Common English Mistakes in Personal Essays by Korean Speakers

This page focuses on errors typically made by native Korean speakers from South Korea when writing a Personal Essay in English.

Mistake Example #1

Confusion with prepositions ('in', 'on', 'at')

When I was in high school, I always dreamed about studying inabroad. I imagined myself walking oin the streets of New York, feeling the excitement in the air. Now, I am at university in Seoul, but I still hope to visit there one day and experience life oin a different country.

Text corrected by:
Miss E., Cyprus, Europe

"This is a good write-up overall. However, don't forget to use prepositions correctly in your sentences. For example, "I always dreamed about studying in abroad" should be "I always dreamed about studying abroad" and "experience life on a different country" should be "experience life in a different country"."

When I was in high school, I always dreamed about studying abroad. I imagined myself walking in the streets of New York, feeling the excitement in the air. Now, I am at university in Seoul, but I still hope to visit there one day and experience life in a different country.

When I was in high school, I always dreamed about studying in abroad. I imagined myself walking on the streets of New York, feeling the excitement in the air. Now, I am at university in Seoul, but I still hope to visit there one day and experience life on a different country.

Mistake Example #2

Incorrect word order in complex sentences

Growing up in South Korea, I wasalways fascinatedwas by the way people express themselves through art. When I was a child, my mother,—who loved painting,—encouraged me to explore my creativity. It was during these times,that I realized how much joy creating art brings tome, and I decided thato pursue a career in aritI would.

Text corrected by:
Gregg, Los Angeles, CA

"This needed some fixing to correct word order problems, and other tweaks."

Growing up in South Korea, I was always fascinated by the way people express themselves through art. When I was a child, my mother—who loved painting—encouraged me to explore my creativity. It was during these times that I realized how much joy creating art brings me and I decided to pursue a career in it.

Growing up in South Korea, I always fascinated was by the way people express themselves through art. When I was a child, my mother, who loved painting, encouraged me to explore my creativity. It was during these times, I realized how much joy creating art brings to me, and I decided that pursue a career in art I would.

Mistake Example #3

Omitting articles ('a', 'an', 'the')

Growing up in South Korea, I always dreamed of becoming an artist. Art has beena passion of mine since I was achild. I remember visitinga museum with my family and being fascinated bythe paintings. Now, I am studying art at university, hoping to make acareer out of it.

Text corrected by:
Camille, Maryland, USA

"Don't forget to use articles where they are needed. "

Growing up in South Korea, I always dreamed of becoming an artist. Art has been a passion of mine since I was a child. I remember visiting a museum with my family and being fascinated by the paintings. Now, I am studying art at university, hoping to make a career out of it.

Growing up in South Korea, I always dreamed of becoming artist. Art has been passion of mine since I was child. I remember visiting museum with my family and being fascinated by paintings. Now, I am studying art at university, hoping to make career out of it.