In March our colleague Seb Cadinot from the Global and Lifelong Learning team visited partners in Japan, meeting with key colleagues at partner institutions. As an advocate for international student mobility (Seb has been involved in international education for over 20 years and was an international student himself), Seb was delighted to be able to catch up with two of his first Japanese students at Kent. They both shared how their time in the UK had given them an opportunity to see the world differently and that the cultural intelligence they had developed through their study abroad experience had benefitted them in their careers. Now that Seb teaches cultural intelligence as part of his Global Leadership Development module, this was obviously delightful to hear, and it’s something we’re all keen to see our students develop.
Seb was also able to meet with some of our current Study Abroad students who are enjoying their second term in Japan and incoming 24/25 Study Abroad students. This has given those incoming Japanese students an opportunity to learn more about student life at Kent and what to do in their first few weeks in Canterbury. The Kent students loved being able to share their knowledge and welcome our Japanese Study Abroad students before they leave home.