Fall Semester Begins

Classes started on October 4^th. The first week of classes is used as an introductory week where instructors spend a half hour outlining the course plan. Different than The U., classes here at Otaru University of Commerce, or Shodai as students and locals call it, meet for 90 minutes once a week. More demanding classes such Intermediate Microeconomics meet for two 90-minute sessions each week throughout the semester and are worth 4 credits. Classes meeting once a week are valued at 2 credits. Similar to South Dakota, students are expected to manage about 15 credits per semester and graduate after four years. Japan operates on the “Bachelor” and “Master” degree system, now considered the international standard. European countries such as Germany have recently transitioned to this system because of its international recognition. My tutor and friend Yuichi is in his fourth year at Shodai but has only one class to take his last 2 semesters. It is typical for fourth year Japanese students to complete more than 15 credits per semester and supplementary courses between semesters in order to devote their fourth and final year to job searching. Having a year to secure employment is probably a good idea especially given today’s economy. My Fall semester schedule as follows:

Monday: Introduction to Japanese Management, 2:30-4:00

Tuesday: Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, 8:50-10:20; Elementary Japanese, 10:30-12:00; Intermediate Microeconomics, 2:30-4:00 and 4:10-5:40

Wednesday: Elementary Japanese, 12:50-2:20

Thursday: Elementary Japanese, 10:30- 12:00; Introduction to Japanese Law, 12:50-2:20; Business Project Seminar, 2:30-4:50

Friday: Comparative Studies of Culture, 12:50-2:20; Elementary Japanese, 2:30-4

Student Union at Otaru University of Commerce 

Aside from business-related courses, I am also studying Elementary Japanese. I have already completed an introductory, intensive beginning Japanese course which lasted for 2 weeks shortly after arriving in September. To this point, we have studied Japanese writing systems of Hiragana and Katakana, phonetics, vocabulary, and sentence structure. I am not quite ready to start a conversation in Japanese with a stranger, but I am pleased with the progress I’ve made in just a few weeks.

The Fall semester will last about 16 weeks plus an additional week for final exams from February 9^th through the 18^th. Spring semester will start on April 1^st, leaving about a month and a half between semesters. Much time for an international student to explore Japan and Asia!

Review of First Month

Lots of rice, noodles, seafood, sushi, chopsticks, green tea, polite people, laughter, quiet conversation, Kanji, Katakana, slippers, style, studying, Sapporo beer, vending machines, Yen, karaoke, mountains, walking, compact cars, white taxis, buses, trains, trees, water, recycling, technology  and national holidays.

I've been here for a little over a month and have had many interesting interactions with the locals. My summary above should give you somewhat of an idea of Japanese culture. While the two are different, there are many aspects of Japanese culture I would like to take back to the USA. Of course you can visit me to find out for yourself!