I attended the meeting in which the two students who went on the exchange last year gave a brief presentation and answered questions from students thinking of applying. I have included here the notes taken during this talk. For me, the most important practical information I learned that your flights and rent would be paid for, and that you would receive the free use of a bike. The most exciting aspect of the teaching in Japan was that it is more outcome based and focused on developing skills. This really appealed to me as often I can feel quite conflicted between clarifying the rationale between my practise and wanting to make technically impressive work. I still struggle with this, and think maybe I either need to focus on one aim or consciously to bridge the gap I feel between the two.

 

 

In these notes I am trying to categorise my reasons for wanting to go on the exchange so that my statement of intent fully covers all the bases specified. Below are links to my completed form and the accompanying flickr portfolio I was required to make.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/185530509@N08/sets/72157711741357927/with/49051290397/

Nagoya Exchange Application Form 2019-20

In hindsight I should have given myself more time to put together my application and portfolio, or alternatively been less hopeful. This exchange seemed most importantly, a really affordable opportunity to relocate somewhere completely different for a term. In my application I stressed my dislike of many aspects of the UK education system. It would probably have been better to focus on what I wanted to gain from going to Japan. After not getting in I largely let go of a lot of these sentiments, which makes me wonder how sincere I was being. Afterwards Jane, my tutor, congratulated me on my application and told me that if I had let her know with more time she could have reviewed my application, which would have made a huge difference to the quality. I am still trying to work through my aversion to asking for help. I was once told by a tutor that statistically the more upper class people are, the more they feel comfortable they are asking for assistance and receiving it. I can believe this, but do not want this fact to be an excuse for a characteristic that also has egotistical roots. Last night I watched an episode of the Great Pottery Throw Down on which one of the judges told a young contestant that overconfidence holds you back creatively, and that he wished he had tried harder to overcome it when he was younger. I do not think the perfect balance of confidence in some areas and humbleness in others is achievable, but it is good to try and realise where to direct more effort and less certainty, and where to focus on building up self-confidence.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email