Joe (Sem 2, 2023)

My Exchange at The University of Tokyo

I had wanted to go on exchange ever since I saw 360 International advertised in my first week at UoA, and last semester I was able to fulfil that goal by going on exchange to the University of Tokyo.

Upon arrival in Japan, I had a few weeks before I was required to move into my accommodation, so I used that opportunity to travel around the country a bit, in Kansai and Shikoku. It didn’t take long for me to fall in love with the country; the rich cuisine, friendly people, storied history and gorgeous nature that I experienced over three weeks provided me with a fantastic introduction to Japan. The story changed somewhat once I arrived in Tokyo, however. My requirement to be in Tokyo almost an entire month before classes actually started, combined with my extremely anti-social dormitory, led to a rather solitary month of exploration around Tokyo. Without the University to help me meet people I found Japan to be quite an isolating society to exist in, especially as someone who speaks only very elementary Japanese. This month was the most challenging month of my exchange. As I slowly started to make friends, I was able to enjoy myself more, and as soon as orientation rolled around, my social circle immediately exploded, and I began to really enjoy living in Tokyo.

I found my experience with the University of Tokyo to be somewhat mixed. I felt that leading up to classes starting there was an unnecessary amount of admin that I seemed to be expected to know existed, let alone how to actually do it. There wasn’t a huge range of options of classes for exchange students, but the options that were there covered very interesting topics. Despite this, in all honesty I did not find the classes to be incredibly rewarding, save a few select examples of classes that I loved, namely one class on recent border disputes in East Asia. My accomodation I thought was below par, but the location in central Tokyo right next to campus and the unbelievably low price I was paying more than made up for it. The campus life at UTokyo was one of the big positives as well; a great cafeteria and plenty of places to study and meet with friends all across the gorgeous campus grounds made for a rewarding social experience in Tokyo.

My life outside of the University in Tokyo was what made my time the most enjoyable. The food and drink culture was an absolute pleasure to explore, and the literal thousands of establishments within walking distance of my accommodation provided ample opportunities for exploration with my mates. Thanks to the low cost of living compared to Auckland, daily visits exploring the dynamic culinary tapestry of Japan were well within reach. I cannot stress enough how much I enjoyed hanging out with friends in a different back alley bar or restaurant every night and never having to return to the same place twice. Tokyo is a very culturally rich city, you could conceivably live one thousand different lives in Tokyo and never see the same thing. This made for an exciting place to live that always had something new to see or do in my free time. The fantastic (albeit expensive) transport system in Japan also meant I was able to take many weekend trips all around the country and see almost everything I had wanted to see before departing New Zealand. One thing that I do regret is that I did not learn more Japanese before I left. I could hold basic conversations with Japanese people, however I was never able to hold a substantive conversation which severely limited my ability to make Japanese friends and made me feel like I was living a life very much removed from ‘regular’ Japanese society. I think I could’ve had a more rewarding experience was I able to join clubs and socialize more with the Japanese students as opposed to almost exclusively other exchange students.

I would wholeheartedly recommend to any students considering an exchange to put themselves out there and make it happen. I can definitely seem somewhat daunting but my experience in Tokyo was incredibly enjoyable and one I will carry with me for the rest of my life.

Q&A

What were some of the highlights of the academic experience at your host university?

My personal highlight was definitely the class I took on Japan’s border dispute. The professor was a world-renowned expert in the area and was an enthusiastic and skilled person to learn from. The class was extremely relevant to modern Japan and I was really happy to learn more about the country I was living in.

Would you recommend any particular activity/activities unique to your host country or university?

I was really pleasantly surprised at the quality of the tramping in Japan, especially close to Tokyo which I thought would be a metropolis impossible to escape from on weekends. The beautiful mossy cedar forests of Yakushima off the Southern island of Kyushu is one of the most beautiful natural places I have had the pleasure of visiting, and so too was the view from the top of Mt. Fuji.

What are your top 3 tips for future students attending your host university or going on exchange to your host country?

1. Learn as much Japanese as possible. You don’t need to know any Japanese to get around the country at all, however not many people in Japan can speak English very well and learning Japanese will really help you to make connections with locals, and Japanese people will appreciate it.

2. Travel around as much as possible! Japan is very culturally rich country with so much to see and do in every corner of the country. Make sure to make use of what is quite possibly the best transport network of any country in the world. I especially loved trying the local cuisine in each new town and city that I visited.

3. Be prepared to figure things out on your own. I was expecting a better support network at UTokyo coming from UoA, but there were a lot of things at the university that I was expected to know how to do myself, especially on the admin side of things.

How much did you budget for your exchange? Was this enough? Were there any lessons learned that would help future students budget for their own exchange?

At my point of departure from New Zealand I had saved just over $11,500, almost all of which I used up over the next six months overseas. However, I travelled quite a bit before and after my exchange, as well as quite a few weekend trips while the exchange was in progress. This was where most of my money went. I could have (not comfortably) lived off my living costs student loan alone if I had opted not to do any of the travel that I chose to do. The living costs in Tokyo were quite a bit lower than in Auckland. In the lead up to my exchange after calculating the living costs in Tokyo I realised I barely needed to dip into my savings so I did not need to worry too much about tight budgeting.

What are your most significant takeaways from your experience abroad?

I think my most significant takeaways from this exchange is the experience of living in another country, within a culture quite different from my own, and learning more about the way people live around the world. As well as that, I had the experience of getting to know myself better while I was living on my own away from everybody I had ever met. I have come home from Japan with a newfound understanding of the world and myself.