{"id":2179,"date":"2020-01-21T11:03:06","date_gmt":"2020-01-21T02:03:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/?p=2179"},"modified":"2020-01-21T11:03:06","modified_gmt":"2020-01-21T02:03:06","slug":"interview-with-international-students","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/news-en\/2020\/01\/21\/2179\/","title":{"rendered":"Interview with international students"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Lorijn Metten and Jonas Ferrante are International Graduate Exchange Students from the University of Leuven, Belgium<strong>.\u3000<\/strong>They shared their experiences of life in Japan and at Waseda University.<\/p>\n<h2>Lorijn Metten<\/h2>\n\n\t\t<style type=\"text\/css\">\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 {\n\t\t\t\tmargin: auto;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 .gallery-item {\n\t\t\t\tfloat: left;\n\t\t\t\tmargin-top: 10px;\n\t\t\t\ttext-align: center;\n\t\t\t\twidth: 50%;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 img {\n\t\t\t\tborder: 2px solid #cfcfcf;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-1 .gallery-caption {\n\t\t\t\tmargin-left: 0;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\/* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes\/media.php *\/\n\t\t<\/style>\n\t\t<div id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-2179 gallery-columns-2 gallery-size-thumbnail'><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/news-en\/2020\/01\/21\/2179\/attachment\/lorijin1-2\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"360\" height=\"270\" src=\"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/assets\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Lorijin1-1-360x270.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/news-en\/2020\/01\/21\/2179\/attachment\/lorijn-2\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"342\" height=\"227\" src=\"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/assets\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Lorijn-2-e1579500867541.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><br style=\"clear: both\" \/>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<p><strong>Q1. What made you decide to come to Waseda to study? <\/strong><br \/>\nLorijin: I wanted to go to Japan. Luckily my university had an exchange program with Waseda University.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q2<\/strong><strong>\uff0e<\/strong><strong>What are you currently studying at Waseda?<\/strong><br \/>\nLorijin : Health and exercise science<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q3. How did you find the typical class sizes?<\/strong><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong>Lorijin: I like the small class sizes (2-10 students). This gives more room for interaction and questions.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q4. Please describe one memorable experience with a professor and\/or class.<br \/>\n<\/strong>Lorijin : Dissection of a mouse with professor Akimoto. This was a unique experience for me to see first-hand what animal biology looks like in vivo.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q5. Tell us about your campus life at Waseda University.<\/strong><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong>Lorijin : The campus is a bit far away from my dorm (90 minutes travel time), but thanks to the good metro system in Japan and the Waseda buses that operate from the station, I have no problem with the travel time.<br \/>\nThe campus itself looks really cool with a lot of nature, as well as space for sports activities.<br \/>\nYou can also have lunch at the campus, which is really good as well. I love going there.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q6. Was it was it difficult for you to meet people and make friends as an international student?<\/strong><br \/>\nLorijin : This is the easiest thing to do as an international student. Meeting other people (especially international students) at Waseda is a piece of cake.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q7<\/strong><strong>\uff0e<\/strong><strong>What differences do you perceive between Japanese and Belgian universities?\u00a0<\/strong><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong>Lorijin : Waseda runs on a quarterly basis (e.g. fall and winter quarter). In Belgium, we have a semester system.<br \/>\nMy current classes give you grades on presentations, essays and class participation. In Belgium, we just have one final exam.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q8<\/strong><strong>\uff0e<\/strong><strong>How would you describe the dorm life \u2013 rooms, dining options, location, social opportunities?<\/strong><br \/>\nLorijin : I decided to stay at the cheapest dorm I could find, but I&#8217;m still really happy with it. My room is big with enough storage space and I have a terrace. The dining area is nice to eat in or just sit in the evening with your dorm mates and play cards. The kitchen is really big and easy to use.<br \/>\nThere a few other international students in the dorm who I will see and sit with on a daily basis.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q9<\/strong><strong>\uff0e<\/strong><strong>What surprised you the most when you came to Japan?<\/strong><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong>Lorijin : Since my first day in Japan I realized that not many people could speak English, which was something I didn&#8217;t expect, but after all you will always find ways to communicate. Google translate will be your best friend during the first few weeks.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q10. What did you gain from studying at Waseda University?\u00a0<\/strong><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong>Lorijin: The overall experience of living abroad. In other words, I gained a life experience that I&#8217;ll never forget.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q11. What are your plans and outlook for the future?<\/strong><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong>Lorijin : I want to study rehabilitation after my current course to train athletes as a type of physical coach to ensure a great flow through rehabilitation to help them return to sport.<\/p>\n<h2>Jonas\u3000Ferrante<\/h2>\n\n\t\t<style type=\"text\/css\">\n\t\t\t#gallery-2 {\n\t\t\t\tmargin: auto;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-2 .gallery-item {\n\t\t\t\tfloat: left;\n\t\t\t\tmargin-top: 10px;\n\t\t\t\ttext-align: center;\n\t\t\t\twidth: 50%;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-2 img {\n\t\t\t\tborder: 2px solid #cfcfcf;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t#gallery-2 .gallery-caption {\n\t\t\t\tmargin-left: 0;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\/* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes\/media.php *\/\n\t\t<\/style>\n\t\t<div id='gallery-2' class='gallery galleryid-2179 gallery-columns-2 gallery-size-thumbnail'><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/news-en\/2020\/01\/21\/2179\/attachment\/jonas-1\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"360\" height=\"270\" src=\"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/assets\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Jonas-1-360x270.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/assets\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Jonas-1-360x270.jpg 360w, https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/assets\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Jonas-1-720x540.jpg 720w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 360px) 100vw, 360px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/news-en\/2020\/01\/21\/2179\/attachment\/jonas-3-revised\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"360\" height=\"270\" src=\"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/assets\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Jonas-3-revised-360x270.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><br style=\"clear: both\" \/>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<p><strong>Q1. What made you decide to come to Waseda to study?<br \/>\n<\/strong>Jonas: I wanted to do an educational exchange outside of Europe and I was immediately attracted by Tokyo as a new destination provided by our University.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q2<\/strong><strong>\uff0e<\/strong><strong>What are you currently studying at Waseda?<br \/>\n<\/strong>Jonas: I am studying Sport Management.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q3. How did you find the typical class sizes?<br \/>\n<\/strong>Jonas: I was very pleased with the class sizes. The small size gives me the opportunity to discuss and share ideas with a variety of people from different countries.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q4. Please describe one memorable experience with a professor and\/or class. <\/strong><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong>Jonas: After our last class on \u201cSports in Society\u201d, we went to eat as a group in a traditional Japanese ramen restaurant. I really enjoyed doing something with my classmates outside of the classes.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q5. Tell us about your campus life at Waseda University.<br \/>\n<\/strong>Jonas: I enjoy my student life at Waseda University very much. I joined a circle (student club) and that was a really good decision because I made a lot of friends there.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q6. Was it difficult for you to meet people and make friends as an international student?<br \/>\n<\/strong>Jonas: I did not have a lot of trouble making friends here. I have a lot of contact with dorm mates and people I met in the circle (student club). I think circles are the best place to meet a lot of new people.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q7<\/strong><strong>\uff0e<\/strong><strong>What differences do you perceive between Japanese and\u00a0Belgian universities?<br \/>\n<\/strong>Jonas: The educational system is very different. At Waseda, the lectures are more interactive than in Belgium. Also the way to evaluate your knowledge is done in a different way. Another difference is the way circles are organized and the access to sports.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q8<\/strong><strong>\uff0e<\/strong><strong>How would you describe the dorm life \u2013 rooms, dining options, location, social opportunities?<br \/>\n<\/strong>Jonas: My dorm is a little bit far from the city of Tokyo, but really close to my campus, so the location for me was good. I think the dorm room provides everything you need. The dorm is really clean and has all the facilities you need. I do not have dining options because I prefer to cook by myself.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q9<\/strong><strong>\uff0e<\/strong><strong>What surprised you the most when you came to Japan?<br \/>\n<\/strong>Jonas: I think I have to say how crowded places are, especially how crowded the trains can be. Apart from that I&#8217;ve only be surprised in a positive way.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q10.\u00a0What did you gain from studying at Waseda University?<br \/>\n<\/strong>Jonas: I gained a lot of new knowledge about the sport industry in different countries. Apart from that, I gained a lot of global knowledge by speaking to people from across the world.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q11. What are your plans and outlook for the future?<br \/>\n<\/strong>Jonas: First I want to finish my master&#8217;s program in Belgium. After that, I want to travel and find a nice job. But no matter what visiting Japan again is definitely on my list!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Lorijn Metten and Jonas Ferrante are International Graduate Exchange Students from the University of Leuven, B [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":2190,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[61,74,62],"class_list":["post-2179","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-en","tag-general-en","tag-global-en","tag-student-en"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2179","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2179"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2179\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2192,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2179\/revisions\/2192"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2190"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2179"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2179"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsps\/gsps\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2179"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}