Thursday, December 21, 2006

Japanese Circles

Here in Japan I belong to one Sophia University club, "Sophia Enterprises". You can find my name nicely displayed under the Board of Directors list (impressive, huh?) at Sophia Enterprises: The Business Circle of Sophia University. So far I've done...well, very little for this club. I've prepared a letter to send to companies in the hopes of receiving internship offers for Sophia students. I've made an announcement to my classes regarding the organization's Job Forum and...well, thus far that's it. But I am on the Board of Directors!

You see, clubs in Japanese universities work a bit differently than in the United States... Here, there is something called a "sempai-kohai relationship" in which a certain kind of militaristic obedience is taught. New members (kohai) are assigned (sometimes dogmatically, sometimes simply implied) a sempai under which they, for lack of a better word, serve. My sempai is a fourth-year student named Keisuke. He is a nice enough guy, very dedicated to the group, and likes to call and email his kohai.

Currently, I am on his internship hunting team. We are charged with finding local companies willing to give Sophia students internships. I have contacted (betchya ya never could guess) The Ritz Carlton and Disney. As far as other things go...the group is planning a 2 week trip to Xian, China in the spring. Attending students will learn basic Chinese, see famous sites, and eat good food. I will be in America!

Thats it on this for now.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

But you're going to China too! I can't wait to hear what you think. Thank you for updating!

-L

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