Ewha Womans University

Infobox University
name = Ewha Womans University
native_name = 이화여자대학교

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image_size = 180px
motto = Truth, Goodness, and Beauty
_ja. 眞 · 善 · 美
established = May 31 1886 as Ewha School, college-course installed in 1910, re-established as a university on August 15 1945.
type = Private
president = Lee Bae-Yong
city = Seodaemun
province = Seoul
country = South Korea
students = 19,503 [cite web|last= |first= |authorlink= |title=Ewha Information |work=Ewha Womans University Official Website |publisher= |date= |url=http://www.ewha.ac.kr/about/info/statistics.jsp |accessdate=|]
undergrad = 14,904
postgrad = 4,559
faculty = 856
staff = 369
campus = Urban
587,159nbsp|2m²
website = [http://www.ewha.ac.kr/ www.ewha.ac.kr] Infobox Korean name
hangul = 이화여자대학교
hanja = 梨花女子大學校
mr = Ihwa Yŏja Taehakkyo
rr = Ihwa Yeoja Daehakgyo

Ewha Womans University (Korean: 이화여자대학교, Hanja: 梨花女子大學校) is a private women's university in central Seoul, South Korea. It is one of the city's largest institutions of higher learning and also the world's largest female educational institute. It also is one of the best-known universities in South Korea, and often considered to be the top women's university. Ewha was founded in 1886 by the American Methodist Episcopal missionary Mary F. Scranton.

The school flower is the pear, the Sino-Korean term for which is the school's name. While there may seem to be two grammatical errors in the name, "womans" was the correct English spelling in the late nineteenth century when the university was founded (as opposed to women's). The absence of the apostrophe is an error which the institution has kept for historical reasons.

History

Ewha Womans University traces its roots back to Mary F. Scranton's Ihwa Hakdang (also Ewha Hakdang; 이화학당 梨花學堂) mission school for girls, which opened with only one student on May 31, 1886 (Lee, 2001). [Lee Jeong-kyu. (2001). The establishment of modern universities in Korea and their implications for Korean education policies. In [http://epaa.asu.edu/epaa/v9n27.html "Education Policy Analysis Archives 9" (27)] ] The name, which means “Pear blossom academy”, was bestowed by the Emperor Gojong the following year. The school began to provide college courses in 1910, and professional courses for women in 1925. Immediately following liberation of Korea on August 15, 1945, the college received government permission to become a university. It was the first South Korean university to be officially organized.

Ewha is now responsible for many firsts in Korean history: Korea's first female doctor, Esther Park; its first woman to get a doctoral degree, Helen Kim (who later became the university's first Korean president); the first female Korean lawyer, Lee Tai-young; the first female justice on the Constitutional Court, Jeon Hyo-sook, and the first female prime minister, Han Myeong-sook, were all Ewha graduates. The "firsts" is in part due to the fact that many Korean women in older generations were discouraged from attending co-ed universities in Korea. Ewha's zeal to remain at the vanguard of women's education in Korea is encapsulated in its new motto, "Frontier Ewha."

1886 - In May, Mary F. Scranton, an American Methodist missionary, opens Korea's first school for women in her house with a single student. In November, the construction of a school building (the former base of Ewha Womans University) is completed in Jeong-dong.

*1887 - King Gojong officially names the school "Ihwa (also Ewha)."
*1910 - College courses begin.
*1925 - Ewha Women's Professional School opens.
*1935 - The campus moves to its current location.
*1946 - Ewha becomes Ewha Womans University, Korea's first university for women.
*1950 - Ewha graduate schools open.
*1977 - Women's Studies classes begin.
*1984 - The School of Continuing Education opens.
*1996 - Ewha opens its College of Engineering, the first such school in a women's university.
*2001 - Division of International Studies established.
*2006 - Ewha offers inaugural Ewha Global Partnership Program and completes the restoration of Ewha Hakdang.
*2007 - Ewha establishes Scranton College, a specialized undergraduate college incorporating its honors program and the Division of International Studies.

Reputation & Performance

Starting from the 19th century, Ewha has so far graduated a total of 170 thousand graduates. It has made an indelible mark as the foremost women's educational institution. Initiative Ewha is a plan that will carry Ewha into the new century and make it grow into a globally recognized institution of higher education. Admission to Ewha Womans University is selective. According to the Joongang Daily's ranking of universities in Korea, Ewha Womans University was ranked 9th in 2003 and most recently, 8th in 2007. However, the university has been ranked within the top 3 in the NCSI (National Consumer Satisfaction Index) University rankings for 4 consecutive years. Ewha also topped the KCUE's(Korean Council for University Education) 2005 University General Assessment List.

-internationally
*Beijing University designates "Ewha University Day"
*Ewha is Korea's only Harvard College in Asia Program (HCAP) Partner
*Ewha, Wellesley College and Barnard College agree to jointly develop World Women's Leadership Program

-nationwide
*15 out of 32 female ministers graduated from Ewha /46.8%
*17 out of 40 female members of the 17th parliament graduated from Ewha / 32.5%
*Ewha ranks 5th in the nation for the number of graduates passing the judicial, civil, and foreign officers examinations. (2007)
*Ewha produced 2nd largest number of professional women leaders. (2005)
*Ranked first among universities on the National Customer Satisfaction Index (NSCI) in the overall evaluation category (1995, 2005)

-research
* Recognized for outstanding programs of specialization : Bio-science and International Development programs(Recognized for Core Competence Development Project Interdisciplinary Life Science and International Development programs Specialization Program on International Development Cooperation)
* Selected for 2006 National Core Research Center project: Center for Cell Signalling & Drug Discovery Research
* Selected as a Creative Research Project: Research Center of MEMS Space Telescope, Symbiosystem Research Center
* Selected for the Humanities Korea Project: The Trans-Humanities Research Team

-students
*Ewha ranks 4th in the pass rate of the National Judical Exam level 1
*Ewha students compete against students from around the world, and take top prize at the "Debate Asia" Competition
*A Ewha undergrad student's paper is published in a leading international chemistry journal
*Lee Yun-jin, a third-year student discovers the mechanism of oxygen-transmission protein
*Choi Yoo-Sun becomes the youngest panelist to debate at the World Economic Forum, "Davos Forum", debating with Gordon Brown,the Prime Minister of Britain
*Prominent international society recognizes an Ewhaian Winner of 2007 *NIM A Young Scientist Award*
*Park Na-hee, a physics student, participates in the "NASA Space Structure Research"

Organization-Undergraduate

The undergraduate departments of Ewha are divided among 11 colleges with 65 departments. Likewise, the graduate courses are divided into 13 graduate schools.
*College of Liberal Arts
*College of Social Sciences
*College of Engineering
*College of Natural Sciences
*College of Arts (Music/Fine Arts/Design)
*College of Law
*College of Pharmacy
*College of Education
*College of Business Administration
*College of Health Sciences
*Scranton College (Honors Program, International Studies)Scranton College opened its doors on March 1, 2007. The College was named after Mary F. Scranton, the missionary who founded Ewha 120 years ago. As a unique program that stands at the core of ‘Global Ewha 2010 Project,’ Scranton College is designed to educate our students and enable them to become effective leaders in a globalized world. There are two main programs in the College: the Scranton Honors Program which encompasses a multitude of disciplines, and the Division of International Studies which is specifically aimed at equipping students with the capacity to compete in the global arena. Scranton offers comprehensive interdisciplinary courses which allow more freedom, creativity, and individuality to students. Small-sized classes conducted in English and the study-abroad programs aim to equip students with an open, flexible mindset and broader scholastic view required in the age of globalization. The Division of International Studies (DIS) was first established in March 2001 as an undergraduate program where English is the language of instruction. It was the first-of-its-kind to be established in Korea. Now, as part of Scranton College, DIS provides individualized curricula for the students in order to help them gain international expertise in their area of choice.

Organization-Graduate

*The Graduate School
*The Graduate School of International Studies
*The Graduate School of Translation and Interpretation
*The Graduate School of Social Welfare
*The Graduate School of Business
*The Graduate School of Medicine
*The Graduate School of Education
*The Graduate School of Design
*The Graduate School of Theology
*The Graduate School of Policy Sciences
*The Graduate School of Music in Modern Media
*The Graduate School of Clinical Health Sciences
*The Graduate School of Clinical Dentistry

Distinguished Fellows of Ewha Academy for Advanced Studies

*Muhammad Yunus, President of Grameen Bank, 2006 Nobel Peace Prize Recipient
*Prof. Robert H. Grubbs, 2005 Nobel Chemistry Prize Recipient
*Prof. Francis Fukuyama, author of The End of History
*Prof. Jocelyn B. Burnell, The first discoverer of pulsars
*Prof. Choy Jin-ho, recipient of Korea's Most Outstanding Scientist Award
*Prof. Park Kyung-seo, Korea's first ambassador of human rights
*Prof. Rhee Sue-goo, Korea's first National Scientist
*Prof. Shin Yong-ha, recipient of Korea's Academy of Science Award
*Prof. Jin Duk-Kyu, first president of Ewha Academy for Advanced Studies

References

Notable alumni

Twelve out of the 25 female ministers since national independence and one third of the 17 female National Assembly members are graduates of Ewha Womans University.Fact|date=August 2008

Graduates include the first woman attorney, first woman PhD, first woman Prime Minister of South Korea, and first woman justice of the Constitutional Court of Korea. Ewha alumni have contricuted to the fields of politics, business, media, science, social welfare, civil society, culture, and arts.

* Bang Jee-Young – Pianist
* Han Myung-sook, (1967, French Literature) - First woman Prime Minister of South Korea
* Grace Park - LPGA golfer
* Yuko Fueki - Japan and Korea-based actress
* Yu Gwan-sun - Leader of March 1st Independence Movement
* Esther Park (1886, Ewha School) - First female physician
* Hah Ran-sa (1895, Ewha School) - First Korean woman to acquire a U.S. Bachelor of Arts degree
* Helen Kim (1918, College Course) - First female Doctor of Philosophy, First female Bachelor of Arts (1914)
* Lee Tae-young (1936, Home Economics - First female attorney of law
* Jang Hye-won (1950, Pharmacy) - First women scientist in the field of chemistry
* Jang Myung-soo (1964, Journalism & Mass Communication) - First woman CEO of a daily newspaper
* Jeon Sin-ae (1965, English Literature) - Former Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of Labor
* Lee Sung-nam (1970, English Literature) -First female member of the Monetary Committee
* Jeon Hyo-sook (1973, Law) - First female justice in the Constitutional Court of Korea
* No Seok-mi (1980, Business Administration) - First female CPA in Korea
* Lee Hyang-rim (1984, Biology -)First woman CEO in the imported automobile industry
* Choi In-a (1984, Political Science and Diplomacy) - First female Executive Managing Director in Samsung Group (Executive Vice President)
* Son Ji-ae (1985, Political Science and Diplomacy)- First Korean CNN Seoul Bureau Chief
* Hong Eun-joo (2003, Exercise, and Sport & Leisure Science) - Youngest Korean international football referee

Gallery

ee also

*Education in South Korea
*List of colleges and universities in South Korea
*List of Korea-related topics
*Ewhaian
*Ewha Womans University Station
*Idae area

External links

* [http://www.ewha.ac.kr/ Official website, in Korean and English]
* [http://iei.ewha.ac.kr/ Official website for international programs, in Korean and English]
* [http://dmoz.org/Reference/Education/Colleges_and_Universities/Asia/South_Korea/Ewha_Womans_University/ Open Directory category]