Living life to the fullest

Leaving a very well paid job to do a PhD in one of the top most Universities of Japan was one of the most difficult but the smartest decisions I have made in life. I had a good job, I loved my life in Nepal and yet, I decided to leave everything and come to Japan. Leaving home hasn't been easy. Living alone for the first time in my life,the language barrier, homesickness and back to being a student was not a piece of cake for me. But after three years of living in Japan, I am glad I came here because I would never have known what I was missing had I not come out of my comfort zone.

Back to being a student meant I was learning new things everyday. As someone who had never seriously done data analysis before, it meant a mountain of things to learn. Not only did I learn data analysis in R, but I also learned valuable life lessons such as time management, work-life balance and communication. Trying to publish a paper was one of the biggest challenges - for that, I am truely grateful to my Professor for supporting and being patient with me. Now I have one paper published and two more manuscripts in the pipeline.

Wanting to make the most out of this "study abroad" opportunity, I enrolled myself in classical Japanese dance class, worked as a student member of Sendai Tourism International Association (SenTIA), taught English, represented my University at the biggest festival of Sendai and promoted tourism through Sendai TV. I created contents for a project called "Go Go Tohoku" to increase tourism in this wonderful city which has been a home to me for the last three years.

Now, with only few months left to graduate, I am looking forward to the new opportunities and platforms. As a Japanese government full scholarship student, I feel motivated and commited to contribute to Japan.