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Hard work had paid off well during my high school days, I ended up with offers from the Malaysian Education Ministry and also the Malaysian Public Service department. The scholarship that the Malaysian Education Ministry offered had always been the reason I had been working hard for as it offered a full scholarship to venture into the field of our own choices in our preferred countries. However, there was a major change in the policy and I was kind of forced to take up my backup plan, which was the latter offer.Taking up the latter offer was definitely a leap of faith and required a lot of careful consideration as this path required me to pick up a completely new language and had to take on the challenge to survive independently in a non-English speaking foreign country.
“Do not follow a trail where the path may lead. It’s boring. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail,” a teacher once told me.
I was even sure that this is the path that I won’t regret taking. As I didn’t want to burden my parents and also wanted to venture beyond my comfort zone, I accepted this scholarship.
This scholarship actually let us choose between 4 non-English speaking countries which are, Korea, Japan, France, and Germany. I didn't particularly have any preference for any 4 of the countries as studying engineering in a foreign language was my major concern. So, I chose the country where their language seemed easier to master. German is said to be one of the hardest languages in the world and I heard European languages are not easy. So I eliminated Germany and France as my choice. Between Korea and Japan, Japan seemed to be more notable in the field of engineering. Besides, the Japanese language consists of 80 percent of kanji (汉子/ 漢字/ Chinese characters ) which most Chinese-speaking students are familiar with. So if I come across any ‘kanjis’ that I haven't learned in class (Japanese), I can somehow guess the meaning based on my knowledge in the Chinese Language. Japanese is also more widely used and spoken in the world, according to Wikipedia.
Started my journey in Intec Education College in Shah Alam, Malaysia, that was my first time staying far away from home. Moreover, I had to learn Japanese from zero, from learning how to write the basic Japanese alphabets to understanding textbooks written in Japanese. However, surrounded by friends from all over Malaysia, it was a very memorable bitter-sweet stage of my life. What I’d studied there was mainly the Japanese language and also studying subjects of high school equivalent syllabus again, but in Japanese (starting from the second semester). This is why, scholars under this scholarship might graduate about 2 years later than our peers who chose the ‘normal’ path and also, my Japanese classmates in Japan are actually 2 years younger than I am. We studied 5 main subjects in total. Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Japanese Language, and English (after a year). At the end of the fourth semester (the end of the foundation ), we will be required to pass an exam called the Monkasho Shiken (文部科学省試験）for the admission into National College of Technologies in Japan (高等専門学校), for 3 years of diploma programme, after that, we may pursue a degree in engineering in any of the selected Japanese Universities for another 2 years. To pass the Monkasho Shiken, we have to get at least an average of 60/100 for all 5 subjects. It wasn’t difficult to pass it with flying colors with a decent amount of studying.
Almost 4 months after passing the exam, I found myself in the land of the rising sun, Japan. My peers who had been with me for 2 years of language learning parted ways to our designated colleges and the real challenge began from that moment.
Setting foot on the Japanese soil, life changed in 180 degrees.
Billboards, road signs, and signs in the grocery stores were no longer in the language that I was familiar with. Sometimes, I might end up spending up to one hour in the grocery store just to look for some pepper. Surviving in a very Japanese environment, I was the only foreigner in my course and was forced to speak and understand Japanese in order to survive. To be honest, making friends and blending into the environment wasn’t easy and there were times I was on the verge of giving up, and question myself why I put myself in this situation. Studying abroad as the only foreigner is like you're born again as a baby, crawling your way forward, crying while you learn to walk, eat and talk again but this time, you struggle on your own without your parents being physically there. I’m grateful that I have supportive parents, international and local friends in Japan. I’m glad that my Japanese lecturers and classmates are very understanding and nice to me too.
Unlike studying in English-speaking countries, it’s comparatively not as common to meet Malaysians in the place you reside in. It is a roller-coaster ride but what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. It took me about half a year to adapt to the culture shock in this new country and environment. I believe I’m now a more independent, capable and mature person. Studying abroad widens our horizons and exposes us to stumbling blocks that mold us into a better person mentally and physically. All in all, I was very flattered to be put in this environment as I have learned a lot about the culture and the people in Japan and my Japanese improved really fast. Having Japanese as my fifth language, I expect wider job opportunities in the future both in Japan and in Malaysia as the majority of people in Japan are monolingual but could read basic amount of English.
Life is like a box of chocolates, who would have thought that I’ll be attending lectures conducted in Japanese, doing research presentations and writing a thesis in Japanese?
I’m now completing my diploma studies and will be sitting for university entrance exams next year to enroll as a 3rd-year student in undergraduate studies in a Japanese University in the following year. Studying abroad is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I’m really fortunate that I was given this chance to experience what many people don’t get to experience. Live a life that you’ll remember and make a choice that your future self will thank you for.
Ang Kay Lyn, student & scholar, Japan
Currently in Japan under the Special Engineering Program sponsored by JPA, this is my fourth year being a scholar and second year studying in Japan, majoring in Biology and Applied Chemistry Engineering.