Extracurricular Activities

Taking part in extracurricular activities will be good source of interaction with Japanese students. The clubs and circles at Kansai Gaidai warmly welcome the participation of international students.
To name a few, athletically inclined students may join soccer, basketball, or cheerleading club. There are also a wide range of Japanese martial arts clubs such as Judo, Kendo, Karate, or Shorinji-Kempo. Surprisingly enough some international students have even been able to speedily improve skills and earn advanced ranks within the hierarchies of those activities.

Extracurricular Activities

Students who wish to deepen their understanding of Japanese culture may find it very attractive to explore clubs such as tea ceremony, calligraphy, flower arrangement, or Koto (the Japanese harp). An on-campus community volunteer club named "Himawari Club" may also interest you since the club organizes activities in which international students are exposed to local Japanese children/people in the vicinity of the university.

Clubs in Japan, in many ways, play a very unique role in college life, for relationships established during membership could be instrumental to success after graduation. Therefore, some clubs may take membership seriously and insist on regular attendance. Since meetings or practice sessions may be held as often as six times a week, it is not advisable to join more than one club.

Extracurricular Activities

"Circles," on the other hand, are different from "Clubs" in many ways. Circles are less strict and less hierarchical. Their rationale seems to be "Let's-get-together-to-have-fun."
Information on clubs and circles is available at the Center for International Education. Students should be aware that because of the Japanese Academic Calendar, clubs/circles are not usually active in February and March.