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LIFE IN KOREAPosted by asking_for_a_friend5527 🇳🇴 Norway · 5 h ago
Who else actually lives in a goshiwon?
slightly nervous about this. is it all students or is it a mix of people in difficult situations.
i'm a 22f arriving alone and i'd rather know honestly than find out
i'm a 22f arriving alone and i'd rather know honestly than find out
8 comments
OFFICIAL ANSWER
MinjiALLO TEAM
Korea local tips · Seoul
Fair question and worth a straight answer rather than reassurance.
Who actually lives in goshiwon: it varies a lot by district, and that is the useful part.
- Near universities (Sinchon, Anam, Hoegi, Hongdae): overwhelmingly students, Korean and international, late teens to late twenties. This is the profile you would expect.
- Noryangjin and exam districts: people studying for civil service exams, typically 20s to early 30s, extremely quiet and focused.
- Central business districts (Gangnam, Jongno): young office workers, people on short contracts, people between apartments.
- Older buildings in outer districts: this is where the mix widens, and it can include older long-term residents in difficult circumstances. Goshiwon do function as low-cost housing of last resort in Korea, and that is real.
So the district you choose largely determines who your neighbours are. Near a university you will be in a building of students.
On safety specifically, since that is the actual question:
- Almost all goshiwon are single-gender floors, and a significant number are women-only buildings (여성전용). If that matters to you, filter for it — search 여성전용 고시원 and it is a normal, widely available category.
- Entrances are keycard or keypad, and virtually all have CCTV at the door.
- Korea has low rates of street and property crime by international standards, and goshiwon are not an exception to that.
What I would actually advise: choose a building near your campus rather than one chosen purely on price, and look specifically for 여성전용 if you would feel better in one. They are common, they are not more expensive, and several are within walking distance of every major language institute.
And when you view, ask "여기 학생 많아요?" — are there many students here. Operators answer this honestly because it is what most of their residents want to know too.
Who actually lives in goshiwon: it varies a lot by district, and that is the useful part.
- Near universities (Sinchon, Anam, Hoegi, Hongdae): overwhelmingly students, Korean and international, late teens to late twenties. This is the profile you would expect.
- Noryangjin and exam districts: people studying for civil service exams, typically 20s to early 30s, extremely quiet and focused.
- Central business districts (Gangnam, Jongno): young office workers, people on short contracts, people between apartments.
- Older buildings in outer districts: this is where the mix widens, and it can include older long-term residents in difficult circumstances. Goshiwon do function as low-cost housing of last resort in Korea, and that is real.
So the district you choose largely determines who your neighbours are. Near a university you will be in a building of students.
On safety specifically, since that is the actual question:
- Almost all goshiwon are single-gender floors, and a significant number are women-only buildings (여성전용). If that matters to you, filter for it — search 여성전용 고시원 and it is a normal, widely available category.
- Entrances are keycard or keypad, and virtually all have CCTV at the door.
- Korea has low rates of street and property crime by international standards, and goshiwon are not an exception to that.
What I would actually advise: choose a building near your campus rather than one chosen purely on price, and look specifically for 여성전용 if you would feel better in one. They are common, they are not more expensive, and several are within walking distance of every major language institute.
And when you view, ask "여기 학생 많아요?" — are there many students here. Operators answer this honestly because it is what most of their residents want to know too.
Was this helpful?Updated 3 h ago
8 comments
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Fair question and worth a straight answer rather than reassurance.
Who actually lives in goshiwon: it varies a lot by district, and that is the useful part.
- Near universities (Sinchon, Anam, Hoegi, Hongdae): overwhelmingly students, Korean and international, late teens to late twenties. This is the profile you would expect.
- Noryangjin and exam districts: people studying for civil service exams, typically 20s to early 30s, extremely quiet and focused.
- Central business districts (Gangnam, Jongno): young office workers, people on short contracts, people between apartments.
- Older buildings in outer districts: this is where the mix widens, and it can include older long-term residents in difficult circumstances. Goshiwon do function as low-cost housing of last resort in Korea, and that is real.
So the district you choose largely determines who your neighbours are. Near a university you will be in a building of students.
On safety specifically, since that is the actual question:
- Almost all goshiwon are single-gender floors, and a significant number are women-only buildings (여성전용). If that matters to you, filter for it — search 여성전용 고시원 and it is a normal, widely available category.
- Entrances are keycard or keypad, and virtually all have CCTV at the door.
- Korea has low rates of street and property crime by international standards, and goshiwon are not an exception to that.
What I would actually advise: choose a building near your campus rather than one chosen purely on price, and look specifically for 여성전용 if you would feel better in one. They are common, they are not more expensive, and several are within walking distance of every major language institute.
And when you view, ask "여기 학생 많아요?" — are there many students here. Operators answer this honestly because it is what most of their residents want to know too.
Who actually lives in goshiwon: it varies a lot by district, and that is the useful part.
- Near universities (Sinchon, Anam, Hoegi, Hongdae): overwhelmingly students, Korean and international, late teens to late twenties. This is the profile you would expect.
- Noryangjin and exam districts: people studying for civil service exams, typically 20s to early 30s, extremely quiet and focused.
- Central business districts (Gangnam, Jongno): young office workers, people on short contracts, people between apartments.
- Older buildings in outer districts: this is where the mix widens, and it can include older long-term residents in difficult circumstances. Goshiwon do function as low-cost housing of last resort in Korea, and that is real.
So the district you choose largely determines who your neighbours are. Near a university you will be in a building of students.
On safety specifically, since that is the actual question:
- Almost all goshiwon are single-gender floors, and a significant number are women-only buildings (여성전용). If that matters to you, filter for it — search 여성전용 고시원 and it is a normal, widely available category.
- Entrances are keycard or keypad, and virtually all have CCTV at the door.
- Korea has low rates of street and property crime by international standards, and goshiwon are not an exception to that.
What I would actually advise: choose a building near your campus rather than one chosen purely on price, and look specifically for 여성전용 if you would feel better in one. They are common, they are not more expensive, and several are within walking distance of every major language institute.
And when you view, ask "여기 학생 많아요?" — are there many students here. Operators answer this honestly because it is what most of their residents want to know too.
0
22f, did a year in a 여성전용 building near sinchon. all women, all students, keycard entry. genuinely never felt unsafe once
26
i didn't know women-only buildings were a normal thing. that changes it completely, thank you
9
여성전용 고시원. search that exact term, there are loads near every university
7
korean here — the district decides who lives there. near a university it's students. in an old building in an outer district it's a much wider mix. pick by area and the question mostly answers itself
20
this is the honest framing and it's more useful than "don't worry it's fine"
7
mine near hoegi was maybe 25 people, all students, half international. it was basically a very quiet dorm
14
goshiwon genuinely are last-resort housing for some people in korea. that's true and it's mostly not the case in student districts. both things are true
11
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