Putri Mega Asmarani, a student studying Japanese language and culture in the Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture of Cultural Sciences at Universitas Gadjah Mada, won second place in the Shodo (Japanese calligraphy) competition held during the Unsoed Japanese Festival. This festival was organized online by Universitas Jenderal Soedirman, with the winners announced on October 20, 2024.

The Unsoed Japanese Festival is one of the events held to introduce and cultivate interest in Japanese art and culture among students. In the Shodo competition, Putri successfully showcased her ability to create Japanese calligraphy that was not only beautiful but also adhered to the essential principles of Shodo. read more

On Saturday, October 19, 2024, Evelin Oktafianny, a student of the Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture at the Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada, won first place in the 21st Kanji Cup competition held at the LP3M Building of Universitas Negeri Surabaya. This competition was aimed at Japanese language learners, particularly those in higher education institutions or general Japanese language schools.

The Kanji Cup is an annual competition organized by the Consulate General of Japan in Surabaya, the IMC Center, and the Japan Foundation, in collaboration with various sponsors. Although Indonesia is not a country that uses Kanji, this event provides participants with the opportunity to deepen their knowledge and improve their skills in Kanji. read more

On Sunday, November 15, 2015, students from the Japanese Literature Program, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada, won first, second, and third place in the general level Shuuji Contest (Japanese Calligraphy Competition) organized by the Japanese Language Education Student Association of Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta (Nikkigakka) as part of the Japanese language skill competition titled NihonGO!3. The three winners were Ratih Dewi Alan, Astuti Puspariani, and Aulia Ilmi Mardhotillah. In the one-hour competition, all three successfully produced their best calligraphy read more

On Thursday, March 12, 2020, the Japanese Literature Program received a visit from the Education Attaché of the Japanese Embassy in Indonesia, Mr. Takahashi Yusuke. The visit was received by the Vice Dean for Academic and Student Affairs of the Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Dr. Nur Saktiningrum, M.Hum., along with the Head, Secretary, and several lecturers of the Japanese Literature Program. This visit was conducted not only to strengthen the cooperation between the Japanese Embassy and UGM, but also to introduce the new Education Attaché, Mr. Takahashi Yusuke, who will have been in the position for a full year this coming April. read more

On September 13 and 20, 2023, the Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture at Universitas Gadjah Mada, Faculty of Cultural Sciences held a Workshop and Sharing Session titled “Job Readiness of Graduates from the Japanese Language and Culture Study Program.”

The event featured four speakers: (1) M. Tanfidz Tamamuddin, S.S., an alumnus working in the creative industry as a comic artist and scriptwriter; (2) Fath Yustia Hendrawan, S.S., an alumnus working in oral and written translation of Japanese; (3) Sekar Kinasih, S.S., MAPS., an alumnus who is pursuing a master’s degree with a scholarship; and (4) Irwan Hermawan, S.E., M.M., a guest practitioner who works as both an academic and entrepreneur. The four speakers shared their experiences and inspirational stories about preparing for a complex, competitive, and professional job market. read more

Students from the Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture at Universitas Gadjah Mada, Faculty of Cultural Sciences have once again proven their excellence. This achievement was accomplished in a competition held by the Japanese Language and Culture Study Program at Diponegoro University, Semarang, as part of the Orenji event on November 5.

Lulu Nabiha Nurilailati, a student from the 2020 cohort, secured first place in the Shodou (Japanese calligraphy) competition. Meanwhile, Anadia Sabrina Sucianastasya achieved third place in the Japanese Speech Competition for university students. read more

On Tuesday, February 13, 2024, from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM WIB, the Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture at Universitas Gadjah Mada held a public lecture titled “Will Japan become a ‘normal country’?: Changes in The Defense Debate Before And After the Outbreak of The Ukraine War,” presented by Asst. Prof. Masato Nakahara, a researcher and lecturer at the Graduate School of International Cooperation Studies at Kobe University. This public lecture served as an opening for the even semester of the 2023/2024 academic year and was attended by lecturers and students from the Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture, as well as students from outside the program interested in Japanese-related issues. read more

On Monday, February 26, 2024, from 4:00 PM to 5:30 PM WIB, the Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture held a casual in-person discussion on the topic of “Current Conditions in Japan” with Dr. Aoyama Toru, an Emeritus Professor from Tokyo University of Foreign Studies. The discussion was attended by lecturer and active students from the Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture.

The discussion began with an explanation of Japan’s current situation by Dr. Aoyama. On January 1, 2024, the Noto region in Ishikawa Prefecture experienced a devastating earthquake measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale at 2:10 PM local time. The earthquake not only damaged many public facilities and homes but also affected access routes to the areas hit by the quake. The severe destruction hindered the government’s disaster relief efforts. Moreover, the impacted area is predominantly rural and inhabited by elderly residents, many of whom struggle to move quickly in emergency situations. This earthquake and its aftermath could potentially lead to the region disappearing from the map of Japan, as young people are increasingly choosing to live in cities with better facilities. Following Dr. Aoyama’s explanation, the session transitioned into a dynamic and interactive Q&A segment. This was followed by a discussion filled with various questions concerning social issues currently facing Japanese society, including the link between the problem of shoushikoureika (少子高齢化), which refers to low birth rates and a high aging population, and Japan’s future conditions. read more

On Thursday, February 22, 2024, from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM WIB, the Bachelor Program in Japansese Language and Culture held an Educational Collaboration event with Ferris Women University (FWU) from Yokohama, Japan. This cultural exchange activity was attended by Dr. Sato Akira, who served as the accompanying lecturer, along with three students from FWU, as well as faculty and students from the Japanese Language and Culture Study Program. After a welcoming event led by Dr. Tatang Hariri, M.A., the head of the Bachelor Program in Japansese Language and Culture, the FWU lecturers and students entered the classroom to engage in discussions and exchange information with UGM students. read more

The Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture accepted Mr. Yuki Murakami, a Master student of Development Economics Program from Kobe University as an intern student. The internship lasted for 16 days from February 13 to 29 with Dr. Masato Nakahara as her supervisor.

During his internship at Universitas Gadjah Mada, Mr. Murakami participated in several academic activities including being a teaching assistant in class, correcting practice questions, and participating in study program academic activities. As a teaching assistant, in the Conversation Japanese class, Mr. Murakami explains and practices how Japanese people speak well and naturally as well as basic knowledge to Japanese speaking habits. Next, in the History of Japanese Thought class, he helped the lecturer explain how Japan found a solution to be able to catch up with other countries after the implementation of sakoku (鎖国), which was Japan’s policy of isolating itself from the outside world. read more

On Wednesday, March 6 2024, the Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture held a webinar entitled Webinar on Japanese Language and Literature. The webinar was attended by more than 70 participants, a combination of the Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture students and students outside the study program who have an interest in Japanese Language and Literature.

The webinar was held in two sessions, with the first session by Dr. Mulyadi, M.A. as a lecturer in Linguistics at the Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture and the second session by Prof. Mika Baba who is a lecturer in the Literature subprogram of the Undergraduate Program in Humanities and Literature from Tsukuba University. read more

On Tuesday, March 19 2024, the Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture held an outreach on working in Japan with the Marimo Group. The activities carried out on the basis of this collaboration were attended directly by representatives of the Marimo Group, Manager of International Human Resource Development Marimo Holdings Inc. Kanakuchi Yuya and Drs. Tatang Hariri, M.A., Ph.D. as Head of the Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture along with final year students and alumni of the Program. read more

A lecturer of the Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture, Mr. Akbar Rizqi Dhea Habibi, was invited by the Bumi Shalawat Sidoarjo Progressive School to fill the Cross Cultural Experience activity on May 6-7, 2024. The activity was attended by students from the extracurricular Japanese Class. This activity consisted of a sharing session by Akbar Rizqi, accompanied by a foreign student from Japan, Yoshikawa Ryoga, who is studying at INCULS FIB UGM. The topic raised at the activity was discussing life and the school environment in Japan and Indonesia. In addition, it was continued with a workshop and practice of writing Japanese calligraphy (Shuuji). In the sharing session, Mr. Akbar Rizqi provided in-depth insights on how to get a scholarship, learn the Japanese language and culture, and shared experiences about life and the school environment in Japan. There was also a sharing session by Yoshikawa Ryoga about his experiences as a foreign student in Indonesia. read more

On Wednesday 20 March 2024, the Bachelor Program in Japanese Language and Culture held a Monbukagakusho/MEXT scholarship outreach with the Embassy of Japan in Jakarta with Fenny Gunadi who is the Study Abroad Advisor and First Secretary Kawakubo Yuriko, Education Section of the Embassy of Japan as speakers. This activity was attended by our program’s students from various classes.

The Monbukagakusho or MEXT Scholarship is a scholarship from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan aimed at academics from outside Japan with the intention of studying in Japan. These scholarships are divided into various levels of education, from Diploma to Doctoral level. At the Diploma level there are two scholarship options, namely the Specialized Training College (Senshu) and College of Technology (Kosen) scholarships. For undergraduates there are Undergraduate (Gakubu) scholarships. Meanwhile, for Masters and Doctoral degrees, there are Research Student scholarships. Apart from that, there are non-degree scholarship programs such as the Japanese Studies scholarship for exchange students from the Japanese Studies department and Teacher Training for active Japanese language teachers in formal schools. read more