News

Students gathering on the first floor to recieve information about schools.

“Push yourself!” “Dive into the experience, and experience everything you can.” “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!” are just some of the advice given at the Study Abroad Fair on 6 and 7 October. The Center for International Education at Waseda University hosted the Fall 2023 Study Abroad Fair. The major effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which heavily affected study abroad programs, have mostly subsided. With both students and program leaders excited, this year’s fall fair was as lively as ever, returning to the pre-pandemic levels of traffic at the event.

The event took place on two different floors of the International Conference Center on the Waseda campus. On the 1^st floor, there were students who had studied abroad in the past available to ask for advice. They had students who have been all over the world to places like Sweden, Austria, and many more. Some of the more popular countries would sometimes see up to as many as 5 students in line to find the answers to their worries and questions.

Chihiro Komeno 4th-year at School of Political Science and Economics

 Two of the study abroad student advisors were interviewed for this article. The first student advisor was Chihiro Komeno, a 4th-year student at the School of Political Science and Economics, and the 18th Study Abroad Student Adviser Vice-president. They studied abroad for one year at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden. They said that it was an experience that changed the way they thought about the future and made them become very interested in Sweden. The part of the experience that really stuck with them was all the new friends that they were able to make, especially the ones that they made when they participated in the Rainbow Pride as a volunteer. They were originally more of a shy person, but studying abroad made them realize that to make the most of the experience they needed to push themselves to make friends. This enabled them to become more of an outgoing person and have more confidence when interacting with people. Their advice to students who are thinking about studying abroad is to not be scared, to jump into the experience, and take a chance, because no matter the outcome, whether it be good or bad, you will always be able to come away with something worthwhile.

Chihiro Komeno in Sweden

The second student is Fumiko Ishizuka who is a 5th-year student at the School of Education, Department of English Language and Literature, and the 18th Study Abroad Student Adviser Assist Team Leader. She studied at the University of California, Irvine for a year. She said that studying abroad was a big step towards becoming her ideal version of herself, a feeling of wanting to broaden her world that she had since high school, and

Fumiko Ishizuka 5th-year at School of Education, Department of English Language and Literature

that she became able to do and say anything by herself. She is now able to truly listen to people better and be even more accepting of all different ideas, which was heavily influenced by the words of one of her teachers when studying abroad. In the class, they were discussing the concept of healthy and unhealthy, and in Japan, she said learned that is healthier to keep your feelings to yourself, but the teacher said that it is healthier to express your feelings and anger. She was very surprised to learn such an opposite viewpoint, which led her to understand that there are many different cultures that have different views. Her advice to students looking to study abroad is that there are too many things that you can only experience while studying abroad that you can’t afford not to go. There will be many obstacles you have to overcome, but there are so many experiences that you will not be able to have or do without the oppurtunity of studying abroad.

Fumiko Ishizuka in the U.S.A.

On the 1st floor of the Masaru Ibuka Auditorium were stage events where the students watched on with excitement, nervousness, and great interest. Some of the presentations included: Panel Discussion with Study Abroad Advisors “Let’s Open the Doors to the World”, Explanation of Application Guidelines, Start from Short or Mid-length Language Programs! Even Without a Language Proficiency Score you can Participate and Preparing Funds for Study Abroad.

Student advisers answering questions of potential study abroad students

At the panel discussion, they had 4 students share their experiences while studying abroad. The students said that studying abroad is a great opportunity to not only learn English but learn about the culture of the area that you are studying, and possibly learn another language while you are there. All the students mentioned that they had some kind of trouble during the experience, but they were able to make friends who were able to help them make it through without too much hardship. They also mentioned that it was an indispensable opportunity to learn communication with others because you will be in a culture and a country that you have yet to set foot in, and you might have a roommate from that culture, and living with someone requires a high amount of communication.

Study abroad student advisers panel discussion

On the 3rd floor, there was a consultation corner, themed seminars, presentations from different programs, and booths for consultation from the programs. These groups included universities such as University of California, Davis, Dublin City University, University of Queensland, and many others. The advisors at the booths seemed just as excited as the students, and were even more welcoming, sometimes telling jokes as students passed by. They always greeted students with a smile on their faces. The seminars included all kinds of information from information on TOEFL to information about how having the experience of studying abroad affects job hunting.

One of the special seminars held of the 3rd floor

If you are thinking about taking the leap and experiencing new things through studying abroad come check out the next study abroad fair in Spring 2024, or head directly to the Center for International Education(CIE)’s website. Also, students can browse books and brochures related to these programs at Waseda Global Gate located at Building No. 22. CIE coordinates and advises students to participate in a wide variety of study abroad programs for both incoming international students and Waseda students on all aspects of study abroad.

Waseda University’s Vision 150 Strategic plan aims to have all students experience studying abroad by the 150th anniversary of the university’s founding, 2032.