Sai enjoys her PhD studies in Japan
The Japan embassy of Fiji, through the Government of Japan has assisted many Fijian students with scholarships (Monbukagakusho), to study in Japan.
Sai Veitata-Waqalevu is among the fortunate students to complete her final year of studies in
PhD in Global Environmental Studies at Kyoto University.
Mrs Waqalevu hails from Nasigatoka in Rewa. She is in Japan for five years now where she lives in Kagoshima for six months and Kyoto almost four years.
She said she chose to pursue her studies in Japan mainly because her husband, Viliame Waqalevu, had gotten a scholarship to do his PhD in Kagoshima University in 2015.
“So I decided to resign from the University of the South Pacific and join him on this new adventure,” she said.
“In preparations for the move to Japan, I had spoken and found out about Kyoto University and the graduate program that I am currently enrolled in through a Japanese colleague who graduated from the same school, and he spoke highly of the program and recommended that I join the university should I decide later on to study.”
Mrs Waqalevu further explained her current university life in Japan was interesting where she was exposed to a lot of cultures through the international community in her university.
“There is a laboratory system in graduate schools where you have your work space with all the students that your professor supervises, together with your professors,” she added.
“I always found this very helpful and it was a good way to force students like me to get on top of my research work. I was enriched by lessons and learnings from Japan and other countries in the Asian region some of which were very different from the pacific.
She said Japan was an amazing country to study in.
“Don’t be afraid of the experience, put yourself out there, get out of your comfort zone as that is the only way to learn and enrich yourself personally. The scholarship is offered yearly and I was able to finish my master’s degree studies and I am now pursuing my PhD studies with the same scholarship.”