Designed for late high school/early undergraduate students.

(4 weeks, June-July)

The flagship KARSI experience that moves beyond surface consumption to embodied cultural knowledge through integrated research methodologies. Students progress from direct urban engagement through industry immersion to sophisticated critical analysis, culminating in original research production. Led by our core faculty team including Dr. Michael Hurt, Dr. Donna Lee Kwon (pending), and CedarBough Saeji (pending), with an exclusive industry partnership providing unprecedented access to K-pop production processes.

Week 1: Embodied Urban Research- Dr. Hurt's "City as Text" methodology through actual movement across Seoul, visual sociology techniques via street-level engagement, treating urban spaces as living research sites rather than tourist destinations

Week 2: Embodied Cultural Production- Dr. Kwon's "madang" methodology exploring embodied spatial participation, plus full industry immersion with Five Stones Entertainment through authentic trainee experience. Students follow actual daily trainee schedules, including morning calisthenics and exercise routines, choreography learning and execution, portfolio production with professional headshots and album cover shoots, makeup and hair styling regimens, and complete participation in planning and rehearsal processes. This truly embodied approach moves far beyond observation to direct physical and emotional engagement with K-pop production demands, with exercise intensity adjusted for individual physical capabilities.

Track Selection Process:Students work with faculty to identify research focus areas based on their embodied discoveries, choosing specializations that will guide their Week 4 research products from Performance & Space, Industry & Labor, Urban & Visual, or Transnational Flows perspectives

Week 3: Embodied Critical Analysis - CedarBough Saeji guides students in analyzing embodied experiences through sophisticated theoretical frameworks, moving from personal experience to scholarly insight

Week 4: Research Synthesis & Production - Students work within their selected research focus areas to synthesize embodied learning into original research papers, data analysis projects, and presentation materials, creating customized final products while maintaining the holistic foundation from Weeks 1-3.

Designed for late high school/early undergraduate students, and can be theoretically dialed up for graduate students.

(16-week/semester course)

University-level ethnographic training specifically designed for Korean contexts, adapted from a prestigious joint course originally taught at Yonsei University and Syracuse University. Led by Dr. Hurt, who served as the local professor and ethnographer for this Syracuse University Architecture School program, students develop professional spatial analysis skills through sustained practice and supervision. This program teaches students to "read" Seoul's urban spaces as complex texts containing multiple layers of meaning through sophisticated methodologies used in professional architectural and urban planning practice.

Learning Through Movement: Students navigate Seoul's extensive subway and bus networks daily to reach research sites, treating transit itself as part of the research methodology. This movement-based approach develops sophisticated mental mapping of Seoul's urban landscape while building confidence in navigating complex urban environments.

Semester Structure:

Weeks 1-4: Theoretical foundations and methodology training, with intensive fieldwork in Apgujeong studying urban transformation from rural periphery to luxury district

Weeks 5-12: Extensive comparative fieldwork across Seoul neighborhoods (Euljiro, Yeonnam-dong, Dongdaemun, Seongsu-dong), developing visual and written research components

Weeks 13-16: Analysis synthesis, digital mapping projects, and final urban intervention presentations

Research Focus Options: Students select specializations including Visual Communication Systems (signage and marketing strategies), Spatial Adaptation Practices (how spaces get modified and extended), Social Geography (demographic space utilization), Temporal Transformations (how spaces change over time), Urban Layers (evidence of historical development), or Fashion & Identity Mapping (using Dr. Hurt's photo-sartorial elicitation methodology).

Professional Outputs: Students create sophisticated portfolio materials including digital urban maps, transit ethnography journals, pop-up urban interventions similar to university architecture student projects, and exhibition contributions. All components compile into comprehensive portfolios suitable for college applications, demonstrating both analytical thinking and practical application with professional-grade research methodologies.

Korean Cultural Intelligence for Executives.

(Five bespoke course modules offered in short bursts across 2-3 days at a time)

Program Overview: Five intensive modules designed to give executives sophisticated analytical frameworks for understanding Korean society, culture, and business dynamics. Rather than prescriptive "business culture" rules, participants develop the ability to read and navigate Korean contexts through direct observation and cultural analysis.

What We Don't Do: KARSI does not offer traditional "Korean business culture" programs filled with prescriptive rules, cultural etiquette lists, or superficial "do's and don'ts" guidance. We reject the listicle approach that treats culture as a collection of behavioral tips to memorize.

What We Do: We provide rigorous education in Korean history, sociology, anthropology, and cultural analysis. Our faculty are PhD-level researchers who teach executives to understand the deeper patterns, historical forces, and social dynamics that shape contemporary Korean behavior. Rather than telling you what Koreans do, we teach you why they do it and how to read cultural contexts yourself.

Our Methodology: Through ethnographic observation, historical analysis, and critical cultural theory — all grounded in case study reality — executives develop sophisticated analytical frameworks they can apply to any Korean business situation. We assume our participants are intelligent professionals who benefit more from understanding cultural logic than from memorizing cultural rules.

Operational Logic: Korean business success requires cultural intelligence, not cultural compliance. Executives who understand the historical, social, and psychological foundations of Korean culture make better strategic decisions, build stronger relationships, and navigate complex situations with confidence. Surface-level cultural training fails because it doesn't provide the analytical tools needed for real-world complexity.

Expected Outcome: Graduates possess the cultural literacy to read Korean social situations, predict market responses, understand organizational dynamics, and develop business strategies that align with Korean cultural logic rather than work against it.

This course structure is mostly bespoke. Read about it in more detail here and then drop us a line.

Designed for late high school/early undergraduate students.

KARSI Winter Vietnam Expedition: "Cultural Flows & Colonial Memory"
(2 weeks, January)

Intensive field research expedition tracking Korean cultural influence throughout Southeast Asia. Students continue the ongoing "Hallyu in Hanoi" ethnographic research project, interviewing Vietnamese youth and analyzing K-pop's impact on local culture. This program develops comparative analysis skills while contributing to ongoing research on transnational cultural flows.

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Vietnam Winter Art Residency
(2 weeks, January/February)

A unique combination of documentary photography training and cultural analysis based at Chau & Co. Gallery in Hanoi. Students choose between multiple program tracks and work with Vietnamese artists in 1:1 mentorship relationships, conducting ethnographic research on Korean cultural influence in Vietnam.

Program Tracks:

Documentary Photography Track: Master visual storytelling through street, portrait, and environmental photography documenting Vietnamese culture

Fine Arts Track: Create original paintings, sculptures, or installations comparing Vietnamese and Korean cultural experiences

"Parallel Empires" Track: Mixed-media projects exploring colonial memory in contemporary art

What All Students Experience:

Ethnographic interviewing techniques and research methodology training

Interview Vietnamese youth about K-pop's cultural impact and Korean influence

Explore parallel colonial histories (French-Vietnamese, Japanese-Korean)

Work under 1:1 guidance from established Vietnamese contemporary artists

Create original work in professional Vietnamese artist studios

Program Culmination:

Professional gallery exhibition at Chau & Co. Gallery

All student artwork professionally printed, framed, and displayed

Exhibition alongside established Vietnamese contemporary artists

Portfolio-quality documentation for college applications

This intensive residency develops sophisticated visual storytelling skills while exploring cultural parallels and differences, providing students with exhibition credentials and unique international artistic collaboration experience.

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KARSI Trace Expeditions: "Korean Cultural Flows Through Asia"
(10-14 days, usually June or July)
Annual academic expeditions that follow the prestigious AAS-in-Asia conference wherever it convenes, combining conference attendance with intensive field research tracking Korean cultural influence in the host country. Students experience authentic academic conferences firsthand while conducting original ethnographic research using Dr. Hurt's proven photo-sartorial elicitation methodology, previously employed in Indonesia, Vietnam, and other Asian locations.

Conference Integration: Students attend panel sessions, keynote presentations, and networking events at one of Asia's premier academic conferences, learning to comport themselves in professional academic contexts while observing cutting-edge Asian Studies research

Field Research Component: Extended research phase following conference using Dr. Hurt's photo-sartorial elicitation methodology to investigate Korean cultural influence and adaptation patterns in the local context, contributing to ongoing research on hallyu flows across Asia

Mentorship Structure: Graduate student research assistants and local academic partners provide on-ground support for ethnographic data collection, interview techniques, and cultural analysis

Academic Networking: Students develop relationships with international scholars, observe academic presentation standards, and gain exposure to professional research communities

Various Locations: Our program adapts to conference venues, ensuring students experience diverse Asian cultural contexts rather than fixed itineraries. Recent AAS-in-Asia locations include Yogyakarta, Indonesia (2024), Kathmandu, Nepal (2025), Daegu, Korea (2023), Bangkok, Thailand (2019), Delhi, India (2018), Seoul, Korea (2017), Kyoto, Japan (2016), Taipei, Taiwan (2015), and Singapore (2014)