has anyone here gotten into Toudai as an exchange student?
 

Hey guys, my name is Lisa and I'm new here.

I have always wanted to go on an exchange program to Japan, and fortunately my home school offers a great list of Japanese universities to choose from.

One of them is Toudai, perhaps the most reputable Japanese university out there. Does anyone know exactly how hard is it to get into the AIKOM program?
40 students from 25 schools, that means only 1 or 2 students from each school.. that just sounds very challenging.
What kind of quality do they look for from an applicant? grades? intention? life skills?

A little background about me:

I'm Chinese but lived in Canada since 11. Currently studying at UofT.

I'm going to be in year 3 this Sept (so I'm planning to do the exchange on my 4th year), doing a Specialist in Management (BBA). My grades aren't exactly exceptional (my biggest concern here).. by the time I apply it should be around 3.0 out of 4.0 GPA.

But extra-curricular wise I'm pretty solid (I'm the president of the biggest Chinese club on campus, and unlike most student clubs who don't do much, we actually do A LOT).

I'm studying Beginner level Japanese in summer school, and plan to keep taking it in Sept as well. By the end of 2010 I plan to do the JLPT 3.

Never officially lived away from home before, but living alone shouldn't be a problem, since I've been away from home long enough and frequently enough to prove I can survive on my own.

Pesonality-wise, I'm the kind of person who knows everyone and always take care of others. I like to talk to others, since everyone has got something I can learn from. Overall I'm pretty open-minded and outgoing and love to explore exciting new things.


Anyone who knows anything about exchange programs and Toudai please help me out! Have I got a chance?

I don't have any personal experience with Tokyo U. but considering their exchange program also likely includes applicants from Oxford U. Cambridge U., Harvard and Yale, you're going to be facing some very stiff competition for a place there.

It's reputedly much much harder to exchange there than other top universities like Waseda, so with all due respect, consider your backups carefully in case it doesn't work out. Studying -somewhere- in Japan is better than nowhere. Unfortunately, not having top grades might well be the critera that tips the balance out of your favour.

Anyway, it sounds like you can back up your grades with other things. Use your experience as society president to demonstrate a serious interest in international relationships- really set out a serious 'intent of purpose'; why you want to study in Japan, what you intend to take on from the experience to your further career and studies, why japan and Todai are specifically important to this. A simple "I really love Japan" or 'Todai's the best!" probably isn't going to be enough here, which i'm sure you already appreciate.

Demonstrate what you can contribute to the program. Might be worth brushing up on modern Japanese diplomatic relations. Is there anything in Tokyo like San. Fran.s (?) Japan day, where they have an event to celebrate the anniversary of the Tokugawa delegation? Does Todai have a Chinese society? Or a Canada society?

Prove that even though you don't have a 4.0 average, you are a committed and good student. I didn't get a JASSO because I was top of my class; I got it because I was there at every single lesson, i gave thoughtful contributions in class and I faithfully did my homework on time. Get your teachers on your side and set yourself deadlines for the application. If they're aware your goal is Todai and you're really serious about it, they might help swing things in your favor. Or give you a chance to get extra credit.

Anyway, good luck. I hope someone else can give you more detailed information! Haven't you got any sempai who went on the same exchange? Maybe ask your teachers or the head of the exchange program and see if they'll put you in touch with such students.

Surprisingly those schools you listed are not in their partner institutions list:
-AIKOM- ONE YEAR STUDENT EXCHANGE PROGRAM

At my school we are only allowed to apply to 2 universities each year. So that leaves me with only 1 backup...

Good point about getting the teacher on my side! I'll talk to her today ^^
and ya.. I've been trying to "stalk" some sempai on facebook lol

--- edit ---

I've spoken with my Japanese teacher about the exchange program today.
She said the trick with getting a spot is to chose your school based on your GPA...
From what she said, it seems GPA is the only thing that really matters.
I guess that leaves Toudai out of the question for me...
But I'm not gonna give up yet. I'll try to contact the person in charge of the exchange program and see what she says.

Oh, my mistake. I didn't look up the particulars, but I do know someone at Oxford U who exchanged there. I guess it was on a different program then.

To be honest, Academic excellence and a real interest in foreign exchange is the most important thing for these types of universities, especially programs like AIKOM, where most of their courses are more cultural based. So for those that want to continue with the degree they're doing back home, will have to do a lot of independent study.

Unless you're fluent enough in Japanese or want to just have a sort of gap year while studying Japanese Culture, I wouldn't recommend most exchange programs in Japan. All the best ranked universities require Self Study where there is a lack of English lessons. So if you want to graduate straight from the exchange programme, either find a university that definitely has your course in English or prepare to spend most of your time in the library.

Oxford, Cambdrige, Harvard and Yale might not be there, but you have Fudan, Pekin U, Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris, Grenoble and Cairo which are pretty much on par!

I just want a "gap year" since my program is very small in terms of population, only offer each class once every year, and has very particular requirements to graduate. There is no way I can finish my degree in Japan with my level of Japanese. =\

One more thing. Since Toudai has a sort of "political" background ... or rather, a lot of people in politics have ties to Toudai, would it be beneficial to integrate some political elements into my purpose of interest?