Open my minds towards the world – My learning journey in Singapore

Hi, my name is Yuto Yoshimori. I’m 3^rd year student majoring in Cognitive and Psychological Sciences at School of Informatics. From July 3 to 19, I participated in summer programs (RAS 2025 & AUS 2025) held at National University of Singapore (NUS). It was my first time studying abroad, and I had valuable experiences that I could never have had in Japan. In this article, I’d like to share my experience throughout the days, and what I learned from them.

. Learning Journey at NUS

Beginning 3 days, I joined RAS 2025 program. I learned about environmental problems and current situations from the view of Southeast Asia through lectures from global leaders, group discussion and activities with multiple countries. It updated my insights on what is happening across world. That also worked to make connections with others to the following AUS program.

Next program was AUS 2025. It has three main topic ,“Sustainability & Regeneration”, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, and Heritage & Culture. On first week, I took lectures and several activities called “learning Journey”. Some themes were unfamiliar to me, but they also served as opportunities to broaden my horizons and spark my interest. 

Based on the learning and experiences from Week 1, we created own projects related to the theme in week 2. I engaged in making a solution to help Mild Cognitive Impairment patients. Integrating each person's expertise and strengths, and each nation’s situation. On presentation part, I saw a lot of enthusiastic plans to solve local problems. I was overwhelmed by their passion for their society's problems and their genuine desire to make things better. I was also impressive to see numerous proposals that made effective use of Japanese concepts and insights. On the other hand, I was able to encounter interesting ideas that I would never have thought of while living in Japan. What particularly struck me was the idea of making flushable toilet paper from banana stems. I was utterly shocked that the assumption toilet paper is flushable could be overturned—but for them, it's far from a given. It made me realize how deeply I'd been steeped in our values. 

. Off-campus activity

I cannot tell my life here without saying free time. I spent a lot of time with the friends I met here. We taught each other our languages, talked about my hobby of photography with showing my camera, ate hot pot together, and sang Vietnamese songs by karaoke. We shared enjoyable times and deepened our friendships. They even took me to places in Singapore I didn't know about. I look forward to visiting each other's countries someday. Friendship knows no borders.

During my free time, I explored every corner of Singapore. I visited its iconic landmarks like Marina Bay Sands and the Merlion, buildings seamlessly integrated with greenery, and areas where diverse ethnic cultures thrive. And the people I encountered there, speaking different languages and representing various ethnicities. Experiencing different cultures with all five senses offered a value that could never be matched by any other means.

There's something that changed in me before and after studying abroad. It's that I gained awareness and a mindset as a global citizen. It certainly wasn't all smooth sailing. At first, I was completely overwhelmed—confused by the different communication styles, struggling to speak English well, and unable to get used to the local food. There were even times I wanted to go back home. But what got me through it was having friends. I learned a mindset of accepting and enjoying differences from them. Once I consciously adopted this, the minor stress I'd previously felt mysteriously vanished. Beyond that, through this study abroad experience, I gained countless lessons and experiences: insights into various issues, cross-cultural exchange, and bonds with friends. These provided me with the wisdom and courage to live an increasingly globalized world.

In conclusion, I would like to express my deepest thanks to everyone who gave me such a great opportunity and kind support including NUS, Nagoya University, Student Council of AUS & RAS, Professor Imaizumi, Ms. Araki, and my friends from all over Asia !