“How Did You Get Here?” is a series focused on intergenerational conversations within Korean Studies. Dr. Rory Walsh, NCKS Lecturer and Research Fellow, interviews Korean Studies experts with the assistance of select Nam Center Undergraduate Fellows. These discussions focus on the diverse paths that one can take into research and/or academic positions in Korean Studies.
Episode 13 | William O’Grady
Coming Soon! Join our conversation with Dr. William O'Grady, professor at the University of Hawai'i.
Episode 12 | Erica Vogel
Join our conversation with Dr. Erica Vogel, professor at Saddleback College. Dr. Vogel shares how she became interested in migration between Asia and Latin America and how her field work experience interviewing Peruvian migrants in South Korea influenced her research focus.
Episode 11 | Thomas Ryan
Join our conversation with the Nam Center's Korea Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow 2022-23, Dr. Thomas Ryan. Follow Dr. Ryan's journey to academia as we explore how various career experiences influenced his research decisions and how he obtained fluency in the Korean language.
Episode 10 | Yumi Moon
Join our conversation with Dr. Yumi Moon, associate professor at Stanford University. We will follow Dr. Moon's experience as an undergraduate student at Seoul National University during the student movement of the 1980s and how the efforts for democratization in Korea impacted her views and understanding of modern history.
Episode 9 | Jung Joon Lee
Join our conversation with Dr. Jung Joon Lee, associate professor at the Rhode Island School of Design. We'll explore the ways Dr. Lee's career decisions and work experience influenced her path to academia and the ways in which she approaches her research.
Episode 8 | Cheehyung Harrison Kim
Join our conversation with Dr. Cheehyung Harrison Kim, associate professor at the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa. Follow Dr. Kim's journey starting from his interest in becoming a writer, hearing about his visit to North Korea, and exploring what it means to be an academic and an activist.
Episode 7 | Erik Mobrand
Join our conversation with Dr. Erik Mobrand, Korea Policy Chair and a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation. Explore different political and economical career opportunities offered at policy think-tanks, considerations for graduate study, and how to stay up to date on international politics.
Episode 6 | Kelly Jeong
Join our conversation with Dr. Kelly Jeong, associate professor at the University of California, Riverside. Follow Dr. Jeong's journey and exposure to film and film studies, from working in her parents' video store with Hollywood films to studying film theory in graduate school and watching Korean 60s cinema.
Episode 5 | Jinsoo An
Join our conversation with Dr. Jinsoo An, associate professor at the University of California, Berkeley. Learn how Dr. An's early experiences with film, from Kung Fu arts to Raiders of the Lost Ark, influenced his journey to becoming a film scholar.
Episode 4 | Junyoung Verónica Kim
Join our conversation with Dr. Junyoung Verónica Kim, assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh. We'll follow Dr. Kim's journey living, learning, and working in various counties and how these unique experiences shaped her path into academia.
Episode 3 | Sharon Yoon
Join our conversation with Dr. Sharon Yoon, assistant professor at the University of Notre Dame. We'll explore different pathways to academia, and how it's not always linear! Dr. Yoon shares her work experiences after undergrad and how they shaped her choices going into her PhD program.
Episode 2 | Youngju Ryu
Join our conversation with the Director of the Nam Center for Korean Studies, Dr. Youngju Ryu! We'll discuss Dr. Ryu's path into academia, the changing setting of Korean Studies, and the effects of current events on research in the field of Korean Studies.
Episode 1 | Angela Yoonjeong McClean
Join our conversation with the Nam Center's Korea Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow 2021-22, Dr. Angela McClean! We'll explore what it's like choosing a department home as a PhD student and life after a dissertation as an early-career scholar.
