horrible program, great city. Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

Not at all academically rigorous, especially compared to the rigor students face at participating consumption schools. With that in mind, however, the lack of academic challenge allowed for students to enjoy Kyoto.

On-site administration of your program

The office and Administration is very helpful when it comes to helping with paperwork or Japanese government-related tasks (such as part-time job permits, questions on how to get places), but the administration is simply the worst when it comes to greater issues. From the beginning of the program students are brief on the dos and don'ts of Japanese culture/staying with a host family. But the feeling was that there was little wiggle room for mistakes or imperfection amongst students. Unfortunately this extremity carried over into how the administration handled host family/cultural situations. Whenever such situations arose not only with myself but with other students, the blame was pushed solely onto the student, and focus quickly shifted from resolving the situation to making the student feel as guilty as possible, pushing them to the point of forced apology. I have never felt so belittled, isolated, and insulted by an administration who I trusted to take care of me in a place 8,000 miles from my home. After such situations occurred, even the simplest tasks become unnecessarily complicated as the administration preceded to ignore and treat me with hostility, sometimes even talking through me instead of communicating directly with me. I must note that Shinko Kagaya, the Resident Director at the time, was the least hostile throughout the situation. It was mainly the office staff, headed by Kawata, that made the most efforts to berate me. I believe that for students to feel more comfortable, the administration needs major restructuring and needs people who will understand better the perspective of the student.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

Unfortunately my host family had a poor dynamic headed by an unhappy marriage and a mother who maintained unhealthy relationships with her daughter. The host mother enjoyed pushing people's buttons (reminding her husband that there are better-looking men in the world, bullying her daughter about the fact that she doesn't have a boyfriend), and I too became a victim of that. I was constantly bullied for my language level and was often talked about amongst the other family members at the dinner table. It was a very uncomfortable living situation for me.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

Students were provided with Japanese National Health Insurance, which provides excellent discounts.

Kyoto is extremely, extremely safe, especially in comparison to western countries.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

The AKP uses AKP alumn to recruit students, and unfortuatnely that proved to be to the AKP's disadvantage this past year. Up until the 2011-12 year, students were provided with about $500/month for leisure expenses and lunch. However, students were not notified of this change, and many students did not find out until just after arriving in Japan. The AKP pays for National Health Insurance, and reimburses students for commuting passes. In addition, students are provided approx. $180/month for lunch expenses. The AKP also provides students with a $600 cultural activities grant, however it is through a complicated reimbursement system that requires approval by the RD, who made approving reimbursements increasingly difficult as time went on. Students who wanted to explore Japan often had to spend their lunch money on activities, and then wait a month for reimbursement. It was a very confusing system that often limited my activities.

0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language

We were greatly encouraged to use the language, but it was extremely easy to not do so.

Select all that apply

• Host Family

Select all that apply

• Host Family

Select all that apply

• Local Students
• Americans

• The Japanese language professors

• administration
• host family selection process
• RD selection process