On Tuesday February 12, 2019, the delegates from Tama University, led by Professor William Shang, PhD, Dean of the School of Global Studies, visited the Faculty of Arts. Welcomed by Associate Dean Associate Professor Suradech Chotiudompant, PhD, and Assistant Dean Assistant Professor Nirada Chitrakara, the delegates gave some background information of Tama University, located near Kamakura, a small city not far from Tokyo, as well as that of its School of Global Studies, which has been working closely with the City of Fujisawa in Kanagawa Prefecture, especially with Fujisawa City Tourist Association. This relationship was established in 2015 in preparation for the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Sailing events to be held in Fujisawa. Therefore, leisure studies and tourism studies are a prime focus of their institute. In relation to this, the School of Global Studies needs to internationalize their profile and increase their students’ international exposure.
One of their main reasons for their visit is thus the student mobility project, in which Tama University is interested in sending up to 20 students to Thailand to learn about our social and cultural dimensions. Assistant Professor Nirada informed the delegates of the recently held summer programs for various universities worldwide, such as the University of Tokyo and National Taiwan University. The meeting ended amicably with the delegates from Tama University expressed their strong interest in our summer program, which can be customized to suit different requirements.