Exchange Students’ Voice / 交換留学生の声

As a student in Politics, I have always wanted to study and work abroad to grasp other political realities and to enhance my communication skills. I developed an interest in Japan through Japanese literature when I was younger, but I never thought I would one day be able to study here ! I did not know about Meiji University before, but when I started my research to choose an exchange university, I found out that a student that I met the year before was currently realising his exchange year at Meiji ! He told me about the strong international community and the diversity of the classes offered by the university , and thanks to his advices, I choose to apply !

From the beginning of my exchange I enrolled in Mr Unno Motoo’s advanced seminar in Intercultural communication and negotiation. Both Japanese and international students can join this class, so I was able to interact and make friends with people from different cultural backgrounds ! The atmosphere in the class was really great, everyone was willing to help each other and we had a lot of interesting discussions and group projects ! Mr Unno is a great professor that knows how to make theoretical knowledge interesting, and through his guidance we were also able to ask different cooperation organisations (embassies, JETRO…) for interviews.
These experiences were really valuable for my professional journey, and it helped me realise what career I want to pursue in the future ! 

Something that surprised me when I started living here was to see just how crowded public transport was during rush hour. Even having lived in Lyon (France’s third-largest city) for two years, I hadn’t expected such a huge number of people entering a train. It can be scary sometimes ! Additionally, I would say that the overall conveniency of life in Japan is really surprising (and appreciated) ! Shops close late and konbinis allow you to eat at anytime, day and night, which is really nice when coming home late !

■Things you particulartly enjoy / 楽しいところ



■Things challenging for you / 大変なところ

I feel like French and Japanese academic systems are very different. I am used to write essays, reports, and work a lot at home on my own, but here in Meiji I have been able to produce much more collective work through group projects and presentations. In this way, I had to learn to work as part of a team with people whose working styles might differ from my own. I also worked hard on my oral communication skills, which I rarely used in my academic work in France. So I think that being able to improvise and explain my thoughts clearly without written support was my biggest challenge here !

I don’t know if I have a real dream for the future, but I have a goal that I would like to reach : I want to be able to work in diplomacy, and to reach complete fluency in Japanese, Italian, and English. I aspire to get involved in the international community, meet people from cultures different to my own, and help to build and strengthen cooperative relationships between countries. My experience in Japan has made me realise just how much I appreciate this country, and I am certain that I want to return to live and work there to foster Franco-Japanese relations in the future.

My home university is Université Lumière Lyon II, located in Lyon (« South » -East of France). This university mainly trains students in the humanities, the social sciences, law and economics and management. As a student enrolled in the Political Science department, I can tell you that the courses there are very interesting and comprehensive ! Lyon is also a very nice city to live, more human-sized than Paris but still dynamic ! I think living in France can be challenging, for example public transport is reliable in big cities, but it is not as developed as in Japan, you often need a car if you wanna go to specific places. French people are open and often willing to 

I am really grateful for Meiji students’ support and sympathy ! I learned so much of Japanese culture, language and overall customs thanks to them ! I find the way they’re involved in the various clubs and activities they take part in really impressive, especially within the associations that offer support and organise events for exchange students ! The student community at Meiji is very warm and welcoming, and I hope as a French student I also made a good impression !

To anyone considering joining Meiji University for an exchange, please do so ! This university offered me the best experience I could ever think of, I will never forget it. It might be scary at first, but thanks to the professors, the students and the staff, you will feel strongly supported ! The international community is dynamic and warm-hearted, you will have all the keys to spend an amazing time and experience in Japan !