Q1 WHY DID YOU CHOOSE GBP?

Ever since high school, I have always been interested in learning about business, so I started reading books and watching videos on the topic. When I was looking for programs in Japan, GBP stood out to me as an international program that not only incorporates a liberal arts curriculum but also focuses more on business, and that is what I was looking for. The Liberal Arts classes appealed to me as a way to broaden my view of the world and to open doors in terms of sparking other interests too. Since I have an interest in working in Japan, the GBP curriculum seemed like the ideal program for me, offering relevant classes on Japanese business and culture, ideal classes to prepare me for the local work environment.

Q2 WHAT ARE GOOD THINGS YOU EXPERIENCED AFTER ENTERING GBP AT HOSEI UNIVERSITY?

I am very grateful for studying at Hosei, where I truly feel connected to the environment and the people. Here it was the first time I had the opportunity to meet people from so many different countries with the same educational background. My classmates carry a deep cultural background, and because most come from business families, I’ve been able to grasp how business culture works in their respective countries. The classes in GBP have been in general very fun and interesting. The classes are big enough to foster dynamic discussions and debates, and professors make it possible to enrich the learning experience by allowing students to share how their cultural background relates to the topics discussed in class.

Q3 WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO DO AFTER GRADUATION?

So far, in the GBP program, the classes that sparked my interest the most were related to finance and supply management. After graduation, I plan to apply for jobs related to these areas, focusing on a more international scope. Understanding that Japan is in high demand for skilled and multi-language speaking professionals and has companies with operations all around the world, I intend to work for a multinational that might be searching for such resources. In this way, I am interested in bridging the linguistic gap between Japan and foreign markets, like Europe and Latin America, with the languages I know.

Q4 DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE FOR JUNIORS?

What helped a lot was having good time management of my assignments and presentations, trying to do things in advance as things get more packed by the end of the semester. By doing this, I was able to keep up with the Japanese classes, that at first were hard and demanded more attention. Moreover, most classes have weekly assignments that are simple, doing them first thing after class will spare time later to follow up on more complex activities.

Q5 FEELING YOUR OWN GROWTH

I believe that as a student I can notice how much I have been growing in terms of becoming more diligent, active and responsible towards my studies. At first, it was quite hard to manage my time with friends and family, while working and trying to maintain good grades, but time management made it all possible. I figured ways to become more productive by using better the time I had to study, it could be learning Kanji in the train, or waking up earlier to finish my assignments. Also, in my first year, I was very fortunate to meet so many amazing people from various backgrounds, they taught me so much about their cultures which has been an amazing opportunity for me to grow my sense of the world.

Q6 EPISODE IN JAPAN

Living for almost three years in Japan has been a great personal experience, as I come to learn more about the culture and its people. Last year, going to Sendai for a week with my friends was great, we had an amazing time in a Japanese cabin and explored the city. However, the walk to the cabins was so exhausting, we were carrying our bags in the highway for over two hours going uphill, which was unexpectedly fun, because it showed me so much of how the rural areas of Japan look that the rain and walk became just another detail in the landscape. In the night, when walking to the local combini, unknowingly why the sky would light up in red smoke, it was an unreal view of the night in Sendai that I’ll never forget.