Academic Year 2023 Participant
My favorite part of the program would have to be making friends and traveling the country. I visited so many historical sites, temples, castles, shrines, etc. and it was really cool. Sophia University's Tea Ceremony club was also really fun! It was hard to introduce myself but I made some really good friends there, and I recommend it to future students who go because only me and one other exchange student in the entire school participated in it.
Academic Year 2023 Participant
The progress of my language ability was by far the most rewarding element of studying abroad. When I arrived in September of 2023, I could barely communicate my thoughts to my host family, and we had very surface level conversations. After around 3 months, I realized how much more smooth I was becoming with my Japanese, and how it became much easier to ask for simple things. By the end of the year, I was able to have deep conversations with them about Japanese culture and how it differed from other cultures, and many other subjects. Seeing this progression and also having an outsider watch it occur and tell you how much you are improving is better than any A on a test, and when I left Japan, I was more confident in my Japanese and ability to pursue it than ever before.
Academic Year 2024 Participant
One of the most important things I learned is that being open-minded and flexible makes the experience much smoother and more enjoyable. Japan has its own rhythm, customs, and expectations, and adjusting to those differences takes patience. I also learned that it helps to practice Japanese consistently, even outside of class, because small efforts every day add up quickly. Future students should know that it is normal to feel overwhelmed at first, but settling in becomes easier once you create routines and allow yourself to learn from mistakes.