“Did you have lunch today?” as a greeting and “Let’s have dinner together sometime” as a farewell show the significance and how much having a decent meal is interweaved in the everyday life of Koreans. However, having a good meal on campus has been nearly impossible recently. With overwhelming numbers of customers, cafeterias – mainly the Haedong-Aurum Hall and the Oasis – are crowded with people lining up and searching for places to sit. Lengthy queues and few options for dining halls have been continuously mentioned as problematic for years, and finally, the university has taken some noticeable actions.
Over the last few years, POSTECH has accepted new members: Apple Developer Academy and the Department of Semiconductor Engineering (SEMI). The academy selects approximately 200 people, and the SEMI accepts up to 40 students. Although the academy students come and go every year, the number of SEMI students will increase for at least two more years. In other words, around 300 additional members have joined the campus, yet more to come. However, POSTECH hardly had any preparation for this situation and remained passive in addressing the problem until now.
Besides the increased number of people, the lack of options was the reason behind the long lines. In Jigok Community Center, students can choose from the Haedong-Aurum Hall, Geu Yeo Deun, Burger King, and eSports Colosseum to have a meal, and there is also the Oasis in the Student Union Building. Several options are available; nevertheless, menus in the restaurant, excluding Haedong-Aurum Hall, are all fixed and relatively expensive, unsuitable for eating daily. Furthermore, Oasis only operated for two hours during lunchtime on weekdays. Also, there are a few more restaurants in the CHANGeUP GROUND building and RIST, but they are much more expensive. At last, students often eat kimbap and cup noodles at the convenience store.
Thankfully, the Food Services decided to add a serving line for the Haedong-Aurum Hall and open the Oasis for dinner. They operated an additional line since March 25 and reopened dinner for the Oasis on April 1. The line and waiting time of the Haedong-Aurum Hall has decreased noticeably, and the Oasis is selling a new menu, Galbitang, for dinner.
However, not all problems are solved. The root problem that food choices are limited remains. Fortunately, in the latest talk with President Seong Keun Kim, he said that the university will consider solutions like food trucks on campus to promote menu diversity.
Prioritizing good meals invests in students’ holistic well-being, enriching their college experience. It is not a minor problem that can be overlooked. Some people might think students have to put up with the problems since the university meals are cheap, but you know the issue is no joke when students give up meals because the line reaches 78 Stairs. When multiple students raise their voices persistently, it indicates that there are rational reasons behind their actions, and the university should pay closer attention.
