海外留学中の学生
30分ほどのお話の中で、「楽しい」という言葉がなんと5、6回も出ました！
終始笑顔で、台湾での留学生活や学部ゼミでの勉強について、「楽しく」語ってくれました。
今回、仕事で台湾を訪れる機会があり、せっかくなので現地にいる本学の学生たちと会うことにしました。その中でお話ししたのが、まさにこの学生です。
入学前から英語を勉強し、中国語を第二外国語に選び、興味を持ったテーマのゼミで楽しく討論。そのテーマをより深く、広く学ぶために留学を決意したそうです。留学先では現地の文化をより理解するために、社会人や学生を含む30人ほどの、ほとんどが台湾出身のシェアハウスを選びました。4人部屋で、国籍も生活リズムもまったく違うルームメートと調整しながら生活を整えていったそうです。それでも「楽しい」とおっしゃっていました。
就職活動の不安が全くないわけではないけれど、目の前の生活や学びが楽しくてたまらない。勉強などで大変なこともあるけれど、前向きに、異国での生活にしっかりと溶け込んでいます。
今回のスケジュールでは、台湾に留学中のもう一人の本学学生と、一人の卒業生には残念ながら会えませんでした。学生の方は郊外研修中で、大学院生の方はちょうど日本に一時帰国していたためです。きっとお二人とも異国の地で自分なりに挑戦し、大変さを乗り越えながら良い刺激を受け、充実した留学生活を送りつつ将来への一歩を踏み出していることでしょう。
本学にはこのような学生や卒業生がいることを改めて誇りに思い、心から応援したくなりました。みなさんの今後の活躍が本当に楽しみです。
Students Studying Abroad
In just thirty minutes of conversation, I heard the word “fun” five or six times!
With a bright smile, this student spoke about her life studying abroad in Taiwan and about her experiences in her undergraduate seminar — everything sounded truly fun.
I happened to be in Taiwan on a business trip, and I thought it would be a great opportunity to meet some of our students there. This was one of the students I was able to catch up with.
Before entering university, she had already been studying English and chose Chinese as her second foreign language. She enjoyed discussions in her seminar on a topic that interested her deeply, and decided to study abroad to explore that theme more broadly and in greater depth.
To better understand the local culture, she chose to live in a share house of about 30 residents — both students and working adults — most of them from Taiwan. She shared a four-person room with roommates of different nationalities and completely different lifestyles, adjusting to each other little by little as she settled in.
And yet, she said with a smile, “It’s really fun.”
Of course, she admitted that she does have some worries about job hunting in the future, but she’s staying focused on enjoying her daily life and studies to the fullest. Though there are challenges in her coursework and daily life, she faces them with a positive attitude and has truly settled into life abroad.
During this trip, I unfortunately wasn’t able to meet two others — another current student studying in Taiwan and one alumnus who is now in graduate school there — as one was away for fieldwork and the other happened to be back in Japan at the time. I’m sure both of them are also challenging themselves in their own ways, learning from difficulties, gaining valuable experiences, and taking meaningful steps toward their future.
I’m truly proud that we have such students and alumni, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for them.
