Studying and Living in Nagoya Past Review
By A student (Linguistics, East Asian Studies, Brandeis University) - abroad from 09/02/2019 to 12/18/2019 with
IES Abroad Nagoya
No matter how much you think you know about life in Japan, nothing compares to experiencing it firsthand. To me these experiences were, as they say in a certain credit card commercial: priceless.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
I chose to study abroad for the experience of learning in Japan and to use the language more, not for improving my language skills. I have mostly self-studied (and have passed the JLPT N1) in addition to taking courses at my home university, so I didn't see the language class requirement here as anything more than that. While I did gain good practical use of Japanese, the fact that there are classes every day makes it feel like high school for better or worse. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
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| * Food: |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
There are a lot of hospitals/pharmacies/drug stores near the school which can come in handy. |
| * Safety: |
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| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
IES provides a lot of support. |
Finances
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* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?
(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
IES reimburses you for transportation costs above 6000 yen/month which helped a lot because in addition to the subway I had to use Meitetsu Bus, whose commuter pass prices are high. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Try to plan how much money you will be spending and try buying used items if you can. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
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How much did the program encourage you to use the language?
0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language |
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| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Talk to Japanese students. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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A Look Back
| * What did you like most about the program? |
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| * What could be improved? |
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| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | The school is on a steep hill. Prepare for the leg workouts. |
