Episode of Runners Abroad with Evelyn Gallardo and Melisa Magaña
Available on Soundcloud, Spotify, and Apple Music @TheRunnerOnAir
TRANSCRIPT:
[Evelyn Gallardo]: Hello Runners! Welcome to the second episode of Runners Abroad by The Runner On Air. I am your host, Evelyn Gallardo, and in this episode, I will be joined by Melisa Magaña. If you’re new to this series, in it, we talk about the different aspects of studying abroad. For this episode, we met with Yuri Sakamaki, Director of Study Abroad and Fulbright Programs. If you’re interested in studying abroad, be sure to stick around to hear what she has to say!
[Yuri Sakamaki]: My name is Yuri Sakamaki. I’m the director of Study Abroad and Fulbright Programs at California State University, Bakersfield. This is my eighth year of being the director. I also oversee the language ESL Program American Language Institute, as well. Both programs are–both offices– are under Extended Education and Global Outreach. So, um, I was an international student first as a high school student. I was an exchange student as a senior in high school. I went to a tiny village in Minnesota and actually lived with an American family for a year. I had a great experience. Um, and then that got me thinking about doing more studies in the U.S. I did go to undergraduate program in Kobe, Japan. I am originally from Japan. I was born and raised in Osaka, it’s the second biggest city after Tokyo. And so I went to school in Kobe, ate tons of Kobe beef–no, I was a poor college student. But when I finished my undergraduate in Sociology and also Social Welfare… So it’s more of like a social work type of program;I wanted to be an international student counselor. And, uh, counseling is not really a thing in Japan, let alone international student counseling. Um, cause Japan is a pretty homogeneous country, you know. Just tons of people who look like me. So, um, and I thought well, I had a great experience in the U.S. I really wanted to come back for graduate studies, so I applied for this program where I would teach Japanese language at a small to medium-sized university, and in return, they would give me the scholarship to study, um, and earn a master’s degree. So, I–you know, jumped to that, you know, opportunity, passed the test, and then got placed here. So, it wasn’t my choice to be in Bakersfield, but looking back I’m really, you know, glad that I came here because, you know, I ended up staying here, you know, over twenty years now. So, um, I was in an educational program, graduate program–um, so my master’s degree is in education concentration on student personnel, so student advising, that type of thing. Um, so, I was teaching Japanese language and English as a second language for a long time until, you know, eight years ago when I really, um, got the opportunity to use my experience as an international student and also being faculty. I joined faculty to see what would be nice to, you know, change. So, I’m really, um, fortunate to have a job that I really wanted to do. So, um, yeah, that’s my short story.
[Melisa Magaña]: And if you wouldn’t mind, what was your first option besides CSUB?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: There wasn’t any. So, it was just–yeah, CSUB or, you know, not going. Um, but, um, forty other students were selected, and they all were in either East Coast, very small towns in the East Coast, or Midwest so… And only two people were placed in California, so we felt lucky. Yeah. It’s great weather, close to Japan, you know, just one stop away. So, yeah. So there was no choice.
[Melisa Magaña]: Okay.
[Yuri Sakamaki]: But I was really happy cause you know I told I stayed in a village in Minnesota. Before I went, I went to all kinds of bookstores and libraries;I could not find Lake Crystal, Minnesota, on any map. Imagine you’re going somewhere, but it’s not on the map.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: Yeah.
[Yuri Sakamaki]: My parents were really worried, too, but they let me go. Uh, so Bakersfield was on the map, rather big. So, I was just happy.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: And if you don’t mind sharing, how did your parents react when you told them you were gonna come study over here?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Um, they were supportive. Japan is a very traditional conservation society, so a lot of parents may have, you know, told their daughters you can’t go because you know you’re a woman or you don’t need education. But my parents always told me to get an education. Actually, um, my parents are teachers, yeah, so they understood that. I know after I found out that they were criticized, you know, by like neighbors or maybe you know their siblings like, “Why did you let her go?” so they really stood by me, so I really appreciate that, and that’s something I, you know, kind of pass it on to my kids. I have a daughter and a son, and you know, they can be anything they want to except the president of the United States because they were born in Japan. But yeah, other than that, you know, so I hope– and you know, I think that’s something I try to emphasize to students here, too. We have a lot of Japanese students, female Japanese students or, you know, Korean female students. And they may not see a lot of female leaders in their societies or countries, or anywhere, I guess, you know. But here it’s a little more open, and you know, actually, our president is a woman, you know, so yeah. We try to tell the students, you know, take that back home. Maybe do something different.
[Melisa Magaña]: You’re an example of it because you’re the director. So, you’re being a leader right now as well.
[Yuri Sakamaki]: That’s true. Yeah, I never thought of that.
[Melisa Magaña]: Yeah.
[Yuri Sakamaki]: I’m their mom. That’s how I see myself.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: So how could CSUB students apply for study abroad?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: So, we will meet with the student individually and, um, at class visits and tabling events, we try to give general information. And what we want to emphasize is, you know, study abroad is not only for students with a lot of money. You could, you know, we can plan, let’s say, a year to two years in advance. Save money, and you know, go. So we meet with the students, and then we select a university. Starting with the country where they might want to go, and we have sixty partner universities that we can send students to in about twenty countries. So, you know, sometimes students have some ideas: I want to go to Spain, or I want to go to South Korea. Some other students may say, “I want to go somewhere.” So, you know, we try to narrow it down, and then we nominate our students as an exchange student to that university. Let’s say Radboud University in the Netherlands, and they will accept our exchange student nominees. And then, they would apply to the university that they’re going to as an exchange student. You know, they apply for housing, they would apply for courses, uh, and sometimes in some countries, you have to have a Visa before you go. In some countries, you don’t. When you get there, you take care of that Visa part. But then you go, you fly out there and then start having a great experience.
[Melisa Magaña]: And what are some of the places that students could go and study?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Um, popular places are Spain, Norway, South Korea, Japan, and Germany.
[Melisa Magaña]: And does the country depend on the plan for each student? Like for example, studying time?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Yes, definitely. And, uh, the other popular one is Ireland. Um, if you’re a STEM major, then, um, we’re not gonna find biology courses taught in English in Japan, right? So, we try to find something in Ireland or Australia where they can take any classes because all classes are offered in English. So, yeah, it depends on what they want to study, what they want to do, if they want to do a lot of traveling then, you know, Europe is easier to travel. Um, but then they might be really interested in, you know, K-pop, then yeah, you know, you gotta go to Korea.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: How do you guys decide how long a student stays?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Um, a lot of it depends on, you know, their financial situation. Um, and for a semester or two semesters, they would pay the tuition and fees at CSUB. So, if students receive financial aid, they can use that. So that’s a big relief. They’re not gonna have to come up with, you know, 6,000 dollars to study for a semester. So that portion is covered. They do need to come up with the airfare and living expenses. They have to live somewhere and eat something. So, yeah, that would be kind of extra. And a lot of our students, you know, live with their families, so that could be a little bit of a challenge. So, you know, we like to meet with them a year to two years in advance so they have time to save money. So that’s what we do. Um, and also, sometimes they can’t leave for a semester. You know? Maybe they have a job they can’t give up, uh, whatever the situation might be. Then we might, um, recommend go to Costa Rica for two weeks and do some internship in the winter. Or, um, summer… Spring break is really too short to go anywhere, but I mean, they could but. In the summer two weeks, a lot of our countries, like Germany, Japan, and Korea, they offer language and culture courses and they’re anywhere from two weeks to a couple months. So, they can choose. Um, the only part is financial aid part. Sometimes, they qualify for the summer sessions, and, you know, we work with the financial aid office. They’re very supportive of students going abroad. So, you know, individual situations is different. You know, they can talk to financial aid officers and they can figure out that part. Also, we have faculty led programs. So, that is about eight days to, maybe up to, fourteen days, and you’re traveling with your professor. So, uh, for example, nursing students, once you’re in the nursing program, you can’t take a semester off. You have to go with a cohort, right? So, they really never had a chance to go study abroad. But now we have a professor, Professor Krystal Ball, uh, she feels very passionate about serving the community globally, not just community-wise. So she will take students to Costa Rica, Peru, um, Micronesia. And in the summer, they will go for eleven days and–these are all nursing students– and they do health campaigns, like a pop-up health fair. And students really feel that they’re helping the community. Also, they’re learning to be sensitive to different cultures, different languages. And then also just- just to feel how lucky we are, you know? She comes back with great stories, and also, a lot of students actually want to repeat, you know, they want to go to different places. Yeah, so that’s, you know, that’s uh… it depends really on the student, major, financial situation, their family situation, things like that.
[Melisa Magaña]: If you wouldn’t mind, going back to, um, financial aid. Do you guys offer any scholarships or grants for students that decide to go abroad?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: We do have some, uh, smaller scholarships for study abroad. Um, you know, 200 hundred dollars, 300 hundred dollars. Probably under one thousand. Uh, we also have– we try to collect information that, you know… off campus scholarships for study abroad. For example, there’s a scholarship called Gilman Award–G I L M A N– and they give out different amounts of scholarships to a lot of students, whether it’s a summer program or semester or a year long. So, uh, we try to advise them on that. We’re trying to have workshops for putting together a strong personal statement;it makes a difference. You really have to build your case;you can’t just say… well I kinda just wanna go somewhere, you know? So, we give them tips and things like that. We want to have more organized workshops for that in the future. So we try to find opportunities, and… for example, one of the faculty led programs, you know, that I told you about, French. FLB Paris is mostly supported by an individual donation. So, you know, these programs… this program is about 5,000 dollars per person, but students only pay about 1,500, and then the rest is covered by the scholarship. So, yeah, we try to find… cause you know financial is a big part of it, we understand, so we try to help out.
[Melisa Magaña]: That’s awesome.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: Yeah. It sounds… it sounds like a great deal, but what would you tell a student that’s thinking about it and is still unsure if they should go study abroad?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Come and talk to us, yeah. You know, so we could figure out what’s stopping you or what are your concerns and some of the things… I think a lot of it if you plan long enough, you know, and well enough I think you can execute. Um, you know, so we can suggest things. Cause we have seen all kinds of situations. So, yeah. Chances are we have had similar situations on hand, so we can advise you. And also, we can connect different offices on campus. We work with a lot of different people: advisors, uh, department chairs, um… for example, when you take classes in another country, you want to take back the units to CSUB, so we have a learning agreement. It’s a form. You list the host university classes and also CSUB classes that you think they will transfer. We show that to the department chair, and they can evaluate their syllabi or course descriptions and say, “yes, they’re similar enough, so they will transfer.” So students will know that hopefully before you go. And if you change your mind, we try to edit that form as soon as possible, but, you know, we need the support of advisors and department chairs, financial aid, sometimes advancement, you know, for the donations and things. And then, um, honor programs we work with, so…yeah, a lot of supporters on campus.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: So, how far ahead would you advise students to start planning or come reach out to you guys before they go?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Um, freshmen, you know, we try to, um, have the breakout sessions at the orientation, you know. And… you can’t go during freshman year. That’s just way too early. You need to learn how to be a good university student. That’s only a year into it. You can go as a sophomore or junior– that’s probably the best, um, ideal time. You can go as a senior but your classes that you need to graduate are limited so we really have to look into what courses are offered in another country. So, you might have a little bit of a smaller selection.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: Yeah.
[Melisa Magaña]: So it would be better to go on your Junior Year?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Probably yeah. Sophomore, when you have some general education courses left. Second or third year would be the best, but we try to, you know, send you, if possible, at different times.
[Melisa Magaña]: And whenever a student is outside of the country, do they have to contact– if they have any questions– they have to contact the school that they’re attending to or CSUB? If, like, you or anybody else… how does that work?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Uh, once they’re at their host university, their international office–our counterpart– is the first contact. They have the correct information, updated information, in that country. It’s just… things vary so much by the university or country they are in. But if, you know, they need our help, we’re accessible. They know our email addresses. Sometimes, I’m connected with them on WhatsApp. We love to get pictures and videos, you know, they’re doing things. So, uh, yeah, we try to be in contact. And also, sometimes, there are world alerts that the U.S. government puts out. For example, right now, Israel and Palestine, you know, conflict. So, we just tell students, you know, hey, be careful… try not to go somewhere where there are tons of people or do not participate in any kind of rally. But you know… it’s… we try to be connected, keeping connected, you know, while they’re there. We love to hear from them when they come back, so yeah. And that’s… I think that’s one nice thing about, uh, studying or going abroad as a student. You have so much support systems in both countries. Whereas if you go by yourself as an adult, as a traveler, you’re by yourself… you know? Or, um, try to go and find work there;I mean, that’s gonna be hard, too. I think studying abroad as a student gives you really a good opportunity to, first, open opportunity to being in another country.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: How could students who do study abroad ensure that they’re successful? Like that, they don’t fall behind in classes.
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Yeah, so the selection in courses that they will take that’s a lot of that, you know, so they can take back the units. Other than that, I hope they will be open minded about trying new things and meeting new people. When you go study abroad, there are a lot of other students from other countries. So even if you go to, you know, Germany, you’re gonna meet students from Hong Kong or, you know, Norway, Sweden, um, Sambia. You get to be friends with all kinds of people, so… um, hopefully. And then I think they become like a family in that country, uh, during that time. So be open-minded, try new things, food, places, um, be careful at the same time. But I think our students are, you know, they’re sensible. Yeah, and then definitely know how to be a good university student at first. We ask the students to, you know, have a GPA of 2.5 or better just because if you know how to be a good student here, I think challenges are a little bit, you know, smaller when you get there because everything else is new. In addition, if you don’t know how to be a good student, how to study for a test, I think things will be a little challenging. So, yeah.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: So apart from the GPA requirement and the finance requirement, is there any other requirements to go study abroad?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Well, you have to have a passport.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: Oh, yeah.
[Yuri Sakamaki] And um… we have spoken with the students, DACA students, in the past, and I think there are organizations that can help them get paperwork saying that yes, you can go outside the U.S. and then come back. But we, our office has never had actual students, you know, DACA students going, but you know, if you’re thinking about that, we can definitely find resources together. But yeah, you have to have passport.
[Melisa Magaña]: And what would be a place that you would encourage students to go? It could be your favorite place or a place that is more affordable or easy for them.
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Um, it really depends on the student, what they want to do. Um, yeah, anywhere you go, you will have a great experience, you know, it’s just a different experience.
[Melisa Magaña]: Is there any place you would recommend them…a place that you like and you think it would be great for them?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Well, I am from Japan. So, I like Japan, and I know a lot of students like Japanese food and culture. Um, and also, Japan is very different in, you know, culture and language, but we’re very kind to guests. We want to make sure that guests are having a great time, whether it’s the tourist or, you know, foreign students. So, I know for sure, I’m confident that, you know, students will have a great time and they do. And, yeah, and as I said, it’s different enough cause, you know, Europe, yes, it is great, uh, but it’s kind of similar. So the shock, culture shock value is less. In Japan, you get surprised, you know, like: you do what?! And then you find out why, and you go, oh, okay, that’s why. And also the other thing is it’s safe, pretty safe. It’s easy to get around, trains and busses everywhere and they’re on time. And, you know, so, yeah, but then again, I’m biased because I’m from there.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: From the current list that CSUB has right now, what would you say is the most expensive place to go to?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Most expensive… maybe somewhere in Europe. I know Paris is getting expensive because it’s a huge, big city. Um… and I can’t remember, Norway or Sweden, I think things–living expenses– is pretty high. Uh, but then again, for university students, it’s a little different. A lot of government help um, for example,Tokyo is one of the biggest cities in the world, and things are expensive, but Japanese government subsidizes the food on campus. So [in the] cafeteria, the prices are about half or one-third of off-campus prices because the Japanese government gives the universities money, and that’s how they run cafeterias. See, so it’s very affordable if you go as a student. Also, uh, all the dorms are partly subsidized by the government, so you’re only paying $500 a month for rent because the other $1,000 has been paid by the Japanese government. So, it really depends, you know, yeah, on, um, the country you go to. But, yeah, students, I think you get discounts, you know, everywhere.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: Yeah.
[Yuri Sakamaki]: That’s another reason why you should go.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: Contrary to that, what do you think the most affordable place is?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Um, affordable places… probably Japan and Korea. Yeah, you would think they’re expensive, but yeah, because of the Japanese and Korean government value that they put on higher education, international students benefit from that. Um, and other countries that are cheaper, let’s say Thailand or Vietnam, it’s cheaper to travel there and, you know, but we don’t have any partners. But yeah, you could go during spring break while you’re in Korea.
[Melisa Magaña]: And is there a year limit or semester limit of how many time they [students] can go study abroad?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: No, there isn’t. So, you know, students, sometimes they come back, they go for a summer, and then they really get interested, and they go back to that country for a semester, or they want to go somewhere else for the semester and, uh, students have asked me “could I go to two different countries in two semesters?” You could, you know, but you have to do paperwork while you’re in another country, so that could be a little bit tricky, but we’ve never had that happen yet. So, but yeah, but there isn’t. But you have to get a degree here so. If you’re going to get a degree in another country, then that’s not study abroad that’s transferring entirely to another country. So that’s… sometimes students are–don’t realize that, and we meet on Zoom and I explain the differences, and they’re like “oh, okay.” Yeah, so.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: So, if they do want to do two semesters in two different places and they get financial aid, does that get affected?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: No, it shouldn’t because when you… while you’re abroad, we put you in study abroad placeholder course, which is twelve units, so you can keep your full-time status. And you should be taking twelve units, equivalent of twelve units here in somewhere else, right, in Norway, so when you come back, that giant twelve unit course will be broken up into four different or three different courses so, you know, that’s how we try to help with the financial aid status to your graduation as well.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: And I know sometimes a lot of students are really focused on graduating or graduating early…
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Sure.
[Evelyn Gallardo]: Um, are students able to graduate early even if they go study abroad?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: I can’t guarantee that, um, depending on where you want to go. We try out best to find courses that will transfer something towards your graduation. You know, cause I am aware– we are aware that students want to finish within four years, and so does CSUB. So, we try our best to, you know, do that. But I can’t guarantee that.
[Evelyn Gallardo] Yeah.
[Melisa Magaña]: Is there anyway that students can contact you if they’re interested in studying abroad?
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Yeah, they can email us [email protected], one word, or they can come to the Extended Education and Global Outreach building, um, but email is probably better.
[Melisa Magaña]: Okay, awesome. Well, thank you so much!
[Yuri Sakamaki]: Thank you so much!
[Melisa Magaña]: Thank you for listening to today’s episode of Runners Abroad by The Runner on Air. As always, we hope you enjoyed, and if you haven’t checked out our first episode of this series, be sure to do that! Be sure to follow our social media @therunner_csub so you won’t miss out on any important information, and make sure to check out our recent stories at therunneronline.com. Have a wonderful day.
Music Credits:
Intro and Outro Song –
Sequential Elements
Written By Sander Kalmeijer
Performed By The Galaxy News