Yongsan International School of Seoul

Yongsan International School of Seoul (YISS) is a kindergarten (age 5) to 12th grade college-preparatory international school. Accredited by WASC and ACSI and based on the U.S. educational model, the academic program includes an extensive offering of Advanced Placement (AP) courses at the high school level. YISS is considered one of the top international schools in Korea.[1][2] It results in YISS graduates gaining admission to many of the world’s most selective schools including Stanford, MIT, Columbia, University of Pennsylvania, Cornell, Duke, West Point, NYU Stern, Northwestern, UC Berkeley, University College London, and University of St. Andrews (UK).[3]

Yongsan International School of Seoul
서울 용산 국제 학교
Location
Seoul

South Korea
Coordinates37°32′26″N 127°0′2″E
Information
TypePrivate School
Established1990 (ICS Seoul)
2006 (YISS)
School districtYongsan
HeadmasterDr. George Zickefoose
Enrollment~1000
MascotGuardians
Websitewww.yisseoul.org

YISS welcomes families and students of all religions, backgrounds, and worldviews, providing a multi-cultural experience. The student body of 1,000 students represents more than 50 different countries.[3]

School

Location

YISS is located in Itaewon, Yongsan-gu. The school is built on 23,100 square meters of land leased from the [Seoul Metropolitan Government] in 2005 for 50 years at a value of 50 billion won (US$50 million). The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy provided funding of 13 billion won (US$13 million) for construction costs and the Korea Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI) financed additional costs of 20 billion won (US$20 million).[4]

Academics

In 2018, the SAT scores of the 12th grade students was 1,460 (U.S. national average was 1,068). In 2018, the average ACT Score of the 12th grade students was 30.5 (U.S. national average was 21). YISS offers 26 Advanced Placement (AP) Courses. Half of the high school students were enrolled in at least 1 AP course in 2018 with 93% of the students scoring 3+ and 51% of the students scoring a 5. [5]

Colleges and Universities

Students have been admitted to global educational institutions including Harvard University, Dartmouth College, Brown University, Princeton University, University of Pennsylvania, Yale University, Cornell University, Columbia University, University of Chicago, Stanford University, Carnegie Mellon University, Pepperdine University, University of Toronto (Canada), University of York (UK), University of Queensland (Australia), Goethe University (Germany), S P Jain School of Global Management (Singapore), Seoul National University (Korea), Korea University (Korea), and Yonsei University (Korea).[6] [5]

Curriculum

Students have an option of choosing a Christian or a secular based curriculum. This is done because the school was funded by the KFSF whose requirements were that students of different cultures or religions could study at YISS. YISS follows the US Based, Common Core AP curriculum. At the high school level YISS offers 26 AP Courses.

1:1 Laptop Program

The 1:1 laptop program was started in 2011 with the high school and middle school rollout completed in 2012. The elementary expanded the 1:1 laptop program to 3rd grade in 2017. The high school and middle students are provided with an Apple Macbook Pro or Macbook Air laptop.

Facilities[7]

During the summer of 2017, the Korean Foreign Schools Foundation (KFSF) initiated and funded a major renovation of the entrance to YISS. The new additions include a new gate, trellises, sidewalks, a pedestrian staircase, terraced seating, landscaping, and a large metallic mosaic facade.[8]

The academic facilities consist of over 60 classrooms, including specialized science and computer labs, as well as a "makerspace." All classrooms have access to the high-speed wireless network and are equipped with projectors and audio equipment to facilitate lessons. There is an elementary library and a media center for secondary students.

The cornerstone of the arts facilities is a 500-seat auditorium with computerized lighting and surround sound. There is also a black box theater, four specialized visual arts studios, and classrooms and rehearsal spaces for the elementary music classes and secondary choirs, bands, and orchestras.

The aquatics facilities include an indoor, six-lane, 25-meter, heated swimming pool with custom, top-of-the-line starting blocks. The pool utilizes a fully automatic touchpad and scoreboard system. There is a viewing balcony overlooking the length of the pool. The facilities also include large boys and girls locker rooms with showers and suit dryers.

The 350-seat gymnasium accommodates a full basketball or volleyball court and is equipped with six retractable basketball rims. The auxiliary gymnasium has six height-adjustable basketball rims for younger students. The weight room includes resistance machines, free weights, treadmills, rowing machines, and other equipment. There is also a multi-purpose room used for dance, Zumba, etc.

The outdoor athletics facilities are situated on the roof of the athletic building. The regulation-size synthetic turf soccer field includes two standard goals and six practice goals. There is a 100-meter all-weather track beside the field, as well as a rubberized track surrounding the entire field. There is also a hard court tennis court adjacent to the track and field.

Extracurricular Activities

Sports

YISS competes with international and Department of Defense (DoDDS) schools as a member of the Korean American Interscholastic Activities Conference (KAIAC) in the Blue Division. For international competition, YISS is part of the Asia Christian Schools Conference (ACSC), which includes schools from Guam, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, and Thailand.

High School Fall Sports (August-October):

  • Cross Country (Varsity Boys, JV Boys, Varsity Girls, JV Girls)
  • Tennis (Varsity Boys, Varsity Girls)
  • Volleyball (Varsity Boys, Varsity Girls, JV Girls)
  • ACSC Swim Championships
  • ACSC Boys Soccer Tournament

High School Winter Sports (November-February):

  • Basketball (Varsity Boys, JV Boys, Varsity Girls, JV Girls)
  • Cheerleading (Varsity Girls)

High School Spring Sports (February-May):

  • Soccer (Varsity Boys, Varsity Girls)
  • Swimming (Varsity Boys, Varsity Girls)
  • Track and Field (Varsity Boys, Varsity Girls)

Middle School Quarter 1 Sports (August-October):

  • Cross Country
  • Soccer

Middle School Quarter 2 Sport (October-December):

  • Swimming

Middle School Quarter 3 Sport (January-March):

  • Volleyball

Middle School Quarter 4 Sports (March-May):

  • Basketball
  • Tennis

YISS GOES & Immersion

The Guardians Outreach Education & Service (GOES) program (formerly known as Guardians with a Message (GWAM)) provides high school students with opportunities to serve and learn in Korea and throughout Asia during Spring Break. About half of the high school student body participates.[9]

Immersion is a program created with middle schoolers in mind. There are three foundational pieces of this program: spiritual growth and development, community service, and cultural immersion.

GOES and Immersion trips send students to places such as Manila, Baguio, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Yanji, Gunsan, and Taebaek.[10]

Others

Students participate in Model United Nation events such as BEIMUN[11] and SEOMUN. They also participate in the Chess Tournament.

Controversy

There has been some controversy as to how students are admitted, particularly those of Korean ethnicity. In 2008 the school was accused of admitting unqualified students who were children of Korean staff within the schools. There were also allegations that the children were exempted from paying school fees which was at about US$20,000 per year at the time.

YISS admitted that there were admissions irregularities and that the children were no longer attending the school.[4]

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See also

References
  1. "The Top International Schools in Korea | 10 Magazine Korea". 10 Magazine Korea. 2016-07-28. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
  2. "International schools in South Korea". Just Landed. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
  3. "Yongsan International School of Seoul YISS K 12 Itaewon Seoul - South-Korea - korea4expats". www.korea4expats.com. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
  4. "National Digest Korea Times". Retrieved 30 January 2014.
  5. "YISS Academics". Retrieved 6 October 2019.
  6. "Seoul Metro Govt. Features. Yongsan International School of Seoul". Retrieved 30 January 2014.
  7. "Facilities". www.yisseoul.org. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
  8. "(주)건림원ㅣ KUNLIMWON Landscape, Architecture & Civil Engineering Co.,Ltd". (주)건림원ㅣ KUNLIMWON Landscape, Architecture & Civil Engineering Co.,Ltd. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
  9. "Molding well-rounded students who care | SEOUL Magazine". magazine.seoulselection.com. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
  10. "YISS Newsletter" (PDF). Retrieved 30 January 2014.
  11. "Beimun". Archived from the original on February 2, 2014. Retrieved 30 January 2014.
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