r/tuj

I am currently on the waitlist for the Introduction to Academic Discourse class that meets every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 10:15 to 12:15. However, my concern is that course registration for this summer semester closes on May 19, so I am not sure if I should just register for another class now or keep waiting until someone drops this course.

Personally, I really want to take ENG 0711, but realistically I am not confident that I will be able to get into the class before registration closes.

Right now, I honestly feel that my English skills are still not strong enough, so I strongly want to take this class to improve. If anyone has any advice, tips, or other possible ways to handle this situation, I would really appreciate hearing them.

Thank you!

Hi everyone,

I’m hoping to hear from current or recent Temple University Japan students, especially anyone who started at TUJ and later transferred to Temple’s Philadelphia campus.

We’re looking into TUJ for a U.S. student living abroad who may be interested in International Business, Communications, or a related major. The idea would be to start at TUJ, complete as many credits as possible there, and then possibly transfer to the Philadelphia campus for the final year.

A few questions:

1. Is a 2+1 path realistic or better for 3+1? For example, completing spring, summer, and fall sessions for about two years at TUJ, then finishing the last year in Philadelphia through the Fly to Philly Program. Is this actually doable in terms of course availability, required major classes, gen eds, and electives?
2. Are there enough courses offered at TUJ to take a heavier credit load? We’re wondering whether students can realistically complete a lot of credits in Japan before moving to Philly, or whether course availability becomes limiting.
3. How is the recent experience with staff, advising, and professors? We’ve seen some negative reviews online, but many seem to be from a few years ago. Would love to hear what the current or recent student experience is actually like.
4. What is the campus community like? Are there many U.S. students or international English-speaking students? Is it easy to make friends and navigate campus life in English?
5. How much Japanese is really needed day to day? The student is open to learning and acclimating, but we’re trying to understand whether someone can comfortably start college there without feeling overwhelmed by both college transition and a major language barrier.
6. How does U.S. financial aid/Pell Grant work at TUJ? For U.S. students attending TUJ, how smoothly does FAFSA/Pell Grant funding apply to tuition and school fees? Does the aid apply directly to the student account like it would at a U.S. campus, or do students usually need to pay upfront and get reimbursed later?

Also, has anyone used summer Pell Grant while studying at TUJ? Since we’re considering a heavier spring/summer/fall credit plan, we’re trying to understand whether summer Pell works normally there and whether it can help cover summer tuition if the student is enrolled in enough credits.

Any honest experiences, advice, warnings, or success stories would be really appreciated. Thank you!

hi guys so i used this reddit community a lot to do my research for this school and look at other people's stats so i thought to contribute my own stats for future students to see :)

so i actually applied to TUJ for comp sci (and got in) in the fall of 2024 but i has to drop out in the first two weeks due to a family situation.

this year i applied for the fall of 2026 IBS (international business studies)

In high school my stats were:

GPA: 2.8 (my school does not do gpa so this is approx)

Submitted SAT: 1310

I did not talk about any extracurriculars from high school because i had more to talk about my gap year

I applied late April and got my results back in 21 days

Also this is just additional info but I got waitlisted to Keio and Waseda so I'm not committed yet

I hope this helps anyone like it helped me a few months ago!

Hi guys, I’m currently in Japan and my university starts on the 18th. Had a quick question.

How do you realistically manage:
- university
- gym
- diet
- learning skills
- and trying to build something for your future

without burning out?

I’m 19 and honestly trying to figure out how people balance all of this properly without falling behind mentally or physically. Would appreciate any real advice from people who’ve gone through it.

Also how does your daily life look like?

Hi everyone,

I have a few questions about Nogawadai Dorm. I will be staying there starting from this summer semester, but the information I received was pretty limited, so I wanted to ask people who are currently living there or have lived there before.

1. How clean are the dorm rooms and shared spaces? Are they usually kept clean? From the photos and videos I saw, it honestly did not look very clean to me, so this is the thing I am most curious about.

2. Do people wear shoes inside the room?

3. Is personal privacy generally respected there?

4. Is it okay to drink alcohol alone inside your room?

5. Is smoking allowed inside the dorm building? Also, if you open the window in your room, does cigarette smell easily come in from outside?

Thank you so much for your help!

Hellooo

I'm aware it's super early to ask, but I'm currently attending community college with the intention of applying to TUJ around Fall 2027. However, I've ran through a good amount of post on here that state that your personal statement can play a huge part (if not more than the GPA does) in your acceptance to the university. So my question is, what are some things I should be expected to include in my personal statement?

Hi! I’m an incoming international student (Tokyo Campus) from the Philippines and was looking for opportunities to make connections/ friends from the school since I’ll be moving to Japan on my own. If anyone would like to give advice or want to be mutuals on Instagram please send me a message!