Applying to Kansai Gaidai

As I considered, then applied, to Kansai Gaidai, the resources that were the most informative and helpful (besides some of the official info) were blogs--those written by current and former KG Asian Studies students. It was wonderfully reassuring to hear (real!) people describe their application, social, academic, etc. experiences. Hopefully, this blog, too, will be of use to other prospective KG students. :)

Most of the student blogs are written by direct-exchange students--those who apply through their schools (which have an exchange agreement with KG). However, because my school is not affiliated with KG, I had to apply as an independent student. Though it was at first a really intimidating idea, now that I've gone through the process, I've realized it's not quite as daunting as it first may seem. In fact, certain aspects are simplified and far more efficient. But there are certain drawbacks, mostly relating to the payment of fees.  You'll see..

Okay, enough intro-talk, here's a basic sort-of detailed outline of the process!