Understanding other cultures is as important as one’s own. Intercultural exposure creates an opportunity to learn about different cultures, further promoting respect and understanding for them. It also forges awareness about its dos and don’ts. Students, the future leaders, who are exposed to such exchanges will be able to have discussions around this topic, which can advocate for a peaceful world that understands, appreciates, and tolerates each other’s cultures and traditions.
Attesting to that, a group of students from Hokkaido University, Japan, visited Management and Science University (MSU) on their study trip to Malaysia. The group, consisting of 20 students and 3 staff, was on a programme called Global Career Design. The unit, as part of this Liberal Arts degree at the university, exposes students to global cultural exchange to broaden their understanding and awareness of other cultures. These students were also exploring different options before deciding on their major, such as engineering, literature, science, and occupational therapy. Given that liberal arts is a broad topic, study trips to global universities allow the students to exhaust all avenues before settling on one.
The study trip to Malaysia consisted of travelling to different cities and towns while exploring options at different universities and learning about the local cultures and traditions. The group that visited MSU had a one-day programme full of various activities, from learning a new language to learning a new song—and everything in between—as part of the aim to forge an understanding of Malaysia’s cultures among the Japanese students. Coming from a country that is majorly populated by the Japanese, intercultural exposure to a country like Malaysia with multicultural and multiracial communities was an eye opener for most of them.
The students visited a few pivotal spots on campus. Among them were the anatomy museum and Braun’s Lab. The students learn about human anthropology here. From head to toe, many real human organs are stored and exhibited in glass jars. They can find skulls, bones, pelvic glands, skeletons, and deformed human foetuses. B. Braun Lab is the training ground for students to practise surgical sutures, and most of the training is curated by B. Braun. All medical items in this lab are fully sponsored by them as a collaborative effort with MSU.
Their excitement didn’t just halt there but was truly extended to learning Bahasa Melayu and the Malay traditional music instruments. They got their hands on gongs, gamelans, kompangs, keyboards, and cajons. It was up to them to choose the instruments they wanted to try on. Those who are passionate about singing tried the vocal too. The curtain raiser was for them to perform the song, Rasa Sayang, at the conclusion.
Understanding other cultures is as important as one’s own. Intercultural exposure creates an opportunity to learn about different cultures, further promoting respect and understanding for them. It also forges awareness about its dos and don’ts. Students, the future leaders, who are exposed to such exchanges will be able to have discussions around this topic, which can advocate for a peaceful world that understands, appreciates, and tolerates each other’s cultures and traditions.
Attesting to that, a group of students from Hokkaido University, Japan, visited Management and Science University (MSU) on their study trip to Malaysia. The group, consisting of 20 students and 3 staff, was on a programme called Global Career Design. The unit, as part of this Liberal Arts degree at the university, exposes students to global cultural exchange to broaden their understanding and awareness of other cultures. These students were also exploring different options before deciding on their major, such as engineering, literature, science, and occupational therapy. Given that liberal arts is a broad topic, study trips to global universities allow the students to exhaust all avenues before settling on one.
The study trip to Malaysia consisted of travelling to different cities and towns while exploring options at different universities and learning about the local cultures and traditions. The group that visited MSU had a one-day programme full of various activities, from learning a new language to learning a new song—and everything in between—as part of the aim to forge an understanding of Malaysia’s cultures among the Japanese students. Coming from a country that is majorly populated by the Japanese, intercultural exposure to a country like Malaysia with multicultural and multiracial communities was an eye opener for most of them.
The students visited a few pivotal spots on campus. Among them were the anatomy museum and Braun’s Lab. The students learn about human anthropology here. From head to toe, many real human organs are stored and exhibited in glass jars. They can find skulls, bones, pelvic glands, skeletons, and deformed human foetuses. B. Braun Lab is the training ground for students to practise surgical sutures, and most of the training is curated by B. Braun. All medical items in this lab are fully sponsored by them as a collaborative effort with MSU.
Their excitement didn’t just halt there but was truly extended to learning Bahasa Melayu and the Malay traditional music instruments. They got their hands on gongs, gamelans, kompangs, keyboards, and cajons. It was up to them to choose the instruments they wanted to try on. Those who are passionate about singing tried the vocal too. The curtain raiser was for them to perform the song, Rasa Sayang, at the conclusion.