九州大学 経済学部・大学院経済学府・大学院経済学研究院 留学・国際交流インフォメーション 九州大学 経済学部・大学院経済学府・大学院経済学研究院 留学・国際交流インフォメーション

生の声Student Voice

学生の声
Student Voice

Message of Mutian Guo

About myself

I am Mutian Guo, a second-year Master student from the Graduate School of Economics, Kyushu University. I enrolled in the International Program in Public Economics (IPPE) on October 2021, and my major field is Economic Engineering. My supervisor is Professor Takimoto Taro.

I was born in Hefei city, Anhui province, in mainland China. I studied abroad in Australia and received my Bachelor’s degree in Business from the University of Technology Sydney. After I passed the JLPT at the N1 level, I came to Fukuoka, Japan, on June 2022. Currently, Takimoto Sensei leads us in our seminar’s topics of Time Series Econometrics, and my individual research is on Japanese Fintech.

University classes

In Kyudai (i.e., Kyushu University, in Japanese: 九州大学 Kyushu Daigaku, we usually call it 九大 Kyudai in short), the Spring/Summer semester starts in April, and the Autumn/Winter semester begins in October every year. The Graduate School publishes the timetable for the whole academic year before April. Students can register for all the courses taught in Japanese or English. For instance, if you officially enroll in an English Master/Doctor program, you are welcome to Japanese-based classes with sufficient language skills and vice versa.

In the Graduate School of Economics, the courses with the titles “Topics in Economics” (in Japanese: ○○○特研 Tokukenn) may be different from the courses given by Graduate Schools in other countries. In such classes, students read books or journal articles assigned by supervisors and then prepare and deliver presentations. Participating in such courses can noticeably develop abilities in reading and understanding complex but latest publications on various research aspects on one’s own and improve expressing and language skills through presenting. I think it is vital to enroll in Tokukenn classes held by one’s supervisor to catch up on the knowledge in their seminar; meanwhile, going to Tokukenn classes held by other seminars is also very helpful.
Particularly during the covid time, it gives you opportunities to communicate with more teachers and classmates in Graduate School, even through online Zoom meetings turning the camera and microphone on.

Study and life on campus
  • The Graduate School of Economics locates in the East Zoon at Ito campus. We have most of our classes in building No.2 of East Zoon. Graduate students can apply to the student council to use the laboratory room located in the same building.
    Laboratory rooms provide a safe and quiet study place with stable Uni-wifi and a chance to make friends with your roommates from different countries and seminars.
    They have door locks so that you can put your digital devices, borrowed books from the library, and copies and printings in your lab room once you are permitted to use one of them. Remember to bring your student ID card if you come on weekends or holidays!
  • The “Big Sky” canteen is located in East Zoon, organized by the university cooperation. It provides more than 20 different lunch sets, which are cheap, delicious, and thus popular among students. Toritenn Teishoku (in Japanese: とり天定食) is my favorite, limited available at noon.

    Only 440 yen covers all the dishes in the picture! Tastes great!

    There are other canteens located in the Central Zoon and the West Zoon, 10-15 minutes walking from the East Zoon. Their menus are different from Big Sky’s, so do not hesitate to have a try when you are not in a hurry!

My life at Kyushu University

About me

This is Nasra A. Mohamed, an international student from Somalia, East Africa.
I was born, bred and studied my Bachelor’s degree in Mogadishu, the capital city of Somalia. I Majored in Statistics at Simad university, I received my degree in 2020.
Currently, I’m enrolled as a research Student (研究生/Kenkyūsei). I’ll start my Master’s Program (The International Program in Public Economics (IPPE)) at the graduate school of Economics under the supervision of Professor Takimoto. I was lucky enough to get accepted as MEXT student by one of Japan’s top national universities, Kyushu University.

I arrived in Japan on May 22, 2022. After spending eight days in quarantine in Tokyo, I traveled to Fukuoka. When I first arrived in Fukuoka, I was quite concerned about how my life would be at Kyushu University. All I have seen later blew my mind; in fact, Japanese are by far the most polite and helpful people you will ever meet (at least to my opinion), everyone was so kind and eager to help.

As a MEXT student, I was required to study Japanese Language for the first 6 months before focusing on research at the Graduate School. I advise to all international students that may intend to study in Kyudai also attend JTAS classes and Japanese language for the ease of their life in Japan.

University classes and the Graduate school

The teaching style at the graduate school of economics is absolutely top notch, and professors never hesitate to help you with everything. My professor actually checks in with us once a month by holding a one-hour tutorial. In the event of an emergency, I email him, and he always responds promptly and with assistance.
I started attending Takimoto sensei’s seminar and taking some noncredit classes this semester. Courses at the Graduate School of Economics are taught in either Japanese or English. My program is international so it’s English obviously.
The aim of being a Mext research student is not only to work on a specific research under supervisor, but also to have a good understanding of the courses taught in the graduate school. As a research student working under Takimoto’s supervision, I also got the opportunity to attend both his graduate and undergraduate seminars in order to broaden my understanding of economic research. Also, we practice reading published journal papers and articles. Ideally, I believe that all of this contributed to my confidence in presentations and language skills, both of which are critical in academics.

Although I’m not an undergraduate student, participating in the undergrad semi ( 学部経済工学演習) had significantly improved my research skills. This seminar discusses how to use free statistical software R and Python to apply Econometrics in practice. What sparked my interest was the learning method is unique unlike the ones I have seen before; t focuses entirely on group discussions and presentations. We are also required to present data every week, either by analyzing actual data of our interest or data from a published article.
This was a great chance for me to reconcile the differences between my earlier educational background in Africa and the one of Japan. I can now start my Master’s degree while I’m fully prepared. Finally, in case you are planning to join kyudai as a Mext student, I always recommend to anyone to start as a research before enrolling into masters.

Campus life

The campus is amazingly beautiful. I loved everything about Kyushu university, although I was dealing with unfamiliarity and the new environment I was exposed to but everything else captivated me, the campus, the dormitories, the stunning and big library, which is well equipped and designed unlike the others I have seen before. Oh, let me not forget the night view is really spectacular!

There is an aimo car, and if you’re not in the mood of walk you can take the free car. There is also a lot crossing involved at ito campus, you can you take a walk from East zone building (where the graduate school of economics is located) to center zone or west zone, its’s fairly convenient in the cold and hot days.
I faced many cultural shocks, but as the days passed, I started to manage and pull through the transition period, which went very well.
Graduate school of Economics is in ito campus, and ito campus is foreigner and Muslim friendly; there is a Nabisan restaurant, an Egyptian-owned canteen where you can eat all Halal food. Muslim students can also enjoy halal dishes from other canteens on campus, which include fish and vegetables
To sum up of what I have said before, now in January 2023, I’m looking forward to starting my master’s degree this year with my professor. I’m always grateful to my sensei, who advised me to first study the Japanese language and enroll as a research student; it’s because of him that I can now speak and understand daily conversational Japanese. I’m hoping to keep studying Japanese until I pass N1 and make my professor proud!! It’s only my first year in Kyushu, and I can’t wait to learn explore more.

留学体験談

九州大学 経済学府 経済工学専攻 修士1年

楠田健太

私は、経済学部のプログラムを使って、2019年の8月に中国人民大学に、2019年の9月にオーストラリアのクイーンズランド大学附属語学学校に短期留学しました。このように人に話すとよく、留学に行って良かったですか?と聞かれるのですが、自信を持って良かったと言えます。以下に、体験談とともに理由を綴っていきたいと思います。

まず、留学をしてよかった一つ目の理由は、困難な状況に陥っても自分の頭で考えてなんとかする力がついたということです。中国留学の初日、空港に迎えにくるバディと一緒に大学の寮に向かうと聞いていたのですが、いつまでも待っても彼は現れず、結局、道ゆく人に拙い英語で話しかけながら夜中の0時を過ぎる頃、やっとの思いで大学までたどり着きました。また、帰国の際も、空港と反対方向行きの電車に乗り飛行機を逃してしまったのですが、ここでも拙い英語でなんとか会話をして韓国行きの便に変更してもらい、韓国の空港内で一泊して帰国したという、今では笑い話な思い出もあります。今までの自分だったら、親や友達に頼っていた場面だと思うのですが、異国の地で頼れるのは自分しかいないという環境に置かれたからこそ、状況を打開するための策を考え実行に移すことができたのだと思います。

二つ目の理由は、自分から積極的に他者と関わっていく力がついたことです。私はもともと内気な性格で、なかなか自分から話しかけられないタイプだったのですが、オーストラリアのホームステイ先から一歩外に出ると、自分のことを常に気にかけてくれる人はおらず、自分から積極的にコミュニケーションをとっていくことが求められました。(とは言ってもオーストラリアは移民国家で外国人に親切な方が多いため、他の国と比較するとそれほど心配はいらないと思います)私は、毎日最低3人のクラスメイトに自分から話しかけることをルールにすることで友達の輪を広げていき、帰国後も連絡を取り合うような仲にまでなることができました。

最後の理由は、様々なバックグラウンドを持つ人々と出会う中で自分の可能性に気づけたことです。高校を卒業後、大学進学前に様々な国を旅して回り多種多様な文化に触れているドイツ人留学生や、初の海外経験にもかかわらず英語がペラペラな日本人学生など、同年代の行動力があり努力ができる人から受けた刺激は間違いなく、帰国後の自分の大学生活の過ごし方に影響を与えたと思います。また、日本では社会人が大学に通うことはまだまだまれなケースだと思いますが、特にオーストラリアでは学校に通う社会人が多いことに驚きました。オーストラリアの大学で観光学を学ぶべく語学学校に通っている30代の歯医者さんや、英語力向上を目指して頑張っている50代のチリ人女性など、自分のやりたいことや目標を持てば何歳からでもチャレンジできることを知り、彼らより一回りも二回りも若い自分の無限の可能性に気づかされました。
今の時代、オンライン英会話や市販の教材をはじめとして、英語の学習ができる環境は日本でも整っているため、あえて留学に行く必要性を感じない人もいるかもしれません。しかしながら先に述べたように、異国の地で様々な出来事や人に出会い、そこで経験し感じ学ぶことがやはり留学の醍醐味であると思います。もし留学を少しでも迷われている方は一歩踏み出してみることをお勧めします。


経済学部4年 白根大地

留学をしてよかったと思うことは数多くありますが、まずは国を超えて多くの友人ができたことです。現地の学生だけでなく、世界中から UGA に集まる交換留学生と関わっていく中で多くの刺激をもらい、多くのことを学ぶことができました。様々な文化に触れ、自分の視野が大きく広がった感じがします。今でも多くの人と連絡を取り合っており、留学で築き上げた友人関係は一生大切にしていきたいと思っています。

また、実際にアメリカで長期間生活をする経験ができたという点も、留学をして本当に良かったと思える理由の一つです。住み慣れた場所を離れ、全くの新しい環境に身を置くことで経験できることはさまざまあり、日本では学べない多くのことを学びました。
アメリカでの生活では、忙しくも楽しい日々の連続でした。課題やディスカッションの準備に忙殺される中でそれでもイベントには積極的に参加し多くの学生との交流を深めていきました。そのような日々の中で得られたものはとても大きく、語学力やコミュニケーションといった面で大きく成長できたと思っています。やはり大切なのはコンフォートゾーンを抜け出す勇気をもって行動することであり、そうすることで新たな発見があり自分自身の成長につなげられると思います。

海外留学を実現するためには多くの困難があり、特に就職活動や単位に関することなどは分からないこともたくさんあると思います。そういった時には、九州大学もしくは留学先大学のアドバイザー、留学を経験した先輩にどんどん質問してください。留学の準備段階において、わからないことがあるのは当たり前のことです。そういった問題に対処していくことも海外留学の一部だと思います。先輩や留学課を大いに活用してください。
留学はハードルが高いように思われがちですが、語学や成績などの要件を一つ一つクリアしていくことで必ず実現できます。九州大学には充実した留学のプログラムがあり学び舎は世界中に広がっています。経済学部の学生の中には留学に行ってみたいという気持ちがある人は少なくはないと思います。その気持ちが少しでもあるならばぜひ積極的にチャレンジしてみてください。間違いなく大学生活、そして人生における貴重な財産になるはずです。

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