For many Japanese students, their career at OU and time in the United States will be over soon.
The students will look back with nostalgia and memories about their intercultural program.
The Ritsumeikan Intercultural Program graduation ceremony will be from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. today in Commons Restaurant in Oklahoma Memorial Union.
The OU-Ritsumeikan University intercultural program students will return to Japan on Sunday.
The students experienced many things at OU and in the United States, said Emily A. Smith, International Exchange Programs Administration and Sponsored Programs assistant director.
Akiko Kuyama, Ritsumeikan University coordinator, said most OU and College of English staff helped her with cooperative attitudes even with language miscommunications.
She said melting into the OU community was easy, as long as people cooperated with her through her language problems and tried to listen to her opinions.
"Actually, this was my second time to visit in U.S.," said social science freshman, Masami Kishida said. "But it was nice to experience cultural differences for if I did not participate in this program."
Masami said one of the differences between Japan and the U.S. students that surprised her was that U.S. students had roommates.
She was impressed by her roommate but they disagreed with ways of thinking, studying attitudes and lifestyles.
Smith said the program has two main purposes, improving language skills and improving specific cultural differences. The Japanese students lived in dorms and with American host families. That allowed them to enter both younger generation and traditional American life.
Moreover, being at OU also gave the Japanese students the opportunity to meet students from many other countries.
Today's ceremony will include singing a Japanese song, short speeches and presentations. The program is free.
Students will say good-bye to their host family at 7 a.m. Sunday.
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