Life, School and Dreams: A Year Later
Ha ha, I can’t believe I actually only update this thing like once per year, but I suppose it is better than never. Truth be told, life has not been the most eventful since I last wrote. Right now it is reading break and I am now in my final term at UBC. I can’t believe it; I first created by LJ about 5 years ago, as a means of keeping track of the years I knew would change my life. Back then; I couldn’t even fathom being here five years later and ready to graduate. But here I am, now finished all my midterms with pretty good grades and now preparing to graduate.
Since I have a week off, I have been preparing to leave UBC. I went in to the Asian Studies center this week to get a graduation check. This is not the first time I have went in to get a grad check since I have ran into a small problem with graduation ever since I went on exchange to Japan for a year. The problem is as follows; I need 120 credits to graduate of which no more than 60 credits can be from the same department. I have about 74 credits in the Asian Studies department and about 60 in other departments (more than enough to graduate); however, the Asian Studies department wants to use some of my non Asian Studies credits for my graduation and the Art Department is saying that doing so would convert some of my 60 non Asian Studies credits into Asian Studies credits. If that is the case, I can’t graduate since that would mean that I have less than 60 credits outside of the Asian Studies department. I think this is ridiculous and the head of the Asian Studies department agrees. Fortunately, the head of the department is also the teacher of one of the classes I am doing well in and he is a world-class prof that I don’t think the University wants to clash heads with. Am I ever glad to have his support since his word is rightfully taken quite seriously at UBC. Other than that one issue, I should be good to graduate in April and as a result am off to get my graduations photos this Sunday. Perhaps I’ll post them in my LJ once I get them back.
Also in preparation for graduation, I went to Winnipeg last week to get an interview for the JET Programme, a programme through the Japanese government that sends international graduates on a work internship within the Japanese government or school system. The interview was quite harsh since I had to plead my case as to why I should be selected for this program to a panel of three members; a JET Programme alumni, an Asian studies professor, and a representative from the Japanese Counselor General’s Office. I think I did quite well in the interview, particularly with the Asian Studies professor who I am sure I reassured that I am quite familiar with especially East Asian Politics, and the Government Official who seemed to be more concerned with the fact that I went to Keio University and integrated myself into society as best as I could while in Japan. If I get accepted into the programme, I will be sent to Japan for as many as five years. I am not sure if I would want to stay that long, but I would more than welcome at least a few years to completely master Japanese, especially since I have been loosing my language skills the past two years through infrequent use (particularly Kanji). If asked weather or not I want to stay in Japan for a full five years when I fist started University, I would have said yes, but now, I am not so sure. Although I love travel and language, I do want to have a family and steady income some day and Japan has never been the place I had planned to establish myself for the long term. I’ll have to see…
As for classes this term, I am just taking whatever I need to finish up my degree. I am taking my last few credits to get a TESOL certification along with my degree so that I am certified to teach English should I want to do that to earn an income while traveling or while on the JET Programme. I also have a practicum (in class teaching) that I have to do every week as a part of my certification that is proving to be difficult to say the least as I am left every Friday with a class of generally unmotivated and uninterested Japanese university students who need to learn research strategies. I try to be funny and get the students to not look so bored with the class, but that can be difficult when you have to teach stuff like APA citation methods for almost three hours. I am also taking a lot of political science classes dealing with regions of Asia that I have not previously studied before like south Asia and ancient Korea. I also of course took a lot of Japanese political science courses this term, the most interesting being Modern Politics with Yves Tibergien, a brilliant and highly experienced teacher who has spent an extensive amount of time in the Japanese insider political world. I am also, as previously stated, taking a class with the head of the Asian Studies department, Peter Nosco. The class is Japanese religious history and the person teaching it is not the head of the department for no reason; he knows his stuff and is a well-respected world leader in his field as a result. I have to be careful in professor Nosco’s class though, he has no tolerance for foolishness but great esteem to those who respect his class.
As for life in general, not much has been happening there. I still haven’t made the same kinds of solid friendships this year as I have in the past three years, but that is likely due to the fact that I have been excessively busy with my studies lately. Being in my fourth year of University, I am now fully used to going to the library all day to do research and generally managing my time. I suppose my best friends if I had to say are my roommates Cameron (The Strange) and Shamyle (The Bathroom Seal) with whom I occasionally share dinner. I am now the treasurers of the film society and as a result spend many hours each week filling out paperwork to pay the bill. I also volunteer as an International Peer Advisor at international house at UBC. There, I basically help international students with study permits, work visas, student services, medical insurance and Canadian life. I really like it there and as an added bonus, work with a team of only beautiful women -grin-. I also work for Safewalk, a programme where I walk people to their homes on Campus at night, and for the AMS on rare occasions to help with nighttime security and technical setups.
Well, that is my past year in a nutshell I suppose. Looking towards the future, I anxiously await my graduation day in April and hope to soon find out weather or not I will be off to Japan in August for the JET Programme. Just as when I first wrote this journal, I anticipate great changes in my life in the coming months and even I can’t possibly fathom what the future holds for me, but nonetheless I look forward to the future with great excitement.
Since I have a week off, I have been preparing to leave UBC. I went in to the Asian Studies center this week to get a graduation check. This is not the first time I have went in to get a grad check since I have ran into a small problem with graduation ever since I went on exchange to Japan for a year. The problem is as follows; I need 120 credits to graduate of which no more than 60 credits can be from the same department. I have about 74 credits in the Asian Studies department and about 60 in other departments (more than enough to graduate); however, the Asian Studies department wants to use some of my non Asian Studies credits for my graduation and the Art Department is saying that doing so would convert some of my 60 non Asian Studies credits into Asian Studies credits. If that is the case, I can’t graduate since that would mean that I have less than 60 credits outside of the Asian Studies department. I think this is ridiculous and the head of the Asian Studies department agrees. Fortunately, the head of the department is also the teacher of one of the classes I am doing well in and he is a world-class prof that I don’t think the University wants to clash heads with. Am I ever glad to have his support since his word is rightfully taken quite seriously at UBC. Other than that one issue, I should be good to graduate in April and as a result am off to get my graduations photos this Sunday. Perhaps I’ll post them in my LJ once I get them back.
Also in preparation for graduation, I went to Winnipeg last week to get an interview for the JET Programme, a programme through the Japanese government that sends international graduates on a work internship within the Japanese government or school system. The interview was quite harsh since I had to plead my case as to why I should be selected for this program to a panel of three members; a JET Programme alumni, an Asian studies professor, and a representative from the Japanese Counselor General’s Office. I think I did quite well in the interview, particularly with the Asian Studies professor who I am sure I reassured that I am quite familiar with especially East Asian Politics, and the Government Official who seemed to be more concerned with the fact that I went to Keio University and integrated myself into society as best as I could while in Japan. If I get accepted into the programme, I will be sent to Japan for as many as five years. I am not sure if I would want to stay that long, but I would more than welcome at least a few years to completely master Japanese, especially since I have been loosing my language skills the past two years through infrequent use (particularly Kanji). If asked weather or not I want to stay in Japan for a full five years when I fist started University, I would have said yes, but now, I am not so sure. Although I love travel and language, I do want to have a family and steady income some day and Japan has never been the place I had planned to establish myself for the long term. I’ll have to see…
As for classes this term, I am just taking whatever I need to finish up my degree. I am taking my last few credits to get a TESOL certification along with my degree so that I am certified to teach English should I want to do that to earn an income while traveling or while on the JET Programme. I also have a practicum (in class teaching) that I have to do every week as a part of my certification that is proving to be difficult to say the least as I am left every Friday with a class of generally unmotivated and uninterested Japanese university students who need to learn research strategies. I try to be funny and get the students to not look so bored with the class, but that can be difficult when you have to teach stuff like APA citation methods for almost three hours. I am also taking a lot of political science classes dealing with regions of Asia that I have not previously studied before like south Asia and ancient Korea. I also of course took a lot of Japanese political science courses this term, the most interesting being Modern Politics with Yves Tibergien, a brilliant and highly experienced teacher who has spent an extensive amount of time in the Japanese insider political world. I am also, as previously stated, taking a class with the head of the Asian Studies department, Peter Nosco. The class is Japanese religious history and the person teaching it is not the head of the department for no reason; he knows his stuff and is a well-respected world leader in his field as a result. I have to be careful in professor Nosco’s class though, he has no tolerance for foolishness but great esteem to those who respect his class.
As for life in general, not much has been happening there. I still haven’t made the same kinds of solid friendships this year as I have in the past three years, but that is likely due to the fact that I have been excessively busy with my studies lately. Being in my fourth year of University, I am now fully used to going to the library all day to do research and generally managing my time. I suppose my best friends if I had to say are my roommates Cameron (The Strange) and Shamyle (The Bathroom Seal) with whom I occasionally share dinner. I am now the treasurers of the film society and as a result spend many hours each week filling out paperwork to pay the bill. I also volunteer as an International Peer Advisor at international house at UBC. There, I basically help international students with study permits, work visas, student services, medical insurance and Canadian life. I really like it there and as an added bonus, work with a team of only beautiful women -grin-. I also work for Safewalk, a programme where I walk people to their homes on Campus at night, and for the AMS on rare occasions to help with nighttime security and technical setups.
Well, that is my past year in a nutshell I suppose. Looking towards the future, I anxiously await my graduation day in April and hope to soon find out weather or not I will be off to Japan in August for the JET Programme. Just as when I first wrote this journal, I anticipate great changes in my life in the coming months and even I can’t possibly fathom what the future holds for me, but nonetheless I look forward to the future with great excitement.