Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

Applying for classes outside of Japanese as Second Language ranged from difficult to outright prohibited; the process was never really explained beyond "If you want to do it, ask" (i.e. no course catalog was given out). While it may of course be difficult for a second language learner of Japanese to take university level courses in Japanese, I don't really think it should be made as difficult to do as it was. I'm planing on going into academia, and this made it almost impossible to network at Ryudai with the few professors I would have wanted to meet. That aspect, more than missing the course material, frustrated me. These restrictions don't apply if one is in the Major Studies program, but at least at intermediate or advanced level, at least auditing a non-language learning class should be an option. Otherwise, the overall level of academics was at least equivalent to that of UH Manoa. There was one single really odd thing, simply a difference in the educational system, but it just struck me as off. While the course evaluations were "anonymous," the instructor stayed in the room while you were taking them. If you've taken a Japanese class at UH, you basically know what to expect from the language learning classes here.

On-site administration of your program

Nothing really sticks out to me as particularly good or particularly bad in terms of administration. About what I've come to expect of university administration.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

Like many universities, the international dorms at the University of the Ryukyus are always full. I was placed in the normal dorms; most students are Japanese, but a few other international students live here as well. When I first arrived, there was no furniture in my dorm room. Luckily, the exchange coordinator had provided a futon for me, so I didn't have to sleep on the floor. All of the usual furniture was provided the next day. The dorms are right on campus, so there were no issues with getting to class. The problem is that Okinawa is very unlike Japan in that there are no trains, and public transportation is fairly expensive, so getting anywhere off-campus required some walking. A bike is definitely recommended. A scooter, motorcycle, or car would be better; international students were given parking passes and such at orientation if they had a car. I didn't really need to buy anything to move in, but anything I could have needed was close by, and I had a week to get settled in before classes, so that was a non-issue. Having sneaked a peek at the international dorms, they are much, much nicer than the standard dorms. For one thing, they have air conditioning, which is nice in Okinawa, which regularly reaches 85-90F and 80-90% humidity (meaning it can feel like it's 110+F out). However, compared to normal college dorms, my dorm was average. I can't help but get the feeling that my status as a one-semester exchange student meant I ended up in the normal dorms, but I could understand why that was done, and being originally from the Mid-Atlantic, the weather is not something I'm unused to (if I'd have been a local from Hawaii, this would be intolerable, not "merely" unbearable).

Food was excellent. Taste and quality was much better than US universities. Variety was about the same as a US cafeteria; there was some stuff that they always had, and other stuff that was changed up regularly. The only "problem" was during lunch, the cafeterias were always filled. I generally ate somewhere outside. The only thing I disliked in terms of the on-campus food was that the international students were never offered information about the meal plans. I ate on campus enough that it probably would have been a decent deal, but I didn't find out about it until the cafeteria staff put up a sign talking about it a month or so into my stay. Off-campus food can be expensive, but not too bad. Many of the "close" places to campus are a 15- or 20-minute walk from campus, which could be problematic during the rainy season. Vegetarians and vegans shouldn't have problems if they know what they're looking for. Jewish and Islamic dietary restrictions would be much harder than, say, in the US; pork and various kinds of seafood are extremely common in Okinawa. If there are health-related food issues, school supposedly works with you, but I simply don't have experience with that.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

The program itself only organized two events, an International Student Festival, and a (standard) Closing Ceremony. At the beginning of the semester, they introduced three of the many on-campus clubs, but otherwise, you were left on your own to do things. This was especially problematic due to the fact that campus is basically in the middle of an out-of-the-way residential neighborhood, and you basically need a car to get around on Okinawa. The International Student Festival, as to be expected from Japan, which loves festivals, was excellent. I had joined the sanshin club, and we had a performance, which ended up being one of peoples' favorite things about the festival. Aside from the food. I have performed music in the past, mainly during high school, so it was nice to actually get to do that again. I was unable to attend the closing ceremony. The end date of Ryudai and the start date of UH were simply too close together. I personally enjoy spending time at the bar. I do it as a social thing with friends weekly in Hawaii. Japan is known as a drinking culture, but this is only true really of a subset of mainland Japanese. Okinawa is not a drinking culture, and with international students being of mixed ages, and myself living in the normal dorms, I just couldn't do anything similar here. I'm sure my liver thanks me, but still. (I talked about cultural differences earlier, and this is one of them; people in Okinawa just don't drink.)

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

Safety was a non-issue. The rate of crime is much lower in Japan than the US. That being said, it is never a bad idea, as we were advised before we left, to be careful. Japanese universities have a mandatory health exam every semester for students, including a urine test, a chest x-ray, and a basic interview. They had doctors and staff who spoke a good portion of the languages international students at Ryudai might, so the interview was simple. Students were required, as temporary alien residents of Japan, to buy Japanese National Healthcare. For my stay of four months, this was around $150, but covered any expense I would have had (aside from emergency evacuation or repatriation).

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

As an intermediate-level learner of Japanese, I was expected to be able to handle almost all daily tasks in Japanese. I had a tutor in case I needed help, but I rarely did. Unless it was with other English-speaking exchange students, I mainly used Japanese for everyday interactions. I would say the majority of people only know a little bit of English, but my Japanese ability was enough that it wasn't a problem for most interactions. The only problem was I simply did not stay in Japan for long enough. Acquiring fluency is a life-long process, to be sure, but perhaps two or four years would be a good start. For those worried about some sort of accent, Okinawa (as well as Hokkaido) speaks the most standard Japanese of any reason, as Japanese itself was introduced to those areas much later than elsewhere on mainland Japan. In Hokkaido's case, Japanese moved in, displacing, mixing with, and assimilating the native Ainu, especially since the middle of the 1800s or so. In Okinawa's case, the various Ryukyuan Islands each spoke their own language (related to Japanese), but especially after World War II, these were replaced with standard Japanese.

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• Dorm

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• International Students
• Local Students