Mari

Diploma in Languages 2010

What are you studying here?
As part of my Diploma in Languages I am studying French and Chinese as well as doing some Japanese literature.

What is your background in Japan?
I am also a student at Nagoya University of Foreign Studies in Japan where I am majoring in English and Contemporary Society. My second foreign language is French, and I had been learning it for two years at Nagoya before I came to Newcastle.

What have you enjoyed most about your time in the School of Humanities and Social Science?
I studied in the BA at Newcastle in second semester 2009 while I was here as an exchange student. One of my courses was Elementary French, which I really enjoyed. The teachers were French, which was really important for me. They were always friendly and helpful, too. I found the teaching style different from what I have experienced in Japan, and it enabled me to begin to enjoy studying French. I felt that I was improving, which I had not felt strongly in Japan. This is why I was so keen to come back again and study French more at the University of Newcastle. The Diploma in Languages was a good option for me.

What are your future plans?
I do not have a specific job in mind at this stage. I am studying languages because I genuinely like it, and I would like to use my languages to communicate with people from all around the world. This is the important motivating factor for me. I hope I can get a job involving French or English. Apart from working, I really want to go to France!