A Student Life "Without a Dull Moment"
Faculty of Environment and Information Studies
General Admissions
Male
High School | Kanagawa Prefectural Kawawa High School |
|---|---|
Academic Year | Second-year master's student, Graduate School of Media and Governance |
Primary Research Group | Meteorology Research Group (Miyamoto Research Group) (from spring of my second year) |
Major of Research Group | Meteorology |
My Research Theme | Aviation Meteorology (Turbulence) |
What I'm focusing on in my student life | Research group; Special Research Projects/Student Assistant (SA), Lifesaving Club (student circle) |
High school club activities | Badminton Team |
How long I was in my high school club | Until the spring of my third year of high school |
Favorite subject | English |
What I focused on in high school | Balancing academics and extracurriculars (I fully enjoyed club activities and school events) |
What I'm proud of about my high school | That it's a high school with a long history. Also, even without a direct connection, you can build deep friendships with upperclassmen just by being from the same high school. In fact, among the colleagues joining my company at the same time, there are three members from my high school, although from different graduating classes, and we get together often. |
When did you learn about SFC? | When I was a ronin student (studying for an extra year to retake university entrance exams) |
Did you attend an SFC Open Campus (including online)? | I did not attend. |
Did you use a Juku or prep school? | Yes |
Did you have experience as a ronin student? | Yes (for one year) |
When did you decide to apply to SFC? | During my ronin year; after the National Center Test for University Admissions |
Which entrance examination did you pass to get into SFC? | General Admissions |
What subjects did you take for the exam? | English, short essay |
Did you take any other entrance exams besides the one you passed? | None |
What was your preference ranking for SFC? | Among my top choices |
What other faculties did you apply to concurrently? | Faculty of Science and Technology |
What other universities did you apply to concurrently? | I don't remember. |
What Led Me to Choose SFC and My Journey to University
An acquaintance I've known for a long time is a Keio University alumni, and they recommended I enroll at Keio.
I didn't focus much on my studies in high school and ended up as a ronin student to get into university, but I didn't have anything specific I wanted to do in college, so I only had a vague idea of which schools I wanted to apply to.
Amidst this, an upperclassman of mine had enrolled at SFC, and I heard detailed stories about their student life, such as projects in the Hasebe Lab. They seemed to be truly shining and fulfilled, and I vaguely felt, "I want to be like that, and I want to become a university student who can be a role model for someone." That's what made SFC my school of choice, and I successfully passed the exam and enrolled.
What Are Your Recommended Study Methods?
For the short essay, I think it's good to focus on two points.
First, is simply "practice writing."
Writing about a given topic within a limited time and word count is difficult under the pressure of the actual exam. I recommend practicing by setting a shorter time limit than the actual exam. Furthermore, for the short essay, it's important to be able to logically express what you want to convey. Have someone knowledgeable about short essays (like a high school teacher, an SFC upperclassman, or someone from a prep school) thoroughly review and correct your work.
Also, for topics you've already tackled in past exams, try writing about them multiple times from different angles. I think you'll start to develop your own "template" for how to write during the actual exam.
The second point is to build your background knowledge.
The short essays at SFC are created in accordance with SFC's admissions policy. First, you should read the "admissions policy" on the SFC website or in its brochures. Since SFC aims to cultivate students who can identify and solve problems, the premise is that you must be able to find issues in society. I think it's a good idea to research and pay attention to the news regarding hot topics of the era (in my time, topics like Society 5.0 were popular, and recently, perhaps SDGs).
The Connection Between My High School Studies and My Current Learning at SFC
I feel that "studying" in high school and "learning" at university are completely different things.
I think the difference is as great as that between passive and active.
The great thing about SFC is that you can pursue "learning" as your interests guide you, based on the knowledge you've accumulated throughout your life.
A Message to Prospective Students
I was enrolled at SFC for six years: four years as an undergraduate and two years in graduate school.
This means I spent a quarter of my life so far at SFC.
However, I believe it was a student life "without a dull moment."
For example, because you can take courses without restriction across all four years, you can build friendships with students from different grades; you might unexpectedly discover your field of interest and get hooked on research; or you can deepen your relationships with faculty and staff... the list is truly endless.
Don't make getting into the university your ultimate goal. I encourage you to envision what comes after; it will boost your motivation, and I believe it will help you lead a brilliant student life after enrollment without getting lost in the crowd.
Please come to SFC and discover your own specialty!!!!