The Korean Student Association of the University of Pennsylvania consists of students whose goal is to promote the education and enrichment of its members and the university community with aspects of the Korean culture. The club and its activities are open to any and all who are interested in the Korean-American community and Korean culture.
We strive to provide:
• Sense of community at Penn
• Gahjok family groups
• “Bae” System (Hoobae/Sunbae System)
• Culture Show collaboration with other Korean organizations on campus
• Social Events including Inter-KSA parties, Korean BBQ Night
• Opportunities to interact with other cultural groups on campus
• Career and internship opportunities
• Unforgettable memories throughout your college career
To see a calendar of events from all Asian Pacific Student Coalition constituent groups, click here.
School: College of Arts and Sciences
Major: Biology
Graduating Year: 2019
Behold, the magnificent face of KSA- Zachariah Lee.
Zach, KSA’s most beloved president, is not just merely an authoritative figure giving orders to his subordinates- although, he certainly knows how to lead a group with his calm, diligent and extremely adaptable personality.
Zachariah Lee, AKA ZCleff (his “street” name), is a New Yorker, chronic dabber, a competitive sprinter, a lover of accessories, and an avid fan of Twice’s Dahyun. Not only that, He's not just a KSA man either, being a part of many other organizations such as Penn Taiwanese Society, Vietnamese Student Association, the Penn Running Club, and the KASCON committee. There’s even more: he’s an enthusiast of the vast unknown that is space with a great knowledge of a 10th planet conspiracy theory, which, you may want to ask him about if you ever see him around. Perhaps, you might catch him with popcorn in hand and immersed in “My Sassy Girl”, his favorite movie of all time.
Undoubtedly, Zach’s easy-to-approach nature and dedication makes him both an incredibly qualified president and a reliable friend. If you ever need a shoulder to TT on, that shoulder could be his. Once you know Zach, you can’t go back. He surely has a way of sprinting into peoples’ hearts- he’ll dab his way through his many successes, shine amongst a crowd even with his “not too bling-bling” accessories, and possibly discover an 11th planet conspiracy. For our KSA president, anything is possible.
Description written by Claire Shin
School: Wharton
Major: Finance
Graduating Year: 2019
Daniel is a sophomore who loves his home countries, Korea and America. He plans to major in Finance and Statistics, with a minor in Math. In his free time, he enjoys playing basketball, cooking, and analyzing basketball statistics (he is a bandwagon Steph Curry fan). He also enjoys rapping, but admits sometimes he can fail miserably (which is OK, because Daniel does Daniel). His favorite animal is a giraffe because he believes he looks like one, with his long neck at 6'2''. If you're looking for some fun with a basketball-loving, height advantageous giraffe, Daniel Lee is the one to call.
Description written by Clare Choi
School: College of Arts & Sciences
Major: Undecided
Graduating Year: 2019
Joan is what you would define as both a deliberate and spontaneous girl. In a professional setting, you’ll see her at the forefront leading every project with her vocal inputs making sure events go according to schedule while at the same time making spontaneous choices as dying her hair. When asked about what influenced her to dye her hair pink, she responded “Well, it just hit me”. In her free time, she loves reading webtoons and watching Korean variety shows which can be traced back to her history of having lived in both Korea and the U.S for many years.
Description written by James Kwon
School: School of Engineering and Applied Science
Major: Chemical Engineering
Graduating Year: 2017
You see a Korean boy dressed head to toe in Vineyard Vines walking towards you. You're probably already making judgments about him: he's whitewashed and snobby. Stop yourself from going any further.
Contrary to the vibe his appearance gives off, Doyeop Kim identifies largely with his Korean identity. He was born in Korea, lived there until he was 7, and then moved to the states, where he adopted his "southern prep."
His double cultural identity, however, is just one of the many things that make up Doyeop's eclectic personality. During the day, you might find him in the library cranking out his chemical engineering homework while listening to J. Cole, Drake, Lil DIcky or Hoodie Allen. During the evening, you can catch him on the basketball courts, maybe even shotgunning cans of pure juice in between games. This is, of course, what his weekdays look like. Having discovered his love for clubbing in Korea, Doyeop is taking full advantage of Penn's vibrant social life and every weekend, somehow manages to leave his awful NCH room for spacious frat houses. If you are looking for someone to show you a good time, Doyeop is your guy.
Description written by Cat Park
School: School of Engineering and Applied Science
Major: Computer Science
Graduating Year: 2020
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School: College of Arts & Sciences
Major: Biology and Hispanic Studies
Graduating Year: 2019
Lynn Hur can do it all. A bio and hispanic studies wiz hailing from Long Island, NY, she can astound you with her cello skills, out debate you in Model Congress, and knock you out with her black belt in taekwondo. But she’s more than what she shows on the outside. She loves studying at coffee shops all over Philly, hanging out with her Zeta girls, and playing with her adorable cockapoos. If you really want to impress her, take her out to Fishtown’s La Colombe or Halal Guys and get to know this cool girl.
Description written by Esther Jeon
School: College of Arts & Sciences
Major: ???
Graduating Year: 2019
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Description written by Lynn Hur
School: College of Arts & Sciences
Major: ???
Graduating Year: 2020
Clare is a freshman in the College and is currently undecided. She is from West Chester, PA. She enjoys listening to music, watching movies, playing violin, and hanging out with friends in her spare time. She mainly dresses in gray and black because she is bad at fashion and likes making matching easier for her. Clare also loves coffee and anything caramel or blueberry related, especially blueberry coffee from Dunkin. She wishes that one day she can get two dogs: a Samoyed and a husky.
Description written by Daniel Lee
School: College of Arts & Sciences
Major: Philosophy, Politics, Economics
Graduating Year: 2019
Meet Jay Choi!! He's from Irvine, California but doesn't like the beach (whatttt) and he is currently studying PPE with the goal of attending law school upon graduation. wow~~ He loves Penn's spirit of individuality and everyone's motivation. He says it makes him more ambitious. He joined KSA because he believes that it is important for minority groups to be visible and proactive in spreading knowledge about their cultures especially in the current political/societal climate. He wants KSA to be the first thing that comes to peoples' minds when they think of Korean or its culture! Other than KSA, he is involved in the Penn Undergraduate Law Journal as a Blog Editor! This future lawyer is sassily kind-hearted and wants to talk to you about anything (except for small talk).
Description written by Hannah Cho
School: College of Arts & Sciences
Major: ???
Graduating Year: 2019
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School: College of Arts & Sciences
Major: ???
Graduating Year: 2019
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School: School of Engineering and Applied Science
Major: Computer Science
Graduating Year: 2020
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Description written by Katie Waltman
School: College of Arts & Sciences
Major: Visual Studies
Graduating Year: 2020
Groups hold moments of silence, just for her greatness. She once had an awkward moment, just to see how it feels. She tips an astonishing 100%. When she drives a new car off the lot, it increases in value. Mosquitos refuse to bite her purely out of respect. She is Claire Shin. Lover of Star Wars, Miyazaki movies, gangster rap and hip hop, and bad puns. Born in Seoul, and raised in Seoul and Boston, this fine-arts majoring co-marketing chair has a thing for photography, fashion, doodling, and graphic design, and has a “certain aesthetic” (Follow her on Instagram @iamclairdelune). But don’t count her out of the sciences because she also loves biology and nature. She loves gazing at the stars, of which its seemingly infinite number symbolizes the endless number of possibilities and paths to happiness (her life goal) this world has to offer. Her favorite constellation is Orion because she’s just that great. Already amazed? That’s not all this all-around, versatile, and down-to-earth freshman has to offer. She plays tennis and the piano and is part of Penn’s chess club and club tennis team. She has aspirations to make music and become a DJ, so you may or may not see her DJing at KSA parties in a few years. As a cool, swag-filled, and easy-to-talk-to person, Claire is nothing short of a great board member and a great friend. You may see her strutting down Locust Walk listening to her “KILLA” hard rap playlist, wearing her slides and sweatpants because sometimes, she just don’t Claire.
Description written by Zachariah Lee
School: College of Arts and Sciences
Major: ???
Graduating Year: 2020
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School: College of Arts and Sciences
Major: ???
Graduating Year: 2020
Hailing from South Korea, James can be seen playing pong with friends every.single.weekend. In his free time, he watches football and plays soccer in intramural soccer team. He can be seen studying law library while listening to his favorite Kendrick Llamar album ~To Pimp a Butterfly~
Description written by Joan Lim
School: College of Arts and Sciences
Major: Linguistics
Graduating Year: 2020
Deceptively quiet, Hannah Cho is a bubbly freshman hailing from Potomac, Maryland. She especially breaks out of her shell and displays her passion when talking about why she wants to study Linguistics AND Pre-Med (she’s a really generous person who wants to help people all around the world!) It seems Hannah was made to be KSA munhwa chair, as she enjoys watching many K-Dramas and staying up-to-date with the latest in Korean culture – evident through her trendy fashion and circular-frame glasses. When she is not involved with integrating Korean culture into KSA events, Hannah flexes her sophisticated side by drawing and playing violin in the Penn Orchestra. Hannah’s ultimate goal as munhwa chair is to create a tight knit community in Penn’s already very diverse community. Compassionate, cultured (get it?), and charismatic, look out for Hannah in future KSA events (if you’re seeing double, don’t worry because she’s also training to be a MERT;)!
Description written by Jay Choi
School: College of Arts and Sciences
Major: ???
Graduating Year: 2019
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School: College of Arts and Sciences
Major: ???
Graduating Year: 2020
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