As a student who came from Ibaraki University, Japan, Yuwa Takagi felt challenged to experience a variety of new things that he has never tried before. His willingness to explore and broaden academic horizons led to his decision in choosing Faculty of Agriculture UGM, Indonesia as his destination in Asian International Mobility for Students (AIMS) since August to December 2024.
Yuwa shared his favorite class named “Traditional Fermented Food of Indonesia”. This class became his favorite since it facilitated him to meet with regular students, so that he can make friends with a lot of students and learn about their culturals background. The lecturer of the class is Susanti Mugi Lestari, S.P., M.Si., Ph.D., a lecturer of Department of Agricultural Microbiology. Yuwa, who is a student of Food Science major, admired Susanti because of her knowledge and the way she teach in class.
“Dr. Susanti has a great way to teach in class with her English skill that is really good. I admire her because of it,” he added.
In addition, Yuwa also liked the Seed Technology Practicum where he met his cheerful friends. He enjoyed the practicum and he was able to finish all the assignments and reports happily. Yuwa explained, these courses gave him a lot of opportunity in studying other languages and exploring interesting subjects. Besides academic environment, Yuwa found that the existence of cats around UGM is a really unique situation. Yuwa said, he would not find any cats in Ibaraki University. But, thanks to these cats, Yuwa was able to feel relax by playing with them after finishing his assignments.
Yuwa’s time at UGM through the AIMS program has been an invaluable experience, both academically and personally. Studying courses like “Traditional Fermented Food of Indonesia” and “Seed Technology” allowed him to dive deeper into subjects related to his major while also exploring new fields. The opportunity to interact with regular students and make lasting friendships enriched his stay. Beyond academics, the unique experience of encountering cats on campus helped me unwind and recharge during stressful moments. Overall, this program has not only broadened Yuwa’s academic horizons, but also deepened his cultural understanding and appreciation of Indonesia.
Yuwa’s experiences at Faculty of Agriculture UGM has shown the strong commitment of the faculty in providing a great environment for student exchange programs and it is in line with the aim of accomplishing sustainable development goals (SDGs), mainly SDG 1: No Poverty, SDG 2: Zero Hunger, SDG 4: Quality Education, and SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals.
Author: Hanita Athasari Zain
Editor: Desi Utami
Photo: Yuwa’s documentation