Sabreena Zainal, who is graduating this May, with a degree in Accounting, studied abroad at the University of Tokyo this last fall. She was there for five months on an ISEP Exchange Program and was able to experience the amazing culture of Japan. Japan is one of the most highly developed countries in Asia with thousands of years of history. One of the reasons she chose to study abroad in Japan was because of her Japanese friends in the U.S.A.
Sabreena had many culture shocks during her trip. One of these culture shocks was the way Japanese people respect their elders. Another example of a culture shock for her was traditions in their culture, like the usage of chopsticks. These experiences gave her a new perspective in life compared to her life back home.
In Tokyo, English is not widely spoken by the average person, even in the tourist spots. Although, public signs and the public transportation is in Japanese and English. However, Sabreena found the experience pleasant, as she did not have any problem communicating with the natives in basic Japanese. She also never imagined that she would meet many people from all over the world in Tokyo. For example, she met people from Finland in Japan.
Studying in Japan helped Sabreena to understand more about people with different cultural backgrounds. This was especially relevant when she taught English to Japanese students. She stated that this life-changing experience will definitely help her in her future career in international business.
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