Episode
The eight competencies developed at Ritsumeikan Academy.
We introduce how they are developed through daily experiences, along with diverse episodes.
*These episodes are based on responses actually submitted by students at every level of education—including elementary, junior high, and high school students, as well as university and graduate students—in the Quantitative Survey for Ritsumeikan Academy Competency Framework conducted in the 2024 academic year. Information that could identify individuals has been removed or modified before publication.
Competency
Episode
- Classes
- StudyAbroad
- ExtracurricularActivities
- ClubsAndSocieties
- StudyingOutsideOfClass
- Research
- SchoolEvents
- ExtracurricularLessons
- Community
- Family
- FriendsAndPeers
- TeachersAndMentors
- Goals
- Effort
- Achievement
- Growth
- Collaboration
- SeekingAdvice
- GivingUp
- Worries
- Happiness
- Anxiety
- Confidence
- Change
- EntranceExamsAndQualifications
- JobHuntingAndInternships
- PartTimeJobs
Resilience has been learned throughout the entirety of my life. I have constantly experienced troubles and failures in my life, but eventually, I learned that there is no such thing as failure as long as you keep trying. Failure is when you completely give up, learning is when you make mistakes and correct them. As long as you experience troubles and try to learn from them, you will never fail. I will provide an example. Unfortunately, I have had three friends pass away due to problems with mental health. While this profoundly affected me, I learned the importance of taking care of my own self and how to continue living even when life is difficult. Though there are many other examples of hardships in my life, this one stands out as a recent example, and I strengthened my resilience by living through this experience.
Resilience
While starting study here, I was first very pressured how things work here so it took me some time to get used to the system, the people and what was expected of me. After my first semester I became even more aware about myself and trusted my abilities and skills even more than I did already before. A very big contribution was the experience of living abroad as well by my best friend in the UK. Because I am currently working on scholarship applications to stay longer in Japan, I see my path more clearer because I needed to do more reflection on my values I live by and what it can do for my future professional career. Even though I know getting into the scholarships is very difficult I have more insurance and trust in my abilities and skills to find even a way to stay longer in Japan without the scholarship money. It will work out in my way, I am more sure about that. Fortunately, I did not had major set backs to get back up again but the small "failures" or learning experiences in the intercultural context made me really resilient towards everything that I am working on right now as well as my future goals.
Resilience
The competency which I believe I have acquired is innovation. In this case, I learn Python programming language and applies it to my work and research The situation that motivated me to acquire it is as follow:I used to work at a tax consultancy as a researcher. I wrote reports on our clients' industrial performance in the previous fiscal year. The reports were then integrated into our clients' tax reports.One day, my friends who are hired at the same time as me got promoted, while I did not. At that time, I felt that it was unfair, because I worked as hard and as smart as them. But then I realize that they were hired as consultants, while I was hired as a researcher. It means that for the company, my position was not as important as them.That event motivated me to learn Python programming language to bring something new to the table and make my position more irreplaceable. After learning it and work in a new place, I created several programming scripts that allow my team to achieve better results at shorter time period. It also allows us to explore new things that was not possible before.
Innovation
Last November, together with the other laboratory members, we went to a research facility in Tsukuba to do an experiment for a week. We had made a schedule to divide the work. As usual, even if we already scheduled everything in detail, there must be unpredictable conditions. We planned to do the experiments the next day after we arrived but for some reason, we had to start the experiment earlier than the scheduled. Because of this, there is a major change to the schedule. I always said that if there is anything I can help please don’t hesitate to contact me. Even though I am not able to provide meaningful help because of the language barrier, my friends always appreciate my initiative. Finally, we acquired the data safely. Thus, after this event, I felt that we were getting closer to each other.
Teamwork
During group projects in a class, I took last semester with classmates. We work well with each other by firstly scheduling our work time together, considering our busy schedules and conveniences. Then, decide on each person's role or separate work responsibility and brainstorm how to deliver the presentation together. To ensure that the work is in good progress, we keep clear communication and ask among ourselves when any question arises and think of a way to tackle it together. After the group work is finished, we gain good feedback from the professor and other classmates. As a self-reflection, working on a task together also deepened our friendship.
Teamwork
From my interactions with my friends, I realized that I'm more connected with people who likes to argue and debate ideas. Until now, my closest friends are the ones who are open minded and likes to argue about anything. We can argue about almost anything, from religion, philosophy, science, government policy, and even anime characters. Since we hate to lose debate, we always try to refine our logic and understanding so that we can win the next time we enter into a debate. I think our mutual traits as well as the high frequency of interactions allow us to think more objectively about many things and to look at things from multiple perspective.
Understanding
I faced a challenging yet transformative time of growth. The demanding coursework, combined with the pressure to conduct independent research, pushed me to my limits. Balancing academic responsibilities with personal well-being required resilience and adaptability. There were moments of doubt, especially when facing complex problems or receiving critical feedback. However, the supportive environment of my peers, mentors, and advisors was a strength. Collaborative discussions and encouragement helped me hone my skills and maintain my focus. Through this journey, I discovered the importance of self-discipline, time management, and believing in my ability to overcome challenges.
Self-efficacy
I always discuss with my professor and cohorts.
Multitasking
Communicating with people from different backgrounds on campus
Empathy