In job-hunting it’s important to be proactive and rely on others
Ayaka Kawabata, who graduated this March from the School of Commerce, started thinking about job hunting from as early as her second year as an undergraduate student. Right off the bat, she had two concerns: Her lack of work experience, and hearing impairment that could make catching others’ words difficult. To address her first concern, Ayaka participated in a one-year internship during her second year, and the encounters and experiences she had during this time had a great impact on forming her view on her job-hunting process. Ayaka knew that she wanted to search for a company that would consider hiring her the same as any applicant, but also wanted an environment that would give consideration/have understanding for her impairment. When looking at employment options with this in mind, there were times where she felt disheartened, but seeking out and receiving advice and different perspectives from her friends, senior students, and staff at Waseda’s Career Center helped her continue on her search.
A turning point for Ayaka was when she asked herself, “What environment and conditions would allow me to be able to work the most freely?” She realized that she had her own conditions for what kind of workplace she ideally wanted, but these conditions were often different from the ideal work conditions for other people. After countless moments of self-reflection, Ayaka realized that she wanted a job where she could do work she enjoys while utilizing her own strengths, at a company that was willing to further dialogue with her to understand her impairment and conditions. With this, she rigorously narrowed down her choices of companies to apply to only those who seemingly fulfilled the aforementioned points. In the end, she found herself with a few unofficial offers, and after careful deliberation, decided on her place of employment: a marketing position in the manufacturing industry!
Japanese article:内定学生が振り返るー大切なのは主体性と周りに頼ること
Creating student volunteer projects as a WAVOC Student Leader
At Waseda University, the Hirayama Ikuo Volunteer Center (WAVOC) is where various student-led volunteer activities are brought to fruition. Weekly interviewed Aoi Ikeda, a 4th year undergraduate from the School of Humanities and Social Sciences, and Yudai Kikuchi, a 3rd year undergraduate student from the School of Political Science and Economics, both who serve as WAVOC Student Leaders for the Center. Why did they apply for their positions? Aoi felt it was easier to get into volunteering activities in Sweden, when she studied abroad there, than that of volunteering in Japan, and wanted to help make this entry point to volunteering easier. Yudai, who hadn’t had prior volunteer experience, thought he could use this perspective to promote volunteer opportunities to other students who were in the same boat, as well as play a backup staff role to other volunteers.
As Student Leaders, both Aoi and Yudai have opportunities to propose and plan the logistics for new volunteer projects. Aoi planned English conversation lessons for children and Yudai created a project where used children’s picture books were gathered and donated to kindergartens, both projects giving back directly to the surrounding Shinjuku neighborhood. Aoi also planned a garbage cleanup event for Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden. When the two were asked what to keep in mind when creating a volunteer project, they both responded that thinking carefully about who it is that you’re helping is key. Aoi further explains, “It can be hard to visualize the people that can benefit from a volunteer project, so with the English conversation lessons, for example, I relayed information about the children to the student volunteers prior to the event. It’s important for student volunteers to participate in activities with the other party in mind, and reconfirming ahead of time what it is they need help with.”
Japanese article:ボランティアはここから！ WAVOC学生リーダーが考える企画や思いとは
Putting potential study abroad applicants’ minds at ease as a Student Advisor
A student job position means not only learning at Waseda, but also participating in activities that lead towards the improvement of the University. To show one type of student job available, we’d like to introduce Azusa Yokota, a 4th year undergraduate student at the School of International Liberal Studies, who currently works as a Study Abroad Student Advisor at the Center for International Education (CIE). Azusa started her position as a 3rd year student, wanting to use her own experiences studying abroad to help support future students who may be uneasy about their decision to participate, and ultimately promote the amazing opportunities available for those willing to go study in a different country!
In her role as a Student Advisor, Azusa highlights the appeal of studying abroad at events aimed at high school and university students, as well as provide consultations to high school students who come to visit Waseda during its Open Campus. She also took part in “Must meet night”, an annual round-table discussion event that matches up students who are scheduled to depart on their study abroad programs with students who have already gone through the experience. Azusa held a leader position for this event, and mentions her gratitude towards the other core members and CIE staff whose support made for a successful event. Azusa comments, “It’s very rewarding to see comments like ‘I had all my doubts eased!’ from participants in their after-event questionnaires, which lets me know I was able to help support their decisions to try studying abroad, and this motivates me for future activities [in this role].”
Japanese article:【大学で働く学生】留学センター「学生留学アドバイザー」
