Hello! My name is Takeru Saito, and I am a third-year student of the Department of Regional Studies and Humanities, Faculty of Education and Human Studies, studying at the Memorial University of Newfoundland in Canada. Today, I would like to introduce my study abroad experience.
 
I have been studying abroad for about a year, and I have been taking classes at the two campuses of Memorial University. During the winter semester after my arrival, I took classes at the Grenfell campus in Corner Brook, a town in western Newfoundland. During this time, I mainly took ESL classes, but I was also able to take an undergraduate psychology class, which was an extremely valuable experience for me because I was able to see what an undergraduate class was like early on. The Grenfell campus is a very small campus. However, I have the impression that this allows the students and teachers to be close to each other and to study in a homey environment. During the semester, there were many events and it was not difficult to make friends.
 
For the spring and summer semesters, I moved to the St. John’s campus in St. John’s, the largest town in Newfoundland. During these semesters, I mainly took classes in linguistics and literature. The St. John’s campus, the main campus, is large and has a variety of facilities. Students can use the athletic facilities free of charge and can exercise in the gym or swimming pool in between classes.
 
In the fall semester, the campus is overflowing with people as new students enter the university. For classes, I mainly took literature and linguistics. The literature class was very hard because we had to read various kinds of books, post our opinions online for discussion, and write an essay. However, after taking the class over and over became part of my routine for many weeks, my reading speed naturally increased and I was able to keep up with the class. In the fall semester, I joined the university’s swimming team and participated in several competitions. There were times when it was physically demanding to have practice in addition to my undergraduate classes, but in the end, I got used to it and was able to manage both.
 
Through about a year of study abroad, I had various experiences such as moving campuses and participating in club activities. In addition to studying English, I think I was able to learn different ways of thinking and grow as a person through communication with many people during this year. I will not forget this experience and will continue to focus on my studies after returning to Japan.

Click here for the study abroad experience reports of the Akita University ‘Miraisozo Fund’ overseas student study support program.