STUDENT REPORT – Rikkyo University, Japan
Name of the University:
Names of the students:
Exchange semester:
Rikkyo University
Jon Øyvind Johnsen
Spring, 2009
I GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Describe the school and its surroundings – very short
Rikkyo Uni. main campus is located in Ikebukero, Tokyo; 7-10 min walk from the train
station. Ikebukero train station is the second busiest station in Tokyo. The other campus,
Niza Campus, is a 20-25 min train ride from Ikebukero and is located in Shiki, Saitama. 5
min from the RUID dormitory.

Current faculty divisions and special areas.
I was enrolled under the College of Business (CoB) division. But the school also has law,
sociology, culture and traveling divisions.

Number of students - graduate and undergraduate – number of exchange students
Approximately 12.000 students. Among the Japanese students, Rikkyo Uni. is considered
to be a “small” school compared to the other Tokyo Universities.

Study structure
There are mandatory attendance in all courses and is also a part of the final evaluation.
You will also be evaluated by mid-term exams, tests, hand-ins, presentations, essays and
final exams and in-class participation as well.
The structure is very similar to high school in Norway.
II PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Information before you
 When did you receive the information package from the University?
 Any difficulties?
I received my package approx. 2 months before semester starts.
Visa Procedure and travel experiences
 What problems, if any did you encounter?
 Does the visa cost anything?
 How did you order your ticket – any problems?
Everything is explained more thorough in the papers, but you need a certificate from
Rikkyo to get a Visa. The school will send it with the papers.
At the embassy, they say it takes about 2 weeks to get the Visa (but it’s usually fast), and
it costs around 100-150kr to get it.
I customized my ticket trough Kilroy travels.
Academic Calendar
 Arrival date – introductory week
 First day of the semester?
 Last day of classes?
 Examination period?

Any special events?
Arrival: 1st of April.
Orientation: 6th-10th of April
First day: 14th of April
But the first “real” week is for everybody to decide which courses you will take. So it’s an
opportunity to check different courses etc.
Last day of classes: 17th of August but my last assignment due was 24th of August.
The examination period went over the last 2 weeks of the semester.
Reception
 How was the reception at the school?
 Was the administration and faculty well prepared for your arrival?
 Did the school’s students participate in the reception of the exchange students?
The reception at school was really good. You go trough a lot of information meetings and
they set you up with a “buddy” to help you around. There is also this student organization,
IFL, which takes care of all the international students.
You get the option to be accommodated to the dorm by a volunteer from school. This is
done by members of IFL.
Administration and faculty members were well prepared, and everything went smoothly.
Housing
 Did you have housing at your disposal or did you have to find your own housing?
 What support did you receive from the school in locating housing?
 Any special issues or good ideas for prospective students?
There are 2 dormitories that Rikkyo offers to students, J-dream and RUID. I lived at the
Ruid dormitory. 20 min with train to Ikebukero.
Costs
 Describe the most important expenses such as rent, books, food, etc.
Rent: 50.000 yen/month
Utility bills: 25-30.000 yen/month
Commuter Pass (månedskort til tog): 30.000 yen for 3 months
Food and drinks are relatively cheaper than Norway. It’s very easy to find food that suits
your budget. Sushi and meat are usually the most expensive kind of food.
The International Office
 Is there an international office?
 Who is responsible for incoming exchange students?
 How does the international office function?
 Do you receive all relevant information?
Center of International students – CIS takes care of the student’s practical needs. Like
health insurance etc. While COB takes care of the academically needs of the student’s.
Each affiliation have their own information meetings with both affiliations present.
Social Activities

How is the relationship among the exchange students?
The relationship among the exchange students were very good. Since I came to the fall
semester there were still exchange students that takes a year in Japan left. So they were
really helpful with tips and opinions about the lifestyle etc.
All the other exchange students bonded really easy.

Is there a student organization, and if so, are the exchange students part of it?
There are all kind of student organizations, from sports to dance and music to social
organizations to manga clubs. There are two kinds of types, circles and clubs. In clubs
they expect you dedicate the time required and most of them are connected with the
school. They also require a certain level of speaking and understanding Japanese. While
circles are more social organizations, where you can participate whenever you feel like it,
There is one organization that you get to be a member of right away, IFL, which stands
for International friendly lunch. But they arrange trips, outdoor activities, drinking parties
etc. The members are also really helpful with daily life problems.
This organization is sponsored by the school to help exchange students fit in the
Japanese daily life routines.

Are there any special activities and gatherings for exchange students?
There are activities going on all the time from the various student organizations, but the
school also have some gatherings for the exchange students.

How do you like it at the school?
I liked it at school very much.
Culture and Language
 Do you have any language problems with the faculty or other students?
 How are the possibilities to experience the country and the culture?
The English skill varies a lot from student to student. It goes mostly in Japanese, so in the
beginning I struggled with the communication. The faculty members there were no
problems. I didn’t know any Japanese before I went; I recommend to at least knowing a
little before going. It will make communication a lot easier.
Cultural and Social Effects from the Exchange Experience
 How do you think the exchange experience will affect you from a cultural and social point
of view?
 How do you think the exchange experience influences your future career possibilities?
You get to connect with so many new people that broaden your point of view. There are
so many different cultures among the exchange students and the Japanese people. This
experience teaches you a lot about other people and their cultures. This has been very
interesting and very useful.
I think this will have a positive effect on my future career possibilities. You get to learn
something different, new methods and different approaches. In general you will have a
bigger understanding of what is going on in the world. You create contacts at school that
can help you later in life and you get to know different languages.
The exchange semester will help you to differentiate yourself and get knowledge that not
everyone else has.
III ACADEMIC INFORMATION
The Teaching situation
 In which language are the courses taught? Any problems?
The business courses where taught in English by both native speaking English professors
and Japanese professors.
The Japanese course where taught by Japanese professors.
There where no problems at all.

How would you evaluate the level of study in relationship to the level at BI?
They go trough the curriculum at a much slower pace. And there is not as much content
as in BI. Also, Japan is behind one year compared to Norway. So second year over there
is equivalent to first year over here. But, that doesn’t mean that every courses are just
repetition.

Is the teaching primarily practical or theoretical?
The teaching is primarily theoretical. But many of the courses have presentations as a
requirement, my opinion is that this was very good and useful. The classes are also a lot
smaller that at BI and panel debates and discussions in class is a lot more common.

Are the professors using cases, group work or lectures (or a mix)?
All the professors I had used a mix of the above.

How is the workload compared to that at BI?
There are more mid-term exams, presentations and tests than there is at BI. Therefore,
you have to do more work throughout the whole semester. You will be evaluated by more
than just the final exam. Not as much reading as in BI. But in total the same but also
different.

How is the relationship between faculty and students?
Good relationship. It is a good tone and the faculty is easy to talk to and will help you if
you have questions. You usually are on name terms with each other.

What is the relationship between the students in the classroom?
This is really good. In most classes they force you upon the others to get to know each
other. And since there is some groupwork in all the courses this makes it easy to come in
contact with people.
Required Literature
 Is the literature in English?
 How do you estimate the level of the literature?
 Is the literature used for detailed knowledge or a broad overview?
 Is exam based on the literature or on the lectures?
The literature is in English. It is usually good and interesting literature. The professors have
the responsibility for the courses they teach and pick the literature themselves. They pick the
most relevant chapters from the books they think are best.
But in most of my courses I didn’t need literature. Because you usually got handouts etc. But
the exams were usually a mix of both probably.
Exams
 What types of exams were you given?
Written exams, multiple-choice and take-home exams.

What knowledge level was required to pass the exams?
You need a D to pass the exam.
Other
 Do students have easy access to the library and it’s resources?
Yes, you get a student card to easily enter the different libraries and a username to log
into the computers.

How is the access to the computers?
It’s very easy. There are several computer rooms, several computers stationed around
school and one mac-room.

How is IT used in the teaching or as a distributor of information?
Some of the teachers do not use IT at all. Others use it in every class.
The CIS send you some information per mail.
You also get a mailbox at campus where you get some information.
Description of Courses
Course name:
Prereq.
Exam
Japanese 0
Global Strategic Management
Int. Communication A
Corporate Finance
Cultural Exchange
Sports Business seminar
Quantitative Methods for Finance
None
None
None
Yes
None
none
basic math
Presentation
Home exam
Home exam
Home exam
None
Home exam
written
Comments
 Japanese 0:
There are levels depending on your skill. There is conducted a test in the beginning of the
semester to see what fits you. There are levels from 0-7. Plus 1s, which is level 1+. In
Japanese courses over 0 you have 3 written exams. But in J0 you have only a presentation at
the end of the semester. You are basically evaluated by attendance and in class participation.

Global Strategic Management:
There where 2 multiple choice quizzes, some hand-ins, case presentation and a report at the
end. You could only miss class 3 times during the semester. Academically, I think this was
one of the weaker courses. So my suggestion will be to take the course above or both
simultaneously.

Int. Comm A
Almost the same curriculum as in BI, but more focused on differences with Japan.
 Corporate Finance:
Easily the best course that I attended. Goes trough a lot of the same as in Finansiell styring.
But not as much comprehensive tough. 4 small quizzes, case assignment and a take home
exam.

Cultural exchange:
Homework every week and a presentation at the end of semester. Really good class to
exchange
cultures
with
others.
Get
to
know
many
in
your
class.

Sports Business seminar:
Really interesting course. But an introduction course to next semesters course which reflects
that. Case presentation and report. Same professor as corporate finance.

Quantitative Methods for Finance:
This was a nice repetition course. But not a very useful one. Four tests during the semester.
Covered topics such as sums, derivation and integrals.
Names and e-mails:
Jon Øyvind Johnsen
jonvindjohnsen@gmail.com