South Gyeongsang Province wraps up overseas training program for 30 university students in US

South Gyeongsang Province announced Monday that it has concluded a short-term overseas training program designed to strengthen the global competencies of local university students. The program drew 30 students from six provincial universities and was funded with 350 million won ($246,000) from the South Gyeongsang Province Scholarship Foundation.

The group completed a four-week language and cultural exchange program at Towson University in Maryland from July 12 to Aug. 9. By institution, 15 students came from Gyeongsang National University, 10 from Changwon National University, two from Kyungnam University, and one each from Inje University, Jinju Health College and Busan Presbyterian University.

Participants attended level-appropriate language classes and visited major cities including Washington, D.C., and New York. The program also incorporated activities tied to the aerospace sector, one of South Gyeongsang Province's key future industries. The group toured NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center; among the 30 participants, five were science-track students — including three majoring in space-related fields — making the site visit particularly relevant.

South Gyeongsang Province and the state of Maryland have maintained a sister-region relationship since 1991, a partnership now in its 34th year. The two sides have been broadening the scope of their exchanges since signing a strategic industry cooperation MOU in April last year.

Kim Ok-nam, head of the province's education and talent development division, said the program gave young people a chance to overcome language barriers, experience a foreign culture and broaden their horizons by visiting global institutions. "We will analyze participant satisfaction surveys and work to make the training program more substantive going forward," she said.