Messages from JICA scholarship students who completed the master degree at Kobe University

Name：
Mr. ROZI Muhammad Fakhrur
(From Indonesia, and studied Information and Communications Technology with a specialty in Artificial Intelligence)
Mr. ARUNOTHAIKRIT Worachat
(From Thailand, and studied Information and Communications Technology)
Name of the course： Innovative Asia*
Graduated Univ.：Graduate school of engineering, Kobe University
Duration of the course：Sep. 2018 - Mar. 2021

On March 25, 2021, two JICA long-term participants (scholarship students) who belong to Innovative Asia program have completed the master degree at Kobe University. Here are their impression of research and daily life for two and a half years in Japan and next path after graduation.

（* Innovative Asia is the program to offer opportunities of study and internship in Japan for competent students/graduates from the top level universities in Asian developing/emerging countries. For the details, please see the webpage linked below.）

Mr. ROZI Muhammad Fakhrur　- After completion of master’s degree, advancing to doctoral course and start working as a researcher in Japan -

Pursuing my master's degree in Japan is an unexpected thing that I have in my life.

JICA helped me a lot to manifest my dream to study abroad with full support during my study in Kobe, Japan. They helped me get many great Japanese-related things that I cannot get in other places and opportunities. Besides that, they always care about my condition during my study.

Japan is one of the best places to study abroad. I can find a mix of technology and culture at the same time. Many educational institutions have a really great environment for study. The professors are very professional and giving full support to finish my research. Moreover, the people and environment are very comfortable that support my daily living.

After graduating from Kobe University, I have a chance to extend my stay in Japan as a researcher at the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT), one of the best research institutions, in Japan. Besides that, I continue my study to a doctoral course in the same laboratory, Kobe University.
Finally, I thank the Innovative Asia program, JICA that supports me in achieving my dream. I really enjoyed it for the last 2 and a half years in Kobe. My struggle has not ended yet. I hope Indonesia and Japan have stronger cooperation.

Mr. ARUNOTHAIKRIT Worachat　- After completion of master’s degree, return to home country and start working -

I graduated from Kobe University with a Master's Degree. It would not have happened without this opportunity from the JICA Innovative Asia program. JICA supports everything when I live in Japan, such as airfare, livelihoods, and activities to learn about Japanese culture.

My life in Japan is one of the best experiences in my life. People are very kind and helped me even I cannot speak Japanese. In Kobe, food and dessert are very delicious, especially beef. Transportation in Japan is very convenient and safe. I can quickly go anywhere using only the train. I visited Osaka, Nara, Himeji, and many other places in Japan.

After I graduated, I return to my country to work as a Software Engineer at an American real estate software company. I will use my knowledge to give the contribution to society and my career.

I would like to warmly thank the JICA staff, who have always supported me. I am also thankful to JICA that make my dream come true.


That is about messages from two participants who have completed their research in Japan and are proceeding to the next step. About 3 months have passed after their graduating, I heard that Mr. Rozi have conducted collaborative research between NICT and Kobe University regarding AI implementation in the cybersecurity field and together they want to develop a robust system to protect users from any threats while using information and communications technology (ICT). And Mr. Worachat seems very busy with his work every day.

As the spread of COVID-19 continues around the world, not only they, but also most university students are restricted from entering university campuses and laboratories even in Japan. And opportunities for face to face communication with their supervisors, lab members and friends have decreased dramatically. Moreover, opportunities for internships related to careers after graduation and employment have decreased. International students also lost a chance to return to their home countries temporarily to refresh and spend time with their families and friends because many countries are implementing immigration restrictions. Rozi-san and Worachat-san must have spent difficult time in the latter half of the program due to COVID-19.

I would like to express my great respect to them who have completed their research even in such a difficult situation and advanced to the next step by utilizing their expertise and experience. I am looking forward to their further success!

（YOSHIDA Nozomi, Program Division 1, JICA Kansai）