Summer Study Abroad for First-Gen CS student

Tyler Bontrager Start Date: Apr 7, 2021 - End Date: Aug 6, 2021
  • Tokyo, Japan

My Travel Story

by: Tyler Bontrager Start Date: Apr 7, 2021 - End Date: Aug 6, 2021
Hello! My name is Tyler, and I have recently been accepted to a summer study abroad program in Tokyo, Japan. I'm definitely going because I believe that it will be an invaluable experience. The sticker price is high, but I have to experience putting off actually paying people since I'm a university student :D
The photos that I have featured are from my trip to the Portland Japanese Garden, and I was just taken away by its beauty. The camera on my phone really doesn't do those scenes any justice. I hope to go again at some point during the spring season.

I have many interests including science, technology, engineering, math (STEM), learning spoken (and formal) languages (I learned Spanish, took some ASL classes, and am currently learning Japanese), humanities subjects like history and literature, and some others. I like to play strategy games in my free time like Chess and some video games. I also love to volunteer!

I'm a first-generation student, so already college is an overwhelming experience for me. However, to add to my existing preoccupations, I decided to apply for a summer study abroad in Japan against my better judgment because I am minoring in Japanese; the experience will help me become more dextrous with the language and boost my motivation to master it. This rather impulsive choice was partly because I realize that I may never get a real opportunity to take my education to the international level in the future as a Computer Science major. I'm hoping to expand my horizons and see what kind of opportunities the world has to offer. For instance, the idea of possibly teaching or doing some volunteer or research work in Japan is quite appealing.

The program I chose is an immersive study of the Japanese language and culture. It is a 6-week program that starts in the first week of June and ends in July. Not only will this be beneficial to the acquisition of Japanese, but it will also be the first time that I have traveled outside of the country, and perhaps it will be one of the few times I will in my life (I really do hope that's not the case!).

I have applied to several scholarships that will hopefully fund a portion of this adventure, but I'm hoping I can scrounge some extra funds to cover some of the costs that the scholarships can't. I haven't yet heard a decision from anybody, and I'm making this fundraising campaign my ultimate strife to reduce the cost to something a bit more manageable for me. Honestly, even if it will cover just the plane ticket, that's just that much less weight on my shoulders and it would make me more comfortable actually taking up this offer.

I thank you so much for taking the time to read about me! I'm totally looking forward to this trip in any case!

本当にありがとうございます！
楽しみにです！

P.S. I have no intention of actually reaching the goal of the campaign; I've listed all of the expenses for the sake of completion. Any amount that is reached by the end of the campaign is great!
  • Tokyo, Japan