From Japan to Morningside College: Yuka Kotani (revised)

Fueled by passion, desire, and bravery, one of Morningside’s foreign exchange students explains why she chose to come to the U.S.

Twenty-year-old Yuka Kotani is originally from Osaka, Japan, but decided to fly across the world to attend two semesters at Morningside College. She started as a sophomore in January of this year and will leave at the end of this semester.

Many different factors influenced her decision to attend college here, two of which were her passions for Mass Communication and TV production (areas not offered at her university in Japan) and her desire to improve her English speaking skills. As she said, being here and speaking with native English speakers has helped her build her confidence in her own English speaking abilities, which is an opportunity she would not have gotten back home.

Yuka has encountered some academic struggles along the way. Homework is an issue from time to time as she works to understand the assignment and is hampered by her slow reading abilities. She has found ways to overcome some of these obstacles, however. For example, she has started recording some of her lectures so she can listen to them again after class and take things at her own pace.

Even though there have been obstacles along the way, Yuka feels that coming to Morningside College has benefited her in many ways. She was able to become more independent and has learned that she can survive on her own, has greatly improved her English speaking abilities, has had the opportunity to learn more about American culture, and has made new friends along the way.

When she returns to Japan, she is looking forward to sharing her college experience with her friends and family and telling them all of the benefits of studying abroad. She says Morningside College is now considered her second home.