The education of award-winning South Korean actress Kim Go-Eun

Seoul-born actress Kim Go-Eun is taking the Korean drama world by storm in her recent role as Oh In-Ju from the 12-episode Netflix series “Little Women.” Before this, she had already begun to make a name for herself at the tender age of 21 in her first ever on-screen role for the 2012 movie “Eungyo“ (“A Muse”. 

Since then, Kim has received a lot of attention for her acting and even won a total of nine awards. 

Among the movies and series she has starred in include: “Monster (2014),” “Coin Locker Girl (2015),” “Memories Of The Sword (2015),” “Cheese In The Trap (2016),” and “The King: Eternal Monarch (2020).”

What’s behind Kim’s success? Her early education can provide insight into how she became to be one of K-drama’s hottest stars. Below we explore Kim’s education and how that has shaped her to be the award-winning actress she is today. 

The schools and unis that shaped Kim Go-Eun

 

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Kaywon High School of Arts

Kim migrated to Beijing with her family at the age of four where she lived until the age of 14. “I lived at a place that was an hour and 30 minutes from Beijing, and the only foreigners [in that area] was our family,” says Kim during a May 19 airing of “Happy Together.”

“[The place I lived in China] was a less urbanized area,” she told Marie Claire. “There was a large lake nearby, and I rode horses and played with dogs. That special experience has helped me build my acting skills.”

Having to attend local schools there, Kim learned how to speak Chinese fluently — so much so that when she returned to South Korea that she reportedly found it easier to speak Mandarin than Hangugeo.

In Seoul, Kim was enrolled in Kaywon High School of Arts where many famous Korean drama actors and actresses such as So Yoo-Jin, Kang Hong Seok and Cho Seung-woo attended as well.

 

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Kaywon High School of Arts has a strong vision of nurturing artistic talents from an early age to compete in the global creative field. Its education in fine art, music and dance is approached in a systematic and professional manner to help students build a strong foundation to become creative artists. 

Here, Go-Eun was actively participating in plays at the school which ignited her passion for acting. Being an actress wasn’t her initial dream which makes her rise to stardom an interesting tale. TL;DR: She originally turned down the offer for the part in “Eungyo” saying she didn’t feel ready at that time. But reconsidered and eventually starred in the film. The rest is history. 

Korea National University of Arts

Korea National University of the Arts is also the alma mater to big names such as Kim Jun-myeon (Suho) and Jang Hye-Jin. Both have gone on to star in critically-acclaimed Korean films and drama series. 

With impressive facilities and practice-based and theoretical courses, Korea National University of the Art prepares students to hone and master their craft. 

After completing “The Muse,” Kim left acting for two years to complete her education at Korea National University of the Arts. It was only here that she learned the intricacies of acting at the School of Drama. 

Unlike most actors and actresses, Kim had the natural talent to break through the competitive film industry and started landing both major and diverse roles upon graduating. Today, she has grown so much in her career and evolved into one of the most well-loved and sought-after Korean actresses.