The open house festival of Ewha dormitory, Hanwoori Hall, was held on September 19 and 20. Many friends and family members of Hanwoori residents visited the dorm to see what life in Hanwoori is like. This was a rare occasion for visitors, since Hanwoori is famous for its strict rules, which prohibit visitors inside the residence area except for on open house days. In fact, this and other rules have become the focus of complaints by residents, who argue that many of them are unnecessary and inconvenient.
The rules are not only limited to those concerning the visitors. Another point of contention is the 11 p.m. curfew. Students who are late get black marks: three for being tardy, five for sleeping outside without permission, and those who accumulate ten marks must leave the dorm. "I felt very stressed to be on time everyday. I had to go back to the dorm even when something special came up suddenly." says Baik In-kyung (Visual Design, 2)
However, faculty members supervising the dorm say that all regulations are meant for the students" good. The director of Hanwoori Hall, Professor Lee Kwang-ok (Nursing Science) says, "We have a responsiblity to take care of the students because the parents who send their children rely on us. But the most important reason for having the curfew is that students need to sleep by that time to stay healthy. The dorm is trying to help students maintain a regular life style and learn to adjust to community life. Also we have stricter rules than those at other schools since it is a women"s school."
Some students are happy with the rules, too. "This is my fourth year in the dorms and I think the rules make me feel safe and organized. And since visitors cannot easily come in, students privacy is kept well," says Kim Joo-young (Social Studies Education, 4)
Dorms at other schools have rules too, but most of them are not as strict as the ones at Ewha. The dormitory at Yonsei has a 1 a.m. curfew and Seoul National University has no curfew at all. Even though they have a curfew at Yonsei, students can easily sign up to sleep out.
Students point out that one inconvenient part of Ewha"s dorm rules is the complicated process of signing up to sleep out. A student must sign up online before 5 p.m. on weekdays and by midnight of the day before on weekends, with parents" permission.
?"In my first week I wasn"t aware that I had to sign up the day before to spend a night out on weekends. So I got five points off for going on a trip with my division," said one anonymous student.
It is true that students are satisfied with the clean and convenient facilities of the Hanwoori Hall. Still, about 100 people out of 600 have dropped out of the dorm this semester. Some of them had other reasons but many of them wanted more freedom. Lee Sung-min (Chinese Lang. & Lit., 2) says, "I decided to live in a place of my own rather than the dorm because of all the stress of obeying the rules. I think strict rules are not always the best way to control students."
Hanwoori Hall is showing effort to change some rules to satisfy students requests. A recent change in the curfew from 11 p.m. to 12 a.m. for Fridays and Saturdays is an example. Kim Dan-bi (International Studies, 1) says "I do feel stressed sometimes, but living in the dormitory is getting more and more pleasant as time goes by."
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