Blog #3: Academic Differences

So there's a lot of details that need to be looked over when it comes to studying abroad, and one of them is the potential academic differences you might face. Are the classes and teachers in the country you're studying more demanding and difficult or are they more relaxed and chill? How many credits is one class worth, as compared to your home university? How is the academic year scheduled? What are the social constructs regarding teacher/student relationships? These are some things that need to be understood in order for you to be much better prepared for when you actually get over there.

In my case, with Japan, I will be attending Toyo University for their NEST program (Nihongo for Exchange Students at Toyo), and the layout for how they run things is a little bit different, but nothing too exaggerated. Classes for the fall semester, which is when I will be going, is scheduled from September 22, 2017 - January 29, 2018. It's not too far off the beaten path in regard to how Maryville College's schedule is arranged, since we generally start the fall semester in late August and end in early December.

For classes, it's a little bit different. Again, because I'm taking a language intensive program rather than regular classes, it's not going to be the same as it is here. The typical number of classes a student takes for each term is 10 to 12, with 15 to 18 hours per week for 16 weeks a term. However, I will be taking 6 courses, 10 credits a semester of just Japanese language based classes for the entire semester. In addition to the expected language-focused courses, I also can choose one of two classes dealing with an introduction to Japanese culture and society. Since 10 credits is not enough for me to be considered a full-time student for my home university, I will need to add at least one more class that's worth 2 credits in order to meet the requirement to be considered a full-time student, which is between the 12-18 credit range. My schedule would allow me to take an afternoon class outside of the language courses in order to meet that requirement. Also, in Toyo's case, if a class is 3 credits, it will usually transfer back as 3 credits to Maryville College.

The grading scale is not very different from here. In fact, I think it's a lot less confusing. The system is as follows:

Excellent = 100-90
A = 89-80
B = 79-70
C = 69-60
D = 59-40
E = 39-0 (failure)

I personally think this is a much easier scale to follow rather than 85-92 being a B, a 70-84 being a C, and the like.

The International House (I-House) is the #1 place to go if there are any problems, but in regard to health, both physical and mental, there is an university infirmary you can go to for help. You can also call the I-House to get information about nearby hospitals and clinics if you want to use those resources. There is also an English Community Zone that would probably be a good place to start if you want to find tutoring or friends that can help you with homework, not to mention the some 300 clubs you can join to find people who can help you. And if you don't know what the English Community Zone is, it's a Japanese-free space. So students, both Japanese and non-Japanese, can come to this place and talk in any language that is not Japanese (not sure why it's called the English zone, then).