BUYING A PLANE TICKET
Buying a plane ticket to Japan was very stressful, because I was not sure when my Certificate of Eligibility (COE) would arrive, which is the document I needed from Keio University to apply for my student visa to Japan. Before the COE arrived, I decided that I would go to Japan at least a week early to explore around Tokyo and get acclimated to life there. For this reason, once I was able to register my dorm move-in date for Friday, March 22nd, I decided to book a flight that would arrive in Japan on March 13th (Japan Time), so I would have 9 days to myself in Japan. However, actually making my flight to Japan would depend on when my COE arrived. Since the arrival of my COE, which my visa application depended on, was up in the air, I ended up booking a one-way flight to Japan in early February. By this time, the prices for flights had already gone up. I managed to book a one-way flight for about $465, fees included, but if I had booked three months before, I could have gotten a flight for about $300. The bottom line is have faith that the COE will arrive around February and take comfort in knowing that the Consulate-General of Japan Honolulu is very efficient and really will issue your visa within one week upon receiving your application. Just book early. OBTAINING A VISA As previously mentioned, applying for a student visa in Japan was another worry. For normal travel to Japan, American passport holders can travel to Japan without a visa for up to 90 days. Also, if you have a Japanese passport, then you do not need to apply for a visa. The process of obtaining a visa was relatively easy.
A couple things to note**
My Visa
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From the time I was in high school, I knew that I was going to study abroad in Japan. The array of study abroad options was a large motivating factor in selecting UH Manoa for college. Once I began attending UH as a Freshman, I quickly realized that UH Manoa had so many different programs and opportunities to go abroad that it was difficult to wrap my head around. However, after three years of research on the study abroad programs at Manoa, here is what I wish I had known as a Freshman:
STUDY ABROAD CENTER VS. MANOA INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE (MIX) There are two main study abroad offices at UH Manoa, the Study Abroad Center (SAC) and the Manoa International Exchange (MIX) which offer different kinds of programs. Here are some of the major differences between MIX and SAC that influenced my decision: WHERE YOU CAN STUDY
MY DECISION I chose to study abroad with MIX, for a few different reasons. The first reason is that I wanted the chance to apply for some of the more well known schools in Japan, such as Keio, Waseda, and Hitotsubashi. Keio University was my top choice because it had Finance and Information Technology Management classes that I wanted to take. Also, the idea of travelling alone abroad actually appealed to me, because I want more opportunities to practice my Japanese, rather than always being in a group of English speakers. Also, paying UH Manoa tuition was also a positive for me, since I have in-state tuition, which is fairly reasonable compared to other universities in the U.S. FINAL THOUGHTS Choosing to study abroad with MIX definitely takes a little more independence than with SAC, since you have to apply for your own visa and go abroad virtually by yourself. Although I personally chose MIX, I am really grateful that UH Manoa has such different study abroad options that can accomodate many different types of students and their needs. |
shelby
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