Exchange Experience at Keio Business School

Yokohama Japan

Winter Term, January – March 2011

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Agenda

Preparation

Exchange Experience at Keio Business School (KBS)

• KBS overview and facilities

• Academic

• Accommodation

Life in Japan

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Preparation

Timeline for important documents

Late September to early October

• Submit her/his CV and an application for a certificate of eligibility to KBS

• Student needs the certificate of eligibility (which will be issued by Japan’s Regional Immigration Bureau via Keio University as a proxy) for Japanese visa application

November to December

• Student should apply for Japanese visa (student visa) as soon as she/he receives the certificate of eligibility

• Student needs to register the courses and on-campus housing by around December

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Preparation (cont.)

StudentKeio

University

Regional Immigration

Bureau

Japan Visa Application

Center

IFill and submit CV and application for

certificate of eligibility

IVSend certificate of

eligibility to applicant

IIIIssue certificate of

eligibility

IIFile for certificate of

eligibility

VApply for student VISA

(certificate of eligibility required)

Approximately one month

Address: 15th Floor, Unit C, Silom Complex, Office Towers,191 Silom Road, Silom District B angrak Bangkok 10500 Tel: 66-2-632-1541Website: http://www.jp-vfsglobal-th.com/

✚ Cost for one-time entry student visa was THB 1,100 as of March 2011.

✚ Some airliners offer a discount for passengers who hold student visa.

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Exchange Experiences at KBS

KBS overview and facilities

Academic

Accommodation

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KBS: Overview

Keio University, founded by Yukichi Fukuzawa in 1858, is the first private university in Japan

KBS, the first business school in Japan and the first Japanese institute to receive AACSB certification, began to offer an MBA program in 1979

KBS Exchange Program (called International Program at KBS) for academic year 2010-2011 was scheduled in the winter term (January-March 2011)

✚ The founder’s picture appears on the JPY 10,000 banknote.

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KBS: Overview (cont.)

Located near Hiyoshi station approximately half way between Tokyo and Yokohama

Take 90 minutes by Narita Express train from Narita airport (98.8 km)

Closer to Haneda airport, take approximately 50 minutes by train (31.3 km)

Tokyo

Haneda Airport

Route Finder: www.hyperdia.com and www.jorudan.co.jp

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KBS: Overview (cont.)

KBS locates in Collaboration Complex at Keio University, Hiyoshi Campus

• One minute walk from Hiyoshi Station (Tokyu Toyoko Line or Yokohama Municipal Subway Green Line)

✚ Hiyoshi Campus is one of the five campuses of Keio University.

✚ Keio’s major campus is Mita Campus in Tokyo.

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KBS: School Facilities

3 classrooms and 1 lecture hall

13 study rooms with shared PCs

2 computer rooms

1 library

✚ Printing card can be purchased at the vending machine (JPY 5 per page)

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Academic

All courses, as of the winter term 2011, were taught by fulltime Japanese faculty and were based on the case method

Some external distinguished guest speakers were invited from time to time (e.g. CEO of ones of the largest firms in Japan, etc.)

For the courses taught in English, they were all designed to focus on Japanese business and firms

✚ There are five courses taught in English in winter term 2011

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Academic (cont.)

All courses were able to provide basic, and in some case thorough, understandings of Japanese economy, history, businesses, and cultures

Workloads were moderate (compared to what we had here at Sasin!)

There was no final examination but most courses required final presentations (in groups) and/or final reports (individual)

Evaluation is based on 10-point scale grading system: A+, A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, and D (= fail)

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Academic (cont.)

Although the courses were taught in English and were designed for exchange students, some still required student’s Japanese language skills (reading/presentation) in order to understand and achieve the course objectives

The faculty was very helpful and kind, minimal language barriers

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Accommodation: On-campus

KBS House and Shimoda Village

Takes 15-minute-walk from the school (with some uphill) to both places

Quiet and peaceful (in a residential and school area)

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KBS House

3 floors with 13 single rooms on 2nd and 3rd floor (no elevator available)

In-room facilities including single bed (but no pillow!), closet, TV, air conditioner, Internet connection (wired/wireless), refrigerator, electrical heater for cooking, bathtub

Shared facilities including dining area and kitchen, large-sized refrigerator, microwave oven, toaster, rice cooker, washing machines and dryers, irons, vacuum cleaners, living room, meeting rooms

Cost JPY 60,000 a month (JPY 2,000 a day), include utility costs, internet fee, gas and laundry

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KBS House (cont.)

✚ KBS policy, as of 2011, guarantees a room for an exchange student from each school.

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Life in Japan: Transportation

Ability to read Japanese (Hiragana and Katakana) will be very useful for survival

Major mode of transportation: On your two feet and by train

Useful information about Japanese rail system including the train schedule and ticket costs is available at

• http://www.hyperdia.com/cgi-english/hyperWeb.cgi and

• http://japonyol.net/editor/railway.html

• http://www.jorudan.co.jp/english/norikae/

On the day of arrival, those with large luggage are recommended to use Limousine Bus Service from Narita Airport (more convenient though a bit more expensive than by trains) to Yokohama before taking a train to Hiyoshi.

Or you can ship your luggage by local shipping company (such as ANA, Kuroneko etc.) to your premise and travel by train to Hiyoshi. It costs approximately JPY 1,500 and takes 2 days.

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Life in Japan: Foods & Other Expenses

Average cost of a dinner at a typical restaurant: JPY 1,000-5,000

Average cost of a meal at Keio’s cafeteria: JPY 400

Average cost of a meal of Japanese fast foods; e.g. gyudon (beef bowl), ramen, curry rice, etc. : JPY 350-1,200

McDonald’s Double Quarter Pounder® meal set: JPY 790

McDonald’s Burger Lunch set (11:00-13:00): JPY 490

A cup/bowl of instant noodle: JPY 110-400

A rice ball (onigiri) at a convenient store: JPY 105-150

Starbucks’ Hot Americano, tall size (12 Oz): JPY 350

A small bottle/can of drinking water/soft drink/tea: JPY 110-150

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Life in Japan: Foods & Other Expenses (cont.)

An all-night clubbing in Tokyo area: JPY 10,000 to unknown

A Hiyoshi-Shibuya (Tokyo) one-way trip train ticket: JPY 210

A normal-price movie ticket: JPY 1,800 (could be as low as JPY 1,000 for foreign students who show alien registration card)

A Tokyo-Hokkaido round-trip plane ticket: JPY 60,000 (about the same as Thai Airways’ Bangkok-Tokyo round-trip ticket with student-visa discount!, though it could possibly be a bit cheaper when making a reservation via travel agents)

Total expenses for the trip (90 days in Japan): Around JPY 700,000 (KBS Exchange 2010)

No data for 2011, the exchange student were just died to go home after earthquake!!

Expenses for necessities should be around JPY 70,000 to 100,000 per month

Most Japanese stores do not accept credit cards! Be sure that you have some cash with you before going out

Can withdraw cash from ATM in 7/11 stores (ask local bank for rate of charges)

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Life in Japan: Environment & Culture2

Average temperature in Yokohama and Tokyo during January-March is 0-15° Celsius, seldom snow

Students at KBS (mostly are Japanese with some from China, South Korea, Taiwan and France) are very nice, friendly, and helpful!

KBS students set up a student-run buddy system, all of them are very helpful

Nomikai (dinner with alcoholic drinking) is inevitable! Friendship (and businesses for Japanese) starts from there…So be prepared!

Second-nomikai is also very common, happen right after the first one ended

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Life in Japan: Traveling

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Life in Japan: Traveling (cont.)