by Cherise Fung, CEAS project assistant
Sawyer Getschman knew she loved Korea before she had ever set foot in the country.
Her love affair began in Germany, where she attended high school after spending six years in Japan. She started listening to J-pop as a way to stay connected to Japanese language and culture and unexpectedly stumbled across Korean artists who were re-recording the original Japanese songs. Inevitably, she found her way to BTS, the South Korean boy band and global cultural juggernaut, and then Korean drama shortly after. She remembers bursting out of her room one day while watching a K-drama episode and announcing that she wanted to learn the language to her father.
And so she did. Armed with only a love for the culture and a hearty dose of determination, Getschman began taking Korean language classes during her freshman year at UW-Madison, which were held online due to the pandemic. In her second semester Korean class, she spoke to CEAS faculty and Korean language instructor Jaerin Ahn about her desire to visit Korea and was encouraged to apply for a Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowship. These fellowships, which are funded by the U.S. Department of Education and administered by UW-Madison National Resource Centers like CEAS, enable students to acquire foreign language and area studies competencies. Awards are available to U.S. citizens or permanent residents for studies during the academic year and the summer.
Getschman successfully applied for a summer FLAS fellowship in her sophomore year, which allowed her to embark on a nine-week intensive language program at Yonsei university in Seoul. That first visit to South Korea in 2022 turned out to be life-changing as it solidified her passion for the language. According to Getschman, such an invaluable language and cultural immersion experience would not have been possible without the FLAS fellowship, which covered tuition, housing, and textbook expenses.
If Getschman was shocked at being awarded the fellowship the first time, she was just as astounded, if not more so, when she applied for another FLAS award and was offered one for her senior year. During that second visit to Yonsei, Getschman was able to immerse herself more deeply into Korean culture and language. Besides Korean writing and language courses, she was also able to take classes on Korean history that were not available at UW-Madison and explored areas outside of Seoul.
While the significance of winning a national fellowship is not lost on her, she also stresses how attainable FLAS awards feel compared to other fellowship competitions. Whereas the prospect of securing other scholarships and funding opportunities had seemed entirely out of reach, she had felt that she at least had a shot with the FLAS program as long as she dedicated her best efforts to writing the application essays. Those efforts ended up paying dividends.
Getschman looks back now on previous journal entries lamenting how terrible she was at the language as a beginner and marvels at how far she’s come. Although popular culture was her introduction to Korean, it was really her love for the language that kept her going through that steep learning curve. She also credits the Korean language community at Madison for her success. The encouragement of her Korean professors as well as her involvement with various Korean extracurricular activities such as Korean Happy Hour (sans alcohol) and language tutoring were vital to building her confidence as a non-native speaker. For Getschman, the ultimate sense of fulfillment from this process came from the recognition from other Koreans that a foreigner had cared to learn their language. She found that unlike the classroom, the actual experience of using the language in the real world prioritized comprehension over grammatical correctness, which helped her enjoy the language more.
As someone who is not a fan of change, Getschman has no regrets about the many changes she’s had to face as part of her foreign language journey. Reflecting on her journey at UW- Madison as a recent graduate, she has one piece of advice for students who are interested in learning East Asian languages but are intimidated: “You have one life; don’t let fear get in the way.”
Getschman graduated in Fall 2024 with a bachelor’s degree in East Asian languages and cultures, as well as a certificate in teaching English to speakers of other languages. She was selected as the student speaker for the Winter 2024 Commencement. Since graduating, she has been looking for opportunities to work in Korea. For now, she is trying to start private tutoring in Korean, as well as applying to companies that would allow her to market Korean media.
The Center for East Asian Studies is delighted to feature students who are engaging in exciting academic and extracurricular activities related to East Asian studies. If you know of a student who you would like to recommend for a profile, please reach out to Laurie Dennis at ldennis@wisc.edu.