Written by: Chong Jia En

Photos by: Chong Jia En

On April 1, 2024, I began my life as an exchange student in Japan. The university in Japan assigned me to a dormitory an hour away from the university. I had to walk for 20 minutes to the station, take the subway for 20 minutes, and then walk uphill for another 20 minutes to reach the school. For my 9 am classes, I had to wake up at 7 am and start my journey by 8 am. At first, it felt hopeless because I had early classes for four consecutive days, and my classes lasted until 4:30 pm. Every day was exhausting, and I had to walk at least an hour each day. Within less than four months, I lost 5 kilograms without any dieting. I was very pleased with the results brought by this arduous journey to school.

Many people say that when we go for an exchange program, it's usually during spring and summer. But I was really lucky to experience about a month of winter when I went. The coldest it got was -2 degrees Celsius. I even saw snow on the fourth day after arriving in Japan. I was really excited to see snow for the first time, and it was an opportunity given to me by CIAC. My friend who went with me lived in a different area and didn't get to see snow. So, I am really grateful for this exchange opportunity.

I went to Kansai University of International Studies, which has excellent facilities. Even the toilets felt like five-star hotel toilets, and I was really amazed. Although most students there don't speak English, many of the teachers are highly qualified and do speak English. I was even taught by a teacher who graduated from Yale University. I also really liked the university's management system, which doesn't force you to take specific courses. You can freely allocate your time. However, I don't recommend taking Japanese courses if you don't have a basic understanding of the language, as the Japanese at this university is very difficult and the Japanese teachers cannot communicate in English. I had to spend a lot of time studying Japanese on my own because I couldn't understand what the teachers were saying in class, and most students couldn't speak English. But fortunately, there were many Chinese students there, and I could ask them in Mandarin to help me learn Japanese.

The fireworks festivals in Japan are held in the summer. People from all over the world come to Japan to see these fireworks festivals. I watched a very beautiful fireworks festival in the summer with my Japanese and Malaysian friends, which was also called Osaka's No. 1 Fireworks Festival. It was so beautiful that I cried out of happiness. I learned a lot during this exchange program, such as cooking with my roommates, navigating the local transportation, losing weight, and having simple Japanese conversations.

I also saw that the next batch of students could go for a one-year exchange in Japan. Everyone, please seize the opportunity. If given another chance, I would undoubtedly choose to experience being an exchange student again.

* Jia En recently returned to Malaysia after completing a one-semester exchange at Kansai University of International Studies in Japan. She is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Economics with Honours at the School of Economics, Finance, and Banking (SEFB), UUM. The Centre for International Affairs and Cooperation (CIAC), UUM, proudly congratulates Jia En on her successful completion of the student exchange program. We hope her experience serves as an inspiration to others, encouraging more students to embark on their own global journeys.

Brought to you by:

Global Experience Unit

Centre for International Affairs & Cooperation (CIAC)