August 8, 2024
On July 25, Keio University held a debriefing for the Keio Affiliated Schools Study Abroad Program in the 2023 academic year at the East Hall on Mita Campus. This program was established in 2013 as a Keio University Education Leadership Project. Students are selected from among Keio University's affiliated schools in Japan to study abroad for an academic year at a prestigious boarding school in the United States or the United Kingdom. The Keio University Ishii-Ishibashi Fund sponsors the tuition and other expenses of the students studying abroad in the form of a scholarship.
The debriefing session began with opening remarks by Vice-President Keita Yamauchi. Next, eight scholarship awardees gave presentations in front of their families, teachers of affiliated schools, and the next batch of students due to depart this fall in the 2024 academic year.
Each of the eight students spoke confidently of their experience, sharing that while they were initially bewildered by the culture shock and the vastly different environment, they made irreplaceable friends from all over the world in their dormitory life and grew stronger. In addition, from their presentations, it was evident that they had actively immersed themselves in their student life abroad―receiving awards for outstanding academic grades, leading and organizing their juniors, being exposed to languages, sports and other activities they had never tried before in Japan, and planning programs to introduce and showcase Japanese culture to their peers.
The study abroad students for the 2023 academic year were as follows:
Senior high school second-year program (United Kingdom)
Shrewsbury School: One student from Keio Girls Senior High School
Christ's Hospital: One student from Keio Girls Senior High School
Winchester College: One student from Keio Shonan Fujisawa Senior High School
Junior high school second-year program (United States)
Eaglebrook School: One student from Keio Futsubu Junior High School
Fay School: One student from Keio Shonan Fujisawa Junior High School
Junior high school second-year program (United Kingdom)
Shrewsbury School: One student from Keio Chutobu Junior High School
Elementary school fifth-year program (United Kingdom)
Dragon School: One student from Keio Yochisha Elementary School and one student from Keio Yokohama Elementary School
Photo: Aki Takematsu