Masahiro NOMURA

Project Operations Management

Dispatched to : Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad, India (Departmental Cooperative Agreement)
Graduated in : March 2016 (Admitted in 2014)

Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad

I had had an opportunity to study at the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA) as an exchange student from September to November 2015.

nomura 3When I entered the GSM, I planned to study abroad in the second year. I had heard that I had to study hard for basic classes in the first year. In fact, I did not have enough free time because of so many assignments, reports and group works in the first year. I got almost all credits to complete the course, so I decided to study abroad.

We have many choices about the country we study in, because GSM has so many affiliated schools all over the world. I chose studying in India. By the way, what kind of image do you have of India?“ One of the most remarkable growth in the world”,“ it has a huge population”,“ I could change my view of life, if I stay in India”,“ Curry, curry” and so on. Nowadays, we can get so much information on the Internet easily, however, they are their experiences, not ours. If I want to get the real experience, I should go there. I wanted to study and live with students who would lead the growing country at IIMA, so I chose India.

It was the first time to send exchange students to IIMA from GSM, so I had to find the procedure for getting a VISA and applying for the exchange program. Finally, I could start studying abroad. I deeply appreciate what the GSM officer did to help me. Ahmedabad is the capital city of Gujarat State, in western India. There is a plan to make a high-speed railway from Mumbai to Ahmedabad by adopting the Shinkansen-style system, and it appeared in newspapers at the end of 2015. But I think it is not so famous in Japan. It was the end of the rainy season, it rained for several days while I stayed in India.

I had 4 courses.“ Doing Business in India”, which was for only exchange students, gave me basic information and the information I should know for doing business in India. There was a unique title of the course, which was“ Elephants and Cheetahs”. At first, I had not understood the meaning of the title, however, I could understand it gradually as the course proceeded. The lectures were given in English. We had to read at least one case, and after discussing it in small groups made a report almost every day. I am not good at reading in English quickly, it was so hard for me to catch up with them. Thanks to help from my friends and buddy, I could finish the courses.

In terms of living, I did not have any trouble. The accommodation was the dorm on the campus. The room had no air conditioner, it was so hot and humid, but we could get a comfortable temperature in the library. If it is someone’s birthday, you would enjoy a special party in the dorm. There are small restaurants and cafeteria in the campus, and big supermarket near the campus. The campus has a dispensary, so you can consult a doctor and get a medical prescription from him. And also you can enjoy exercise in the gym.

In terms of culture, I could experience“ Diwali” which is the biggest festival for Hindus. It was such an exciting festival. There were so many fireworks and shops everywhere in the night during the festival time. India has so many culture and festival, so many dance parties were held almost every two or three weeks, I had a great experience joining the party and dancing with them. There are heritage sites in the city and suburban areas of the city. You could go to Ajanta, Mumbai and so on, if you have free time for several days. I think that the opportunity to study abroad is limited generally, and so many people want to join it.

However, GSM gives you the chance to study abroad. I heard the Japanese word“ En” so many times from elder people.“ En” has many meanings, destiny, relationship and so on. When you find the application for exchange program, it is“ En” I think. It leads you to many friends and experiences, and they give you a new“ En”. Studying abroad gives you great experiences in your life, I want you to apply for the opportunity to study abroad positively.