AALL: Japanese Transfer Course Information

Hokkaido International Foundation

Homestay Option: Yes
Maximum Language Credit: 0

Strong Points:

Numerous and engaging cultural activities, excellent support from coordinators and office staff, superb teachers, multiple educational techniques (video, newspaper, television shows), homestay included. (summer, 2007)
All the instructors and staff members are very helpful and flexible - willing to help with anything (summer, 2006)
Compared to the city life of Tokyo, Hakodate could be boring - but it is definitely nice to get away from the hot and humid summer of Japan. Plus, Hakodate has mountains and ocean, and lots of small and cute local attractions (It is small but still a city and not like Durham which claims to be urban but in reality is barren). Citizens are very friendly and easy to talk to. Especially during the festival, students should feel the charm of the small town community. There are not a lot of English speaking people in the town, which helps one practice Japanese more often. (summer, 2006)
Exotic, historical location. Outstanding teachers. Great host family (summer, 2004)
Excellent opportunities for experiencing Japan firsthand, both in everyday activities and cultural and language activities. Teachers are very engaging and accessible, and the mandatory Japanese rule encourages students to remain immersive even outside of class. Hakodate's environment is more of a small city culture and I think provides a more interesting and unique experience of learning in Japan than programs located in Tokyo. The class competition was also rather diverse; there were students aged from 16 to mid-30s from a variety of places both in the US and abroad. (summer, 2003)

Weak Points:

Not much teacher-student interaction outside classroom when some would have been very helpful, sometimes too many activities to the point of being overwhelming, instructors of culture classes would often speak in English to us or be unaware that we were learning Japanese at all until we informed them. (summer, 2007)
The quality of Japanese instruction from the class is very good, but did not have much of a workload. Of course one can learn a lot of Japanese from the class and the homestay experience, but the coursework is not that intense (However, the workload was appropriate if one were to not only learn Japanese but also explore Japan). I do not know how it would be the next year in HIF, but students were required to do a team project work about Japanese culture. However, the project work was not very well organized and basically a waste of time. Besides that, I don't have any other complaints about the program. (summer, 2006)
Students with little interest in historical sightseeing or are looking for cosmopolitan life would probably be disappointed by life in Hakodate. Facilities at HIF are old and limited. Travel between Hakodate and homestay may be time-consuming (but not expensive because HIF provides some subsidy). (summer, 2004)
The sheer quantity of excellent optional and required events can make it hard to not commit to everything, which can by the end of the program lead to burn-out or overload. Host family experiences can vary greatly based on students' and host families' personalities and expectations. Some of my friends loved the homestay, while others found it the most difficult part of their study abroad. (summer, 2004)