Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University (APU for short) has been operating an online teaching style since May 2020. For more than a year, all of its students must make sure they have an electronic device and an acceptable WIFI so that they are able to connect to class. Now APU is going through its fourth semester in which majority of its courses are still held online. Now you might wonder, why is APU still operating its classes online when a lot of other universities across the world has reopened. Well, the easy answer is to protect its students and faculty from the potential harm of the virus. In addition, the university would like for majority of its students and faculty members to be fully vaccinated before everyone can return to campus. The spread of the virus is still affecting Japan, however, recently the numbers of cases has slowly been decreasing so we are hoping every day that APU may fully reopen next semester in Spring 2022.
COVID19 affected the world pretty hard. Especially for us students, or us that are looking forward to applying to university. The dream and excitement of going to university is slowly disappearing. We associate university with learning, but also a place where we will meet new people and make lots of new friends. APU is an international university set in Japan, meaning many people who apply to the university wishes to live in Japan and make friends from all across the world. Nonetheless, that has not been easy for its students. The students that attended APU before Japan was closed, dream of returning to campus as soon as possible. There are many reasons for why they would like to return, either it being able to see friends again, or simply miss having a routine that encourages them to wake up in the morning to attend class at the beautiful campus. There are few classes offered on-campus, however it is a system in which things are still operated online, meaning students have to bring their electronic devices and headphones when going to campus so they can operate online. The only difference from taking it at home is that you get energy from going outside, but also get to interact with people. It might not seem as much, but it will definitely have a positive effect on your physical and mental health.
However, the biggest issue of being an international university, is the lack of students being in Japan. The Japanese government is quite strict on who they can allow to enter the country. There have been some periods in which the country opened for new visa applications. But applying in these periods does not mean someone is guaranteed to get their visa approved. Therefore, many students who have applied to universities abroad, are not receiving the education and experience they were hoping for. Majority of APU’s international first year students are still in their home country. They are able to connect online and attend mandatory first year classes that are aimed at teaching them Japanese and make new friends, however online teaching comes with multiple disadvantages.
Learning a language when you are not in the country is not easy. Of course, living in a country where you are allowed to be totally surrounded and forced to use the language is a great opportunity to further improve. Nonetheless, this has not been easy for students that have taken mandatory Japanese classes through APU. They are stuck in their home country, not being able to make many Japanese friends and use the language. The best way to learn a language is to always use it. We therefore recommend if you happen to be a student that is in your home country, but you are currently “studying abroad”, then you should definitely join a circle or an organization that helps you improve in that language. At APU there are several circles and organizations that are a great opportunity for students to learn Japanese by befriending Japanese members, but also a great place to make friends. At APU we have circles and organizations that is related to sports, arts, learning and many more. Any interest you might have, APU definitely got you covered.
Furthermore, by taking online classes, it is difficult to make friends. However, we do always encourage you, if possible, to always have your camera on and try to speak every time you are put in a breakout room with someone. It is a great opportunity to introduce yourself, but also at least try to make friends. Another advice is to try and make a study group with each other on any form of social media. This way it is easier to contact each other at any time regarding class content, but also a possibility to just hang out virtually by either watching a movie together or play games. It is definitely tough to learn and do new things when everything is mostly focused on virtuality. But we at APU definitely encourage you to try your best and we know you will be able to succeed. Hopefully, Japan will reopen soon so that we at APU and many other international universities are able to greet our students and let them finally experience what they have been dreaming for so long.
If you want some more motivation, we recommend you try reading our last blog post that focused on “The Evolution of Distance Learning in APU”. In addition, we who are behind this blog are currently attending APU as students. We have experienced APU before the pandemic and are currently taking majority of our classes online, so if you have any questions or seeking advice, then please do not hesitate to contact us on our Instagram account (link below).
Instagram account: https://www.instagram.com/apu.leaf/
Presented by APU LEAF
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