Amazing Program but Intense Study! Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

This program was absolutely amazing. It offered a wonderful homestay experience that I took part in for half the time. The other half I stayed in the JCMU dorms. The dorms were nice, clean when I arrived, and functional. There was always an issue with my hot water heater but Harada-san was always extremely helpful and timely! The people on my program were all very nice and they all came from different backgrounds and places. It was surprising to me how different everyone was in the program. In my home stay I had the most wonderful experiences. My host mother was extremely nice and helpful. She was unique for a Japanese mother but really open to talk about everything. My host father didn't know much English but we still bounded through meals and activities. The host family made two meals a day and the commute was long but I thought it was worth the experience. A host family isn't for everyone and I did have an hour commute, a family responsibility, and meal time responsibilities. However, this is experience is really rewarding and I would encourage anyone who is willing to put in some extra effort to do a home stay even just for the weekend! JCMU classes and program itself is exactly what it says: intense. The JCMU staff is made up of some amazing people! There are so many great sensei who are willing to help you and give you extra sessions with them even one on one. The course work is extremely heavy and I did spent 3-4 hours a day after the four classes studying Japanese. The summer program is the most intense, so if you want something less intense maybe consider the spring or fall semester programs. Overall, my experience abroad was amazing and of course there were days where I struggled with homework or people there but most of my days I feel I had a good time in Japan and studying at JCMU.

On-site administration of your program

The staff at JCMU-Japan are so wonderful and kind. They are willing to help to the best of their abilities and every member's English is pretty good, but they still encourage you to speak in Japanese to them!

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

I lived in the dorms for half of the trip and with a host family in Nagahama for the other half.

My host family made food and it is a custom that you eat everything you are given in Japan. Especially from a host family. My host mother was amazing and grew a lot of her own food. I had trouble eating the really fishy tasting fish but other than that it was all really awesome!

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

I loved the country rural of Japan! I am not a huge fan of cities so Hikone and Nagahama were some of the best places to visit! The people were all very kind and tried to speak English with you if you were having a hard time with Japanese. Many people in Nagahama would start conversations with me and ask me where I was from or how long I was there. Additionally, the 711's and other stores were nearby and everything is cheap and fresh.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

Harada-san (the coordinator) was really through in explaining what we should do if we encountered a health problem. He provided over the counter medicine and any other resources we needed. MSU recently put a policy in place that says that JCMU staff cannot be with you if you need to go to the hospital unless an ambulance is called. This was put in place because of privacy reasons, but it does make it difficult for those without much Japanese language skills. Harada-san did all he could to make this change easier on students. He gave multiple handouts and packets. I never had any health issues while on the program but they did provide health insurance and many resources.

JCMU made sure that you felt safe. They provided locks for the living spaces, fire and other drills. For one safety drill they actually had the local fire department come and teach us how to use fire extinguishers!

I would choose the same program if I could do it all again, but I would go in the spring or fall semesters. I wish I was there for a longer period of time because I was just starting to catch on and fall into patterns of Japanese life when I had to leave.

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

Money wise if you held yourself back from spending money on silly things than it was fairly manageable. The exchange rate was really good when I was there so things were cheaper than normal. I spent a lot of money when I went on trips to bigger cities. The first half when I lived in the dorms was a bit more expensive because we had to provide our own meals. But then when I lived in my home stay they provided two meals a day! So it became more manageable, although I tended to spend money on sweets a lot!

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

This program pushed me (100 level student) to my limits with Japanese language. I learned more in these three months than I ever could have at my own institution. Most of it came with the fact that I was using the material in my every day life. Even during 711 trips you have to read Japanese, speak and listen to Japanese just to buy something. In my host family I fell into the pattern of speaking English but towards the end of my host family I started using Japanese more and I really wish I would have used my Japanese skills the whole time. This program is what you make it to be though. If you never study outside of class it is extremely easy to fall behind and never be able to catch up. But if you utilize your resources such as office hours, trips, getting out of the dorms, then you will learn Japanese.

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• Dorm
• Host Family

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• Local Students
• Americans
• Host Family

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• Americans

• The staff in Japan were amazing
• My host family experience
• The rate at which I learned and remembered Japanese

• More organized cultural events (akido event was a little rough but the tea ceremony and the koto were awesome!)
• Updates to the dorms (with funding available it's difficult)

The Academic or Linguist