KORE 101. Elementary Korean I. 4 Units.

This course is the first half of Elementary Korean. This course is designed for students with little or no prior knowledge of Korean. It introduces the basic phonetic system and the Korean alphabet, Hangul. Following this, students will develop foundational reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills through meaningful communicative activities and tasks. Upon successful completion, students should be able to comprehend and carry on simple daily conversations. Students will learn how to introduce themselves, describe their surroundings, discuss daily life, friends, and relatives, and talk about past, present, and future events using appropriate verb tenses.

KORE 102. Elementary Korean II. 4 Units.

This course is the second half of Elementary Korean. This course is designed for students who have completed KORE 101 or have equivalent proficiency. It builds on the fluency in Hangul and the basic grammar covered in KORE 101 by introducing more complex grammatical structures and conversational skills. The aim is to equip students with enhanced communicative abilities in Korean through the integration of more advanced grammatical constructions across all four language skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Emphasis is placed on using Korean effectively in real-life situations and in culturally appropriate ways.

KORE 201. Intermediate Korean I. 4 Units.

This course is the first part of intermediate Korean. This course is designed for students who have completed the first-year Korean language courses (KORE 101 and KORE 102) or for heritage/non-heritage students possessing equivalent Korean language proficiency. This course builds upon and consolidates students' knowledge of the linguistic features of Korean and enhances their communicative abilities by integrating all language skills (listening, speaking, reading, writing, vocabulary, grammar, and culture) through interactive activities. Development of reading and writing skills will be emphasized, and students will work on their presentational abilities for both oral and written communication. Prereq: KORE 102 with a grade of C or higher.

KORE 202. Intermediate Korean II. 4 Units.

This course is the second semester of intermediate Korean. It is designed for students who have completed the three-course sequence in Korean (KORE 101, KORE 102, and KORE 201), or for heritage and non-heritage students with equivalent proficiency in the Korean language. Students further develop interpersonal, interpretive, and presentational skills through advanced listening, speaking, reading, and writing activities, while also gaining insights into Korean culture and society through the integration of authentic content from contemporary Korean media. Additionally, Chinese characters will be introduced in this course to further enhance vocabulary development. Prereq: KORE 201 with a grade of C or higher.

KORE 312. Korean Popular Culture. 3 Units.

This course examines the development and global circulation of Hallyu (the Korean Wave), highlighting various contemporary Korean popular culture genres including K-pop music, cinema, TV dramas, webtoons and animation, digital games and esports, lifestyle media, fashion, and food. Students will engage with primary sources such as K-pop music videos, films, and excerpts from TV dramas and other media products, alongside academic secondary readings that provide theoretical, methodological, and contextual perspectives. By exploring diverse K-media products and engaging in academic readings, multidisciplinary discussions, presentations, and a research project, students will gain a comprehensive understanding of Korean pop culture and social phenomena while developing analytical tools to critically approach cultural objects and texts. The primary language of instruction, including lectures and discussions, is English, and no prior knowledge of Korean is required. Offered as ASIA 312, KORE 312, and WLIT 312. Counts as a Understanding Global Perspectives course.