Rikkyo University to RMC-- A Year as an Exchange Student

By: Meredith Gray

Exchange students, Sarah and Jungeun shopping at the Short Pump mall

Sarah Frazier has spent the 2025-2026 academic year at Randolph-Macon on exchange from Rikkyo University in Tokyo, Japan. She is a part of the Department of the Global Liberal Arts Program where she studies business, humanities, and citizenship.

While at Randolph-Macon, Sarah has had the opportunity to take so many new courses. The most interesting course to her was her fall semester Environmental Problem-Solving class. Sarah said this course was challenging but extremely interesting. “During the semester, we conducted research on mussels, which I had never studied before. I especially liked using electrofishing equipment and going to the river to explore mussels”.

Environmental Problem-Solving class researching mussels

For Sarah, RMC has been exciting both in and out of the classroom. She enjoyed being in smaller classes, which is not as common at her home university. Sarah said, “My home university offers a wide variety of classes, but they are not always small in size. Some classes have over 100 students, which makes it difficult to build close relationships with professors. In contrast, classes at RMC are smaller, allowing for more interaction with professors.” While academics were integral to her RMC experience, most memories were made socially.

“One of my favorite memories outside of academics was participating in the small activities held around campus. I really enjoyed making flowerpots, creating bouquets, and crafting bracelets,” said Sarah.

Sarah and friends at RMC