After four years of hard work, it all comes down to the most important step: your “Graduation Project.” For engineering majors at Hanyang University, we have something called a Graduation Project, or 졸업 작품, which is essentially a project that showcases your abilities as an engineer.

There are different types of graduation projects for an engineering major, which I would classify as follows:

• Research-Based: You conduct research on a specific topic.
• Application-Centered: You develop an application related to a specific topic.
• Project Improvement-Centered: You take an existing project and work to improve it for better results.

The type of project you choose will determine your tasks over the year—whether it's writing a paper, presenting it at a seminar, or simply presenting it to your professor.

The process starts in January when the schedule is posted on the 졸업작품게시판 (each major has its own board). After this, a PPT with information about the projects is uploaded, followed by a list of professors and available projects. Some of these projects are "free topic", meaning you can choose your own topic. You’ll need to review each project and professor, then email the professor you’re interested in working with. A few important things to note here are:

• You must have software that reads HWP files (like 한컴오피스), as most files are in this format and in Korean.
• Reach out to professors quickly—otherwise, spots may fill up. I was rejected by three professors before I secured a spot.

Each project team consists of 2-3 members; individual projects are not allowed. If you don’t have a teammate, you’ll be assigned one randomly.

A piece of advice from my senior: “If you have a friend in the major, stick together till the end—you’ll need each other.” This is true! Working with a random teammate can be both good or challenging, especially for something as significant as this, so choose carefully.

Once a professor accepts you, you just need to write a 제안서 (proposal), and with that, you’re ready to start. The timeline varies by professor. Some start at the end of January, others at the beginning of the semester, and some are more flexible, starting whenever the students are ready.