Nagasaki-A Rich History Past Review
By A student (Michigan Technological University) - abroad from 03/31/2016 to 08/06/2016 with
USAC Japan: Nagasaki - Japanese Language, Society, and Culture Studies
I have always been an independent person, but I feel that I gained more independence and confidence. I took a trip by myself where I visited Kyoto and Nara which required me to fly from Nagasaki to Osaka. I was nervous to fly by myself especially because I was scared to get lost and get on the wrong bus. The nice thing though was that all types of public transportation were in English (unless you leave the main city area where there is a small bus stop or subway station) so I felt confident enough to get around, and if I did have trouble I would ask someone. I was really proud of myself that I was able to get around by myself. When I first got to Japan I never would have imagined that I would have taken a trip myself due to the fact that I was illiterate (which was not the case in Kyoto like it was in Nagasaki) and did not trust myself to travel. I highly recommend taking a trip by yourself. You get to do and see the things you want to do and don't have to worry about what other people want to do or slowing you down.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 6 months+ |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
I felt that some classes could have had more homework and could have gone at a faster pace. I know some students didn't feel that way but it really depends on what you are used to at your home university. I did learn a lot it just wasn't nearly as rigorous as I was used to and I would have liked it to be a little more rigorous. It also just depended on what classes you took too. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Since this is a partnership program, JASIN is the organization USAC is partnered with. I felt JASIN was really helpful. They helped you the best they could to adjust to living there. I lived with a host family and during orientation they meet with us to talk about different customs and prepare us for living with a host family. A week later they do another meeting to check in with the home stay students to see how everything is going. They are very helpful and if you have any trouble they are happy to help. There are also activities they will post around campus and on the JASIN facebook page. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I lived in a homestay and I really enjoyed my family and housing. |
| * Food: |
I thought the food in the cafeteria was really good. A lot of the dorm kids didn't like the dorm food and bought their own food, but I think I would have liked it, so if you aren't a picky eater I think you'll like the food. |
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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? |
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| * Safety: |
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| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
I felt more immersed in this city than I would have in than if I did a program in one of the other cities. There weren't many tourists there and I rarely saw foreigners besides those in my program. I also felt more immersed in the language there than I did when I visited other cities because not a lot of people spoke English as I noticed in other places and the bus and schedules did not an an English translation so you had to memorize and know parts of the kanji. I felt this was more of an authentic experience than I would have gotten in another location. I also liked that locals would talk to me, even if they didn't really know English, because they were curious why you are there since they don't see many tourists. I thought it was nice how many people approached my and were interested in talking to me, it also game me a change to use my Japanese! |
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 didn't go out to eat a lot so I didn't spend as much money as some people. I felt that food was pretty cheap. I took a bus to a from school which was kind of expensive but I got a stipend. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | I am not entirely sure. It was about $6-$7 a day for the bus so maybe $40 week if I didn't use the bus more than 4 times a week and if I bought food at the cafeteria. The food was pretty cheap. |
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 |
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| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Beginner |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | I took German for two years in highschool, and I felt I learned more Japanese in one semester than I did taking 2 years of German. |
| 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? | I lived with a host family and my host mom spoke English, but she would speak in Japanese first and repeat it in English so that helped me learn. Local people also spoke to me, usually they didn't know much English so we would communicate in Japanese or broken English and Japanese if I wasn't entirely sure how to form some of the sentences in Japansese. I would recommend talking to locals and making Japanese friends and speak Japanese to them. I know a lot of them want to speak English with you, so maybe speak English to them, but if you know how to say sentences or words in Japanese use that word instead of the English word and usually they will help you say the full sentence in Japanese and you can learn new vocabulary and phrases before you are taught it. |
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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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 isn't really anything I would have wished I knew before, but knowing that Japan is a cash based society and that you can go to any Seven Eleven to use ATMs (no other places I know of have ATMs for international cards) will be helpful. |
