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Akita International University

Japan 2018/2019 Partner universities

Personal data
Mobility type:
study

Faculty at MU:
Faculty of Arts

Field of study:
Japanology, pedagogy

Level of study during period of placement:
Bachelor

Language used:
Japanese

Summer/winter school?:
yes

Period of studies:
summer 2019

Period of placement (from-to):
2019-06-17 - 2019-07-26

Number of months:
1.5

Activities before my departure abroad
Where can information be found about courses taught at the foreign school?:
At their webpage

Which documents were needed for acceptance at the foreign university?:
certificate that proves your ability to use English, letter of recomendation prof teacher and letter explaining my motivation towards applying for the programme

How far ahead did you have to organise your acceptance?:
well I started about six months before the programme started, but that depend on whenever you already own some kind of english certificate or not

Did you need a visa?:
- choose option -

Documents and materials needed for a visa:

Length of wait for visa:

Fee for the visa:

Studies
Did you have a Learning Agreement signed before your departure?:
yes

If not, why not?:

Before your departure did you know how your courses would be recognised by your home faculty?:
Yes, my teacher told me

During your stay did you change your Learning Agreement?:
no

When and how did course registration take place? Are there any restrictions? Possibilities of making changes?:
we had exam at AIU that decided into which course I´ll get

Did you take any examinations at the foreign school?:
Yes many

Does the school use the ECTS system?:
yes

If not then explain how the credits there were recalculated into ECTS:

Describe the teaching methods (theory, practical and projects) and assessment of students:
Well every day we had small test on the subject we talked about the previous day, same goes for homework, plus after every chapter we did test on it as well, we did presentation on topic we decided on but it had to be all in japanese.

Quality of teaching in comparison with home school:
As this was summer programme I would say it was different but I can´t really say if it was better or worse

How did you receive study materials?:
we had to buy textbook and workbook

Can you recommend an interesting course/subject/teacher?:
again it was summer programme we couldn´t choose.

How well is the school library equipped?:
The library is huge, so I would say pretty well.

Availability of computers, internet access, level of software needed, requirements on notebook:
there are computer labs available for personal use, internet is accessible all over the campus.

Options from printing and copying:
there were machines for it but I did´t need to use them, so I can´t really tell.

Does the foreign school/student organisation arrange special events for exchange students?:
yes

If yes then what?:
there are cultural workshops and stuff like that

How would you assess your integration with the local students (evaluation like in school from 1 to 5 with 1 as highest):
3

or describe in your own words:
I suck at socializing, but everyone was really nice so I even made some friends

Practical questions on your placement
Where did you live?:
At the Komachi Hall of the AIU Campus

Cost of accommodation - monthly:
500 USD

Additional comments to the price of accommodation (as to what the price includes):
Price was included in the overall fee for the programme so I´m not sure how much the housing itself actually was this is just rought estimation, that could be wrong...

Describe the equipment. Tips for future students – what should they bring with them?:
They give you their own bedding so you don´t have to worry abot that, other then every day necessities I would say you don´t actually need anything, it all depends on how much comfort you´re used to but do bring an adapter if you bring your own electric devices.

How and how far ahead should accommodation be organised?:
I didn´t really have to prepare for it before hand but again that´s probably part of the summer programme...

What are the catering options?:
Well there´s cantine you can vistit that´s fairly good, then there´s cafeteria that has a bit more special stuff and then you can always go to the city to eat out, or you can cook for yourself...

What are the rough costs of groceries (compare with Czech prices):
I didn´t really do groceries as I ate in the cantine which was pretty cheap, but from what I cought fruit is really expensive in Japan... overall wester products are not the best way to go but if you´re willing to try japanese cuisine I fell like it´s not that expensive....

Transport to location of placement:
taxi, bus or walk, I would recommend the taxi as the buses work only on some days of the year...

Rough prices for transportation:
bus fee is 280 yen which is around 47 Kč

Tips for purchasing cheap tickets and other recommendations:
you usually pay by cash or tickets for bus I do recoment buying the tickets as you save a little bit...

What are the local transport options (public transport, cycling, on foot, rough prices):
It all depends on where you want to go but bus ride to the city was 200 yen so about 40 Kč

What kind of formalities have to be arranged before arrival, for example residence permit?:
I don´t remember any of those but then it might be only because I was there fro short period of time...

What health insurance did you use? (rough price, advantages, disadvantages, is it necessary to arrange insurance at the university other than your home (Czech) insurance?):
roughly it costed 2000 Kč, czech insurance was enaugh

Did you have any experience with medical treatment abroad?:
No

Did you work during your studies?:
No

What are the conditions for working for MU students?:
You would need visa plus it´s quite common that university does not allow working while studying in their programme

Tips for free-time activities:
There´s bunch of clubs you can join if you´re interested so I would recoment those...

Financial support and expenses
Total grant from Centre for International Cooperation:
25000 CZK

Monthly grant in CZK:
-0 CZK

Number of supported months:
1,5

Total number of months:
1,5

What other sources did you make use of to finance your placement?:
My savings

If you received another grant, state which and how much in CZK:

 
Total fees associated with enrolment at the university:
305000 JPY

a/ amount of enrolment fee:
50000 JPY

b/ amount of tuition fees:
250000 JPY

c/ amount of other fees (which):
5000 JPY

 
What was your average monthly expenditure?:
-0 JPY

a/ of which for accommodation:
-0 JPY

b/ of which for catering:
-0 JPY

c/ travel and recreation:
-0 JPY

Any comments to the average monthly expenditure:

Recognition of foreign studies at the home faculty
How many credits did you gain during your studies (in the system of the foreign school)?:
6

How many ECTS credits were recognised at MU?:
3

Did you know in advance which of your courses would be recognised by your home faculty?:
Yes

What problems did you have with recognition?:
None I believe

Overall assessment
Assessment of personal benefit (1 = excellent):
1

Assessment of academic benefit (1 = excellent):
2

Evaluate the information and support provided by the foreign school (1 = excellent):
1

Did you encounter any serious problems during your stay:
no

What would you recommend to take with you:
cash

What most surprised you at the partner university in a positive way:
campus

What most surprised you at the partner university in a negative way:
nothing

Further comments:
prepare for the fact that bathrooms are weird...