The KAIST Herald interviewed KAIST international alumni about their experiences as students in KAIST and how these experiences have helped them in their current careers. This interview series was conducted in collaboration with International Scholar and Student Services (ISSS).   

Please introduce yourself. When did you attend KAIST and what was your major? What is your current job and position?

My name is Meshingo Jack. I joined KAIST in 2015 to pursue my master’s degree in Information and Telecommunication Technology, the ITT Program. It is based at KAIST Munji Campus. This is a fully-funded program under the Ministry of Science, ICT, and Future Planning, [and] I was selected among 21 other people from different countries to pursue this M.S. program.

Maybe I could touch briefly on my achievements while I was at KAIST from 2015 to 2017. Firstly, one of the biggest honors that I got is the highest honor award under the [School of Business and Technology Management] in 2017. I think I was among the top ten [students] who performed very well during that semester. I also got the highest award for English TOPCIT in the whole country. TOPCIT is an ICT proficiency exam undertaken in Korea. It was a very great achievement for me, and I was able to assess my skills in terms of ICT and which area I really fit well in, either software development or services or ICT policy, so it was an eye-opener for me. And then one of the awards that I also got was on ICT collaboration between South Korea and developing countries, in this case my country, Botswana.

In terms of my current job, I am employed by Botswana Communication Regulatory Authority. This is a regulator for telecommunications data. For instance, in Korea, there is KT Telecom, LG U+: these are the licensees that we license, i.e. we give them permission to be able to provide service to people, to enable people to call or access broadband services, etc. I am currently the Manager of the Broadband Policy Regulation, responsible for implementing the national broadband strategy, overseeing ICT policy and regulation in collaboration with the Ministry of ICT in the country, as well as just kick-starting the conversation and work around related technologies. I am also currently working with the President’s Office; I have been selected to be a part of the Digital Transformation Task Team, responsible for developing the digital transformation strategy. We are transitioning our country to the knowledge-based economy through adoption of digital technologies across the country without leaving anyone behind. This is one of the major projects that I am currently working on. I have since been [transferred] to the President’ Office in 2019. So we are busy implementing this strategy, and we are always looking towards countries like Korea that are really advanced in terms of ICT as a benchmark so that we accelerate digital transformation in our country.

What did you study for your Bachelor’s degree?

I studied Information Systems. Actually when I got admitted for my BS degree, I was admitted to the program of Library and Information Science, but I always felt like this was not the area for me. I don’t know how I ended up there, but then after a year I decided to change my major to Information Systems, because that was the area that I was really interested in. So instead of completing my degree in four years, I had to complete it in three years because I could not get a scholarship or sponsorship for an additional year. I also graduated at the top of my class among those who were doing Information Systems [as a major].

What is your favorite memory from KAIST?

It is probably around spring, you know how beautiful it is with all the cherry blossoms around campus, and also the magnolia trees. I used to hang around with my friends taking pictures because in the part of the world where I come from, in Botswana, it is mostly a desert as you know, so we do not get to see cherry blossoms. It is a beautiful memory for me, just the campus all white or pink. We would have strawberry picnics, sitting around campus on the grass, just enjoying the views. And I also enjoyed interacting with people of different nationalities, that multinational environment has really groomed me; it helped me to grow and learn to interact with many people from different aspects of life.

Do you still keep in touch with your classmates from KAIST? 

Yes, I still do. I think mostly my friends are from Thailand, Uzbekistan, and African countries, like Kenya, Nigeria, and others, so we still keep in touch.

What were the challenges that you faced while studying at KAIST, and how did you overcome them?

It was a rollercoaster for me in the beginning. As you know, the time difference between Botswana and South Korea is 7 hours, so my first few months were really a challenge, I was jetlagged for months. When I was supposed to wake up to go to class that’s when I was starting to feel sleepy because it’s nighttime here in Botswana. That was a major challenge for me, but I got used to it. 

Another key challenge was that I left my husband and my baby at home. I just got married, and my daughter was just 5 years old, so leaving them behind really broke my heart. I would have sleepless nights just thinking about them. Trying to be a wife and be a parent away from home was just a challenge, but I am grateful for my husband. He managed to take on the mother and the father roles, and grow my daughter to be the responsible girl that she is now, she is 11. It helped just knowing that they are there for each other while I am away from home. We tried to reach those gaps by [visiting each other], especially around December, when the school was closed, and my husband could take leave, so that really helped.

And another key challenge, I think that is a key one for every foreigner, was the language in the beginning. If you do not know Korean, I don’t know how you would be able to survive in Korea. Wherever you go, you need to know the language. The only thing I knew [in the beginning] was annyeonghaseyo that I had learned from the Korean dramas that I watched before I came to Korea. So yeah, I had to work around the clock to learn Korean. I was taking Korean classes for two years [along with classes from my major], and then also taking lessons from the “Talk to Me in Korean” podcast. I would listen to the recordings and other applications that were installed on my phone. So by the time that I graduated, I was TOPIK level 2. TOPIK wasn’t a requirement for my program though. I believe that if I stayed more in Korea, I would now be very fluent with my Korean. I just loved it, I loved the subject.

One highlight in relation to learning: I remember this one time I was taking one course on the main campus, and my group members were Korean, and the TA was also Korean. We were supposed to have a group discussion about our project, and we met with the TA. All of a sudden, or naturally for them, the conversation started in Korean, and I was just there, lost, [wondering] where this conversation is going. I also wanted to be a part of this project, and also want to contribute the knowledge that I have. So after some time I just chipped in and said, “Guys, we need to work on this project together. I believe that we all know that this subject is delivered in English, so the discussion should be in English.” They apologized, and that’s when we started the discussion in English. I felt left out, but at least they listened, and we were able to go back on track and do everything in English. It is really important that we praise each other, the different languages, and just be there for each other, so that we all feel included, and no one feels left behind.

In fact, the school gets a lot of complaints from international students that the school environment does not feel inclusive here.

But, you know, another thing is, I wouldn’t say that all Koreans are like that. I always left like I wasn’t lost, I made a family away from home. Koreans try to include you in everything they do, such as going to church, doing fun activities, or traveling. While I was [staying in the dorm], I always preferred having a Korean roommate because I knew that they would make me feel welcome. 

Did your view of KAIST change from when you were studying in KAIST compared to after you graduated?  Why?

Not at all — I still value the lessons that I learned from KAIST. It has helped me a great deal in my professional development. I still apply some of the lessons that I have learned there in everything that I do, including the assignment that I am working on national digital transformation strategy. I still have to go back to what I learned from KAIST and apply it. I also liked the way the classes were structured; I found that there were a lot of industry-academia collaborations taking place. We would have visiting professors from the industry, …who would join us to share their experience and help us mesh that with the theoretical aspect that we learned from school, so that really helped. Even after I graduated, I got invited to be a visiting lecturer in one of the local universities here called Botho. I was trying to share my work and relate it to the theoretical aspect, … [so that] students have a close relationship between what is happening in the academia world and the industry.

What would you say were the differences between your college in Botswana and KAIST in terms of academia, social life, etc.? Was it very different?

Yes, I think it is really different. In Korea, during vacation, you can take holiday classes. And another one, in terms of industry-academia collaboration, we did not have such programs, just pure theoretical work. I think this industry-academia collaboration is really the key learning for my country, it is something that I would like to see happening [in my country]. It is happening to some extent, but I think we could do better in this aspect. 

How did you choose your career? How did KAIST help you in your career choice?

I have always had an interest in ICT from a young age. When we were growing up, we were not fortunate to have computers around us, but I think when I was at the age of 14, I could actually have access to a computer for a change. It was really fascinating learning all those programs, so I thought that I wanted to pursue this as I grew up. So it just came naturally to me that, when I was selected for a different major [for my BS], I had to change it such that my major is more around ICT.

When I joined KAIST, I had a keen interest in digital transformation and imaging technologies and the Fourth Industrial Revolution. We always had people from the industry coming to share the work that they were doing on big data, analytics, AI, etc. These were fascinating topics for me. I wanted to see how we can adopt some of those technologies in my country, and just see how we can change or solve some of the socio-economic problems that we encountered. Upon my return, I think [adoption of these technologies to solve these problems] became the area that I really pushed so much, the key one being how we can universalize broadband similar to Korea, where you have access to high speed internet wherever you go. 

What classes or activities did you pursue in KAIST that helped in your career?

One of the key activities that I undertook while I was at KAIST was volunteering as a researcher at KAIST Global Commercialization Center (GCC) to kick-start the conversation on how Botswana and Korea can collaborate for the development of my country, and also display on the global level solutions to various problems that Botswana have implemented. I also managed to organize for KAIST GCC staff to visit my country twice to share what Korea has to offer in terms of technologies that can be adopted in Botswana. And we had one of the local organizations here becoming the center for KAIST GCC in Botswana that any organizations that are interested in collaborating with Korea can partner through.

I also took taekwondo classes on campus as part of the program, and by the time that I graduated I was a red belt. I also encouraged my daughter to take on taekwondo as well, but she hates it! But it really helps you to unwind after a long day of work and even to keep fit because most of the time you are stuck at your computer or reading in the library, so I just recommend it to people for physical and mental fitness.

I also want to add that, while I was a student at KAIST, I just tried to do different activities to be part of the community and to grow myself. [For example], if there is a conference, I would be a moderator or a part of the discussion panel just so that I could develop my public speaking skills, which are really needed to survive in this industry or anywhere in life. It really helped me a lot and also increased my knowledge in my career. So I would just encourage anyone to take on opportunities to stand in front of people and speak.

What advice can you give to current KAIST international students?

I know that being in a foreign country can be really challenging, especially if you have left people back home, and you just don’t know anyone. I would encourage international students to keep going. In a year or two or four, you can go back to your country with something really meaningful that you have learned from Korea. So don’t give up, keep working hard, develop yourself every day, don’t miss opportunities for your development.

One thing that I forgot to mention: during holidays, if my schedule allowed, I would take some courses on Coursera, just so that I could increase my knowledge in different areas and build on my skills, in addition to what I was learning in class. Use the opportunities to build yourself because you will need it in life, and then embrace every situation that comes your way and turn it into an opportunity. There is a saying that I really like, and it keeps me going all the time: “The pain you feel today is the strength you will feel tomorrow.” For every challenge encountered, there is always an opportunity for growth. So just keep going, and you will achieve [your goals] in the end, no matter what you are going through. 

출처 : The KAIST Herald(http://herald.kaist.ac.kr)