Japanese Language and Japanese Culture Program
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I am exceedingly grateful for the opportunity to learn in a close-knit community of 62 passionate students, energetic faculty and staff, and Hakodate’s supportive population. For newcomers to Japan and returning students alike, there was much to learn inside and outside of class—8 weeks was barely enough time to fit in all I wanted to do! Just like somehow having the energy to dance up and down to the Squid Dance hundreds of times with local students at Hakodate’s port festival, everyone’s spirit through it the busy weeks has been impressive. Thank you!
A rigorous program in a very beautiful location. You will be surprised at how quickly your Japanese will improve. There are many scheduled events that will give you a deeper understanding of Japanese culture and give you an opportunity to participate in fun activities. Hakodate is a great city to study in; the scenery is very beautiful and the food is fantastic. In addition, living with a host family is a great experience. I made friends I hope to keep in contact with for a long time.
The friends I’ve made and the experiences I’ve had here at HIF have been incredible. I’ve grown a lot as a person and I’ve learned a lot of Japanese. The people of Hakodate are very kind and it’s a great place to explore the depth of your own mind in Japanese.
Best summer experience I have ever had. The instructors are highly professional and experienced. The classes are well-organized and intensive. For graduated students, I highly recommend using the independent study to explore your research interests in Hakodate and Hokkaido in general.
Attending HIF is probably one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. At school, all the staff members and instructors have been extremely helpful and dedicated. My fellow classmates were amazing too. But besides learning the language and gaining friendship, thanks to the different cultural events and homestay, I was able to go out of my comfort zone and experience a part of the Japanese culture that is usually not available from the media. This is definitely a summer I will forever cherish.
Not only was Hakodate a beautiful city to explore and live in, the program’s pace and methodology was the perfect amount of challenging and stimulating. My host family pairing also couldn’t have been better!
This was my first time out of states and I have to tell you that this is a program you need to want every day but also a program that you will grow to want every day. No diminishing returns. I walk an hour to class every day and I don’t even feel it because as previously noted by the Japan Times, this is the #1 tourist destination in Japan! So, in short, get here, eat Melon Pan, go to class, participate in everything, and squid dance your heart out!
I will say HIF has been the best experience of my life. It has something for everyone. I wasn’t much for doing culture classes as I lived far away, but every day I was able to meet the amazing people of Hokkaido and increase not only my Japanese skill, but my appreciation of their culture. Thank you HIF.
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I applied to HIF on a whim, not knowing what to expect. Now that I have completed the program, it's safe to say that applying was one of the best decisions ...
HIF was hands down one of the best experiences of my life. I came into the program with the goal of improving my Japanese, and I certainly achieved that ...
College
For my first time traveling abroad, I do not think I could have picked a better place to be than Hakodate as an HIF student. Whether it be inside the ...
Eight weeks felt like a very short time to spend at HIF. Our teachers and the staff encouraged us to make the most of our time in Hakodate ...
The summer at HIF has been wonderful for me! I'm so glad that I was able to improve my Japanese so much and met so many wonderful instructors ...