Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University (APU) Tuition Reduction Scholarship Recipient Norbert Raditya Putra Arjuna from Indonesia Shares His Journey of Pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting and Finance at Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University

My name is Norbert Raditya Putra Arjuna. I was born in Jakarta, Indonesia, on the 6th of June 2005 to a family of office workers. As of now, I am working on an undergraduate degree at Ritsumeikan Pacific Asia University and am majoring in Accounting-finance and am attempting to minor in Marketing. I have decided to pursue further education in the field of finance and accounting due to the potential career opportunities that it could bring, and also the hard skills of accounting that are the backbone of the economy.

Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University Tuition Scholarship Details

The scholarship I received was a 100% tuition reduction for my whole 4 years of college at Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University. The scholarship will continue as long as my GPA is above 2.5, I don’t get suspended, and I take enough credits per semester.

Were You Offered any Other Scholarships?

I was similarly offered a 100% tuition reduction by Tokyo International University for the whole 4 years of college. The faculty that I applied for was also accounting and finance.

I also received the JASSO (Japan Student Services Organization) grant-type scholarship, where I was granted 48,000 JPY per month for my first year, provided by Japan’s MEXT (Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology).

Educational Background

As a new undergraduate student, preparing for scholarships was a very new experience for me, as high school barely had any scholarship programs. Despite that, I have always tried my best to both excel academically and still do well non-academically. As such, I was able to get a cumulative GPA of 91.56 over my 3 years in high school, reaching a peak GPA of 95.87 during my 5th semester of high school, whilst scoring 2nd in my grade of 264 students. Extracurricular-wise, I competed in and won a few business case competitions alongside my volunteering activities.

How Did You Prepare to Apply to Ritsumeikan Pacific Asia University?

How Did You Find Information About Scholarships and Ritsumeikan Pacific Asia University?

My case is a bit special in this aspect as everyone is allowed to apply for the scholarship when they apply to Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, but the amount itself is determined by the academic and extracurricular excellence of the applicant. I found out about the scholarship that my university institution provided from an education fair the university had in my high school. Furthermore, I followed multiple guidance sessions that the university provided to prepare for my application.

Did You Take Any Standardized Tests? If So, How Did You Prepare for Them?

I took IELTS as a required standardized language proficiency to apply for both college and the scholarship that the university provided. The way I prepared for IELTS was to first research the 4 IELTS tests, primarily using YouTube videos, online websites, and the simulator that the British Council usually provides. Afterwards, I integrate the tests into parts of my daily life.

For reading, I started to read novels and practice inference alongside practice questions. For listening, I also try to write down and review videos I’ve listened to and further practice listening questions.  Lastly, in the case of writing and speaking, I would essentially do practice runs where I write an essay and judge each sentence, be it the flow, cohesion, logic, and more, which got me used to essay writing; I also spend time researching and watching YouTube videos that go in-depth into writing. This flows down into my speaking, where my increased exposure to English via the previous activities helps boost my vocabulary pool. Additionally, I often find myself doing practice speeches in front of mirrors while evaluating myself and adjusting accordingly. In the end, with only a few weeks of intensive preparation (in addition to this process), I was able to get a band 8 IELTS score.

How Did You Prepare to Apply to the Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University Tuition Scholarship?

There were 2 things I prepared when applying for the scholarship: my personal performance and how I presented myself.

My preparation in terms of personal performance began with my academic performance from the beginning of high school. Every academic year, I set a goal for myself to improve my grades from my last semester and to not experience any dip in terms of academic performance. The result is a stable growth that promises an applicant who can grow and will grow stronger with the scholarship. This process also had me do more extracurricular activities, such as volunteering and doing business case competitions. Everything in this phase is done in order to increase the merits I have as a potential applicant. This process itself has led me to improve my bounds, and if I had not, the process has also allowed me to experience things I wouldn’t have dreamt of before. I was able to participate in the Wharton School’s 2022 Global Youth program under a grant-type scholarship given to me by the Tanoto Foundation.

My preparation in presenting myself comes in the form of the documents I submit, the essay I write, and most importantly, how I present myself to the university’s interviewers. The documents I submit essentially act as my portfolio, and the essay delivers a certain message that will leave an impression on the reader. The essay is particularly important as it is imperative that the contents of the essay reflect the points the reviewers will like, the SPECIFIC motivation that drove me into picking my university, which matches the portfolio that will be backing me up. The way I present myself during live interviews is also important as I need to know what the interviewers want to hear and match it accordingly to both the essay and submitted documents.

How Does Ritsumeikan Pacific Asia University Support International Students?

The institution supports the international students very well. Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University prides itself on the international environment that it has, and as such, the university has prepared a lot of support structures for its international students. The university provides student dormitories designed for first-year students to stay in. These dorms help students adjust to living in both Japan as the university’s background and the university’s international environment, as they host students from various countries, ranging from the United States, Zimbabwe, India, Thailand, Korea, Japan, and many more countries. The university also provides various services in the form of their student office for inquiries, the career office for students (domestic or international) who are job-hunting, the SALC (Self Access Learning Center) for language learning, language classes (especially Japanese), and much more.

Are Your Classes Conducted in English or Japanese?

Classes are conducted both in English and the country’s native language, Japanese. Students are split into Japanese and English as their primary language base, but each is allowed to pick lessons in either language.

Would Potential Students Have Any Problems Academically Not Knowing Japanese?

Students are highly encouraged by the university to step out of their comfort zone and take language classes ranging from Spanish, Malay, Chinese, and more. Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University also prides itself on being able to deliver high-quality education regarding the Japanese language via compulsory Japanese classes, with optional classes going up until advanced level for English-based students. Japanese-based students are also given mandatory English classes, going up to advanced debate classes, alongside business English classes. During these classes, the university also often holds exchange events both as part of the academic process and as an extracurricular event. Specifically, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University has a student body named SALC (Self Access Learning Center) where students are given access to various language learning materials alongside access to tutors who are proficient in their respective languages.

What Do You Think Made Your Application Stand Out?

I believe that there were multiple factors that made my application stand out, but the most important one was how I was able to represent my goals and my efforts as clearly and interestingly to the University as possible. My extracurricular activities in volunteering alongside my participation in Wharton School’s 2022 Global Youth program showed that I had a socially responsible and international mindset, with my business case competition endeavors showing my ambitions. On the other hand, my consistent academic performance showed that I was dependable in consistently growing and improving myself. Thus, I was able to sell an image of myself that aligned with the core values of Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, that is, to be able to shape your world.

What Would You Have Done Differently if You Were Going Through the Process Again?

If I could have done things differently, I would have tried my best to increase my extracurricular activities and earn more non-academic merits. Whilst my academic performance did do a lot, I believe that more organizational activities would have benefited me more, both in terms of merit and also in self-development.

What Advice Would You Give Those Looking to Apply for a Similar Scholarship?

A piece of advice I would give to those looking to apply for a similar scholarship is to first research the issuing institution. Find their values and try to adjust accordingly. Whilst adjusting, you also need to be able to grow yourself as an individual with a unique value to them, be it from your own specific experience, skillset, or even personality trait, to paint an interesting image. You need to be able to present yourself as someone they’re looking for, someone that’s interesting, someone that is safe, and also someone that is in need of help. Safety can be easily ensured by academic consistency, growth, and performance. Lastly, presenting oneself as someone in need requires genuineness and ambition; you need to let the scholarship institutions know that you really need this scholarship and promise them that their investment in you will be worth it with the drive that you, as an applicant, have.