An Intense Love of Shiga Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

They aren't kidding when they say "intensive"! Even though the program leaders kept telling me over and over that the academic intensity of the JCMU summer program was for real, I still kept brushing the thought of it aside. But oh boy, when I was there, I was taking 4 hours of Japanese class every weekday and had an additional 2-6 hours of homework/studying to do daily as well. Hardcore! JCMU specializes in these intensive language programs though, so they had a whole slew of resources for me to take advantage of: First, the instructors believed in our ability to improve, and would go out of their way to help us out. They met with us 1-on-1 frequently to discuss our concerns and what we could do to improve, and were very nice and supportive. Second, though JCMU's campus is not a Japanese university itself, they do offer their own English language classes to Japanese community members and college students alike looking to improve their English skills, meet American students, and so on. This meant that I had plenty of chances to meet with Japanese people right on campus and practice Japanese with them. Some of the most fun I had on the program came when we played Super Smash Bros together with Japanese college students at JCMU! The American students used Japanese when casually speaking with them, and the Japanese students responded in English as a way for both sides to practice. It was awesome! Thirdly, JCMU has connections with two large national Japanese universities within a short bike ride from its campus - Shiga University and the University of Shiga Prefecture. We were invited to participate in club activities on campus, meet new friends there, or just grab a bite to eat in their affordable cafeteria. There's no better way to practice Japanese than to just go head first into it, and traveling to the universities for an afternoon of fun is a great way to supplement the casual practice that you sometimes don't get during class. The only complaint that I had (and this improved as I got used to the intensiveness of the program) was that sometimes, it felt too intense at times. I wasn't used to the craziness that was learning an entire year's worth of Japanese in just one semester, so at the beginning especially it was rather stressful. Still though, thanks to the resources available to me and the support provided by JCMU's wonderful teachers, I was able to successfully complete the advanced Japanese language class during my time there.

On-site administration of your program

All of the paperwork and administrative tasks were explained to me clearly, and there were multiple staff members available in both the U.S. and directly on their campus in Hikone to help me right away whenever anything came up. I honestly wasn't expecting the high level of support I got from a study abroad program - it put my mind at ease.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

The housing was the best! There were two housing options available: homestay with a local Japanese family, or the dorms directly on JCMU's campus. I was nervous about living with a Japanese family, so I lived in the dorms. The dorms were fantastic, though! I had my own private bedroom with a study desk, a closet, and a large amount of storage space. In addition, I only had to share our room's kitchen and bathroom with one other person. The kitchen was fully stocked and came with all of the appliances I needed to cook my own Japanese food (including a rice cooker, a must for Japanese cooking). Rooms were adequately cleaned - there were knicks here and there, but I mean, these are rooms used by dozens of other past students, so I wasn't expecting anything brand new. There were the occasional bugs and spiders every now and then, but you can't exactly escape that no matter where in the world you live. That being said, the dorms at JCMU still far exceeded my expectations!

Eating sushi and ramen in Japan has ruined my appetite for the same foods in the U.S. - even budget versions of Japanese food in Japan far surpass the quality of their expensive U.S. counterparts. Plenty of delicious places to eat in the area! Not to mention, since we had our own kitchen, we could just make our own food as well. There was a large grocery store within a 5-10 minute bike ride of JCMU, so I was never short on options.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

Since JCMU does specialize in American students studying abroad, sometimes students would complain about immersiveness. But I actually think that the way JCMU handled things was very well done. The campus is set up so that individuals of all comfort levels can study abroad. This means that for very nervous students, they are given the resources to go out of their comfort zone, but they also have a safe place to go back to should the stress pile on. For adventurous students looking for more immersion, there was a lot of support for students to both study hard at JCMU and immerse themselves in the community (not to mention homestay options!). As such, I think that JCMU is what you make of it: there's no hand-holding, no forcing you to go out into the community if you're not up to it, but they will certainly provide you with everything you need for complete immersive experiences.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I never had any issues abroad, but the support and information was readily available should I have needed to take advantage of it.

Japan is already a safe country, but since JCMU had a large on-site staff ready to act in case of emergency, I always felt very comfortable going out and about.

It was intense and stressful at times, but looking back, it was definitely worth it! My Japanese skills improved way quicker in Japan compared to my classes in the U.S., and the friendships I made will last a lifetime.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

Hikone life was comparable budget-wise to my life in Lansing. Some grocery items were more in Japan, some were less, but all-in-all it averaged to about the same. Kitchens, bikes, and other resources were provided, which meant that we could save money by biking around and cooking our own meals. I only list this as 4 stars because if you want to travel around the country during the weekends, then it may cost a bit! Nothing crazy expensive, but something to keep in mind.

0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language

Non-stop Japanese... I took the advanced course, but I hear that they highly encourage even beginner students to use as much basic Japanese as they are able.

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• Dorm

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• Americans
• International Students

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• Americans
• International Students

• Japanese language classes
• Immersion at your pace
• Dorm rooms

• Make sure people know how intense the language classes are!

The Academic or Linguist