Ewha Womans University (Korean: 이화여자대학교; Hanja: 梨花女子大學校) is a private women's research university in Seoul, South Korea. It was originally founded as Ewha Haktang on May 31, 1886, by a missionary Mary F. Scranton. Currently, Ewha Womans University is one of the world's largest female educational institutes and one of the most prestigious universities in South Korea. Ewha Womans University has produced numerous South Korean women leaders, including politicians, CEOs, and legal professionals.
History
Ewha campus complexStreet near EwhaMain entranceAutumn at Ewha Womans University.
Ewha Womans University traces its roots back to Mary F. Scranton's Ewha Haktang (이화학당; 梨花學堂) mission school for girls, which opened with one student on May 31, 1886.[2] The name Ewha, which means “Pear Blossom,” was bestowed by the Emperor Gojong the following year. The image of the pear blossom is incorporated in the school's logo.
The school began providing college courses in 1910, and professional courses for women in 1925. The high school section, now known as Ewha Girls' High School (not to be confused with the coeducational Ewha Womans University High School, the university's demonstration school, founded in 1958),[3] separated from the college section and is currently located in Jung-gu, Seoul.[4] Both institutions share the same motto and the "pear blossoms" image in their logos.
Immediately following the 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.
Student population
According to figures provided by the university in April 2018, there are 21,596 enrolled students at the university.[5]
While figures on the student body's gender breakdown are not available, Korea JoongAng Daily reported in 2003 there were 10 male students enrolled at the time.[6] In 2009, Asian Correspondent reported that male students make up 30% of all foreign international students at the university.[7]
The university explains its unusual name by saying that while the lack of an apostrophe in "Womans University" is unconventional, the use of "Woman" rather than "Women" was normal in the past.[8]
Museum
Ewha Womans University Museum opened in April 1935. It has a wide range of artifacts, ranging from paintings, ceramics, crafts, doubles, and folk items, and its main collection is the Korean National Treasure No. 107 white porcelain, iron, and grape jars. The museum consists of a permanent exhibition hall, a planning exhibition hall, a donation exhibition hall, and a Damin Goksik art museum.
Helen Kim, the seventh principal and first Korean principal of Ewha, is considered to be pro-Japanese. She is known to have encouraged young men to enlist in the Japanese army. The statue of Helen Kim and the building named after her on campus have both been criticized. Many protests were organized to take down the statue.[22][23]
Women's rights movements
While Ewha Womans University has been the center of women's rights movements, this feminist feature created controversies in Korea.[24] One example was men's benefit from military service. Originally, getting extra points on employment and being paid for higher step in the salary class were available to males who had done their mandatory military service. In 1999, a couple of Ewha Womans University students and one male student, who was a disabled student at Yonsei University, claimed that this law was both sexist and discriminatory toward disabled people.[25] This case eventually went to court, and the court ruled in the students' favor.
2016 South Korean political scandal
Ewha Womans University became embroiled in the 2016 South Korean political scandal, because a former student, Chung Yoo-ra, had been admitted under a special rule change by virtue of her mother's close connections to South Korean President Park Geun-hye despite not meeting requirements. Students had already been protesting against some of the university's unilateral changes to the degree system and departments before the political scandal blew up. As a result, the university's president, Choi Kyunghee, was ousted and convicted and Chung Yoo-Ra's degree was rescinded.[26]
Awards
321st in the 2013 Leiden Ranking, a qualitative assessment of faculty research in the world's top 500 universities.[27]
299th in the QS World University Rankings in 2018.[28]
Ninth among all Korean universities in the Chosun-QS Evaluation of Asian Universities in 2016.[29]
JaHyun Kim Haboush – scholar of history, literature, gender studies, and King Sejong Professor of Korean Studies at Columbia University[30]
Lee Ae-ran — first female North Korean defector to earn a doctorate, which she earned from Ewha Womans University in the subject of food and nutrition in 2009.[31]
