Program Description

Experience Japanese culture and language while studying in Nagoya, Japan. This exchange program allows students to directly enroll in the Center for Japanese Studies at Nanzan University, a department administered by the university's Center for International Education. By living and learning in Japan, students experience the "real Japan" together with a cross-section of people from other countries and cultures. The result is a dynamic group of students from many different backgrounds united in their goal to discover Japan.

Nagoya—a leading Japanese center of international trade, industry and culture—has approximately 2.17 million inhabitants and houses many of Japan's important industries, including Toyota, Noritake China, Brother, and Mitsubishi. Located in the heart of Japan, Nagoya provides an ideal starting point to explore other locations in Japan, such as Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto.

Academics

Nanzan University is rated among the leading private universities in Japan and has a student enrollment of 8,900 undergraduates, including students from 28 different countries. In 1946 it began as a College of Foreign Languages and has since grown to a university with seven faculties and eleven research institutes and centers. The university's Center for Japanese Studies, founded in 1974, has been a leader in Japanese language studies, with the goal of helping each student develop a better understanding of the Japanese people and language.

Students on the program enroll in Japanese language courses with other international students at the Center for Japanese Studies. Participants with advanced Japanese language proficiency may also take a range of seminars conducted in Japanese. The Center for Japanese Studies offers a wide selection of lecture courses taught in English that cover politics, economy, society, religions, literature, and the history of Japan, as well as courses in management, intercultural communication, linguistics, and language acquisition. Students may also take courses in Japanese fine arts such as sumie (Chinese Black Ink Painting), hanga (woodblock printing), shodo (calligraphy), and ikebana (flower arranging).

Housing

Students can choose to live with a Japanese host family through Nanzan University's popular homestay program and experience Japanese family life and culture firsthand. Housing with Japanese and international students is also available in one of the privately managed dormitories or international off-campus dormitories. Meal options are available for participants living with a host family or in a dormitory.

Excursions and Activities

Upon arrival, students attend an orientation program at Nanzan University designed to introduce them to the university and life in Nagoya. The Center for Japanese Studies organizes a variety of excursions throughout the year to complement the academic program. Trips will vary year to year, but often include excursions and study tours to places of special interest in the area, such as visits to historic Kyoto and Nara, a stay at a Zen Buddhist monastery, and a tour of a Toyota Motors assembly plant.

In addition to activities organized by the Center for Japanese Studies, students are encouraged to participate as members of the larger Nanzan University community. Nanzan University students welcome students from the Center for Japanese Studies to their clubs, sports activities, and social activities, and local groups often extend invitations to attend festivals, performances, and community events.