Hello! I’m currently a freshman at a small school in the U.S, and I’ve been doing some research about the exchange programs my school offers. I’ve been taking Japanese for 4 years (since the start of high school), although covid limited how much we could get done. I know how to read hiragana and katakana as well as some kanji, and I can make very basic conversation. By the time I’ll be eligible for the exchange program I’ll have at least 3 full semesters of college-level Japanese courses under my belt (taught by a professor from Japan). I’m highly considering moving to Japan in the future, so I’m hoping that by going there during college I’ll be able to get a feel for the culture and environment and maybe also have that mark on my resume in the future; my goal is to find a place where I can be fully immersed in the language, and to maybe engage with my hobbies (I love hiking as well as lots of crafty hobbies, I really like Japanese stationary so nice stationary stores are a plus! I’m not super into parties and such so that doesn’t matter much to me)
That said, my school currently has three possible exchange programs to go to Japan, and I’m curious if anybody has experience with these schools or the area and can give me advice on which would be best for the goal I mentioned above! Here are the schools I can go to:
Okayama University: I could stay for the Spring semester or a full year, all of my college scholarships apply (it’s an exchange where I’d be paying my normal school tuition + some extra to go), the housing situation looks pretty good (a room in a suite with 2 other intl students and 1 Japanese student), and the location looks good (near Kyoto, lots of pretty gardens and such)
Toyo University: I would only be able to go for a Spring semester (April to August), same tuition situation, housing also looks pretty good (it’s a single room, which I like), in Tokyo so obviously lots to do and it’s a big school which is interesting because it’s very different to my school here!!
Doshisha Women’s College of Liberal Arts: 2 options for shorter summer sessions or a Fall semester, i could do a homestay or get a single room, in Kyoto so again lots to do, the Fall semester price is about what I’d be paying for school here, and it requires more language experience before starting the program so I imagine it would be a bit more rigorous language wise?
Any advice or insight is appreciated! I’m currently in the beginning stages of making a plan for this (I have a decent amount of info, but I’m looking for more personal advice) so anything is useful 🙂 Thank you!
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This is a copy of your post for archive/search purposes.
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**Which school to do an exchange at? (College Student)**
Hello! I’m currently a freshman at a small school in the U.S, and I’ve been doing some research about the exchange programs my school offers. I’ve been taking Japanese for 4 years (since the start of high school), although covid limited how much we could get done. I know how to read hiragana and katakana as well as some kanji, and I can make very basic conversation. By the time I’ll be eligible for the exchange program I’ll have at least 3 full semesters of college-level Japanese courses under my belt (taught by a professor from Japan). I’m highly considering moving to Japan in the future, so I’m hoping that by going there during college I’ll be able to get a feel for the culture and environment and maybe also have that mark on my resume in the future; my goal is to find a place where I can be fully immersed in the language, and to maybe engage with my hobbies (I love hiking as well as lots of crafty hobbies, I really like Japanese stationary so nice stationary stores are a plus! I’m not super into parties and such so that doesn’t matter much to me)
That said, my school currently has three possible exchange programs to go to Japan, and I’m curious if anybody has experience with these schools or the area and can give me advice on which would be best for the goal I mentioned above! Here are the schools I can go to:
Okayama University: I could stay for the Spring semester or a full year, all of my college scholarships apply (it’s an exchange where I’d be paying my normal school tuition + some extra to go), the housing situation looks pretty good (a room in a suite with 2 other intl students and 1 Japanese student), and the location looks good (near Kyoto, lots of pretty gardens and such)
Toyo University: I would only be able to go for a Spring semester (April to August), same tuition situation, housing also looks pretty good (it’s a single room, which I like), in Tokyo so obviously lots to do and it’s a big school which is interesting because it’s very different to my school here!!
Doshisha Women’s College of Liberal Arts: 2 options for shorter summer sessions or a Fall semester, i could do a homestay or get a single room, in Kyoto so again lots to do, the Fall semester price is about what I’d be paying for school here, and it requires more language experience before starting the program so I imagine it would be a bit more rigorous language wise?
Any advice or insight is appreciated! I’m currently in the beginning stages of making a plan for this (I have a decent amount of info, but I’m looking for more personal advice) so anything is useful 🙂 Thank you!
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Okayama is a beautiful place!
Live close enough to travel to kansai without a lot of tourists, and there are really cool things to do there. Its also famous for denim so lots of denim crafty stuff to do.
Tbh though i am a bit bias at a 1 year exchange over a semester. Allows you to see all the seasons and really get into a pattern. I know a lot that have just done one semeater and said it wasn’t long enough 🙂