“The exchange year allows me to grow”
“Here I have found an active learning environment,” says Koki Yamada, one of the 120 exchange students who come to ľϸӰ College Utrecht each year. Now half-way his year in the Netherlands, Koki found a moment to reflect briefly on his first four months on campus.
“Initially, I heard about the exchange opportunity from a former ľϸӰ College Utrecht student who had come to my home university for his exchange programme. I wanted to take up the challenge because the liberal arts programme here is more diverse than at home. It seemed useless to go to a place where I would be learning things that I could learn at home in Japan as well. Besides, it appealed to me to go to a country that I had never visited before,” tells Koki.
Back home at the international College of Liberal Arts at Yamanshi Gakuin ľϸӰ, Koki studies Economics and Sociology as his major subjects. At ľϸӰ College Utrecht, he was pleased to find out that classrooms are small, with 28 students at maximum, exactly like at home, providing the learning environment that works best for him.
But even more important, he says to appreciate the ľϸӰ College’s active way of learning and its broad curriculum. “It has exposed me to many different ideas and ways of thinking. I have found courses I was not even aware of before coming here.”
He was met with yet another positive discovery right in the beginning. ”The intro week was my biggest and nicest surprise. It allowed me to get much more comfortable with the environment and my fellow students, and this is what I hear from other students as well. A great week!”
Turning to more serious matters: “The biggest difference between my home university and ľϸӰ College Utrecht is the workload. No doubt the workload here is heavier. However, this is exactly why I am so glad that I chose to come here. In fact, I find the workload fully appropriate. I only have to remind myself of my wish to continue my studies in a graduate school to perceive this year’s workload as an important stepping stone for the future. It allows me to grow and prepare for what comes next.”
Read more about international exchange at ľϸӰ College Utrecht