO in connection with the APEC Minister Conference in Korea; he also worked at Sebelonepier Hotel in Sydney and for the Australian Railway Station, all of which strengthened his English. In early March, the Washington Internship Program placed Seung-Il at the Korea Economic Institute, an organization located on K Street, N.W. – just blocks from the White House. KEI is most selective in the interns it accepts, and the work they are given is quite demanding. Like all the KNU students who chose not to live in WIP housing this past year, Seong-Il complained about the difficulty in finding accommodations on his own, and this universal conclusion should be taken seriously by future Korean interns – all of whom have the option to live in fully furnished homes and apartments offered to interns from across the U.S. and abroad. Korean interns who tried living in less expensive housing far from their work or segregated with other Koreans in small, crowded apartments invariably learned less English and had consequent difficulties on the job – even, in this case, when working for a Korean-American institution. Below are excerpts from Seung-Il’s paper (translated from Korean) describing his full-time internship that lasted six months.

“Before working at the Korea Economic Institute, I did an internship in Australia for two months after competing English-language study there. However, I thought this amount of time was too short, so I applied to the Washington Internship Program, before which I prepared myself by improving my computer skills and business English. One of the hardest things I faced in D.C. was finding accommodations. To be honest, I had to work for a couple of weeks without my own place. It was a big inconvenience and burden at my internship.”
“The first day of my internship began with a staff meeting, which was held every Monday morning. I though that interns would not be allowed to attend such a meeting, but in fact every intern was required to do so. We could give our opinions to anyone there. The next day, I was notified that I needed to go to one of the conferences that KEI members must cover. I was stunned because I wasn’t prepared, and I believed I would accompany a staff member. The first program overpowered me. Honestly, my English was not good enough to follow what the panelists were saying, but I concentrated on the program as much as possible. I needed an entire week to complete this report, but unexpectedly my manager praised my work, which made me feel more confident.”

“After this experience, I concluded that a voice recorder would help me understand future conferences because I could later listen to the speeches again. The second program to which I was assigned was another trial for me; it dealt with U.S. immigration law. I couldn’t understand these lectures at all, even when reviewing the tapes repeatedly. I felt like I could never write a report, so I told my manager: ‘I cannot complete this one.” However, he responded cheerfully: “Do your best.” These three words kept spinning in my head. I started working on the report again and forced myself to complete it. My supervisor remarked: ‘See? You could do it!’ and then annoyed me with a smile. This incident taught me that nothing is impossible if I really try.”

“KEI held large seminars on the U.S.-ROK Free Trade Agreement (FTA). I helped prepare for these events, which looked like the work would be simple, but it wasn’t. There were much to do, and the assignments presented a good opportunity for me to get familiar with the staff. The experts from each country had very different opinions on agriculture and the service market. I was pleased that I was able to make good use here of my knowledge acquired at KNU.”

“In addition, I participated in several programs on China issues. Most counties have a big interest in China’s economic growth, and the panelists discussed the impact of China’s economic growth on the world economy. Although China’s success is generally positive, adverse effects – like unemployment elsewhere – were evaluated in light of low prices for Chinese goods abroad.”

“KEI convened an Opinion Leaders Seminar in July, which was one of its biggest events held annually. Experts from many countries discussed U.S.-ROK FTA, the DPRK missiles, and complicated diplomatic relations. I was surprised to see that even interns could talk about substantive matters with people in high social positions. I couldn’t imagine this kind of scene in Korea, so it was very refreshing for me.”

“Our boss used to serve as the U.S. Special Envoy for Negotiations to the DPRK during the Clinton administration. One day he gathered the interns together and briefed us on DPRK-related issues and his experiences in North Korea, which he had visited several times. His observations were interesting and impressive.”

“As I write this paper and review my internship, I feel ‘high’ on life and brimming with pride because I attended many seminars and learned so much. I even had a chance to work with students from the Ivy League colleges. I have no doubt that this internship will be a catalyst for my future. I would like to say to students preparing internships: Do your best, and never give up -- even when things are too hard to carry out. Everything depends on how big our passions are.”

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