Learned Lots About Caring for Myself Past Review
By Christopher Mitchell (University of the Pacific) - abroad from 08/10/2017 to 07/18/2018 with
Kwansei Gakuin University: Nishinomiya - Direct Enrollment & Exchange
I learned to take care of my own problems quite a bit. I also learned a lot about interacting with people from other cultures. I expected to do so with Japanese people, but even more so I met and befriended a number of international students from around the world. It was definitely a worthwhile experience.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Largely introduction level courses. They were perfectly acceptable for what they were, but not ideal for an upperclassmen. I still found classes suitable enough for me though. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Individuals within the office were helpful, but overall the administration was not especially willing to assist with problems. Issues with classes or out-of-class dilemmas were often stonewalled, with students (including myself) being told it was simply impossible (despite the fact that it was definitely not impossible). At one point, the office even refused to give me copies of my registration forms, claiming that if my university wished to see them they would have to specially request scans be made and sent... I happened to know for a fact they simply had the documents in a folder in their office. However, the administration was not terrible, and were reasonably helpful on very simple requests, so a worse review doesn't seem necessary. I would simply recommend that new students expect to have to be very self-reliant. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
The university was actually fairly helpful regarding housing, in my experience. The homestay program was relatively simple to enter, and the dorms were nice, though simple, affairs. Not everyone of my classmates had equally good experiences, but the office was willing to accommodate issues such as, say, difficulties with host families. |
| * Food: |
The meals served on campus tended to be relatively basic, but of decently high quality and very cheap. I felt perfectly satisfied with their offerings. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I didn't have any health needs during my stay. However, I did see classmates experience a wide variety of university helpfulness during their stay. I would recommend students expect to rely more on themselves that administrative help with health issues. |
| * Safety: |
I never felt unsafe, and never heard any stories of other students feeling so either. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
I really wanted to go to Japan (I had been studying the language for years beforehand), and I still agree with my reasoning as to why Kwansei Gakuin University was the best fit of the available schools. |
Finances
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* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?
(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
I don't have all that much to compare it to, personal experience-wise, but it was not especially difficult for me. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | ~$50-60 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Embrace Japanese cooking. Ingredients for Japanese-style meals are much cheaper and more readily available than other cuisines. The classmates who spent more money tended to either (a) be buying vast quantities of souvenirs, or (b) trying to buy and cook Western-style food despite the expense. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
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How much did the program encourage you to use the language?
0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language |
They verbally encouraged us, but there wasn't all that much effort outside of that. It wasn't as though they made it difficult for us to use Japanese, though. |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Intermediate |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Intermediate |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | 3rd year Japanese ("Advanced") |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Make Japanese friends if at all possible. Not just classmates, but acquaintances you meet outside of school if you can. It seemed that Japanese people tended to be reluctant to introduce themselves unless they explicitly wanted to practice English, so that probably means you'll have to be the first one to say hello. |
Direct Enrollment/Exchange
| * Did you study abroad through an exchange program or did you directly enroll in the foreign university? | Direct Enrollment |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? |
A Look Back
| * What did you like most about the program? |
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| * What could be improved? |
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| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | It's very easy to let yourself not study Japanese. The language courses are very easy to cram for the night before exams and otherwise not study for. This will let you pass, sure, but you won't really learn very well. In the moment it can make sense, as you prioritize other classes and other deadlines, but you really need to force yourself to keep practicing even if it's more work than the classes require. |
Reasons For Studying Abroad
| To help future students find programs attended by like-minded individuals, please choose the profile that most closely represents you. |
The Academic or LinguistYou went abroad with specific academic goals in mind; the program credentials and rigor of your coursework abroad were very important to you. You had a great time abroad, but never lost sight of your studies and (if applicable) were diligent with your foreign language study. Good for you! |
