The Keio University, College of William & Mary Cross-Cultural Collaboration is a program centered on experiential learning that allows both Japanese and American students to study questions of cultural difference and national identity.  The program brings 25 to 40 Japanese university students to America for two to three weeks to study and experience first-hand American society and culture with William & Mary graduate and undergraduate students. Students attend lectures on a variety of topics including race, religion, and pop culture while engaging with American culture firsthand through fieldwork activities such as trips to Colonial Williamsburg, Hampton Roads, and Washington, D.C.

A cutting-edge program, when conceived in 1990, the Keio University, William & Mary Cross-Cultural Collaboration, has grown and evolved over the years to become an important part of the university's commitment to enhancing the quality of higher education and to developing relationships with the international community.

W&M students will have an opportunity to network with students from Keio University.  Students interested in Japanese culture are encouraged to apply. Please contact nlewis@wm.edu for more information.  

Peer Assistants (PA)

Each William & Mary student works with a group of five or six Japanese students as a Peer Assistant (PA). You will help the Japanese participants in your Focus Group conduct research in Williamsburg and develop a 30-minute group presentation. There will be two mandatory orientation sessions for all PAs: one afternoon session before the end of the spring semester, and the second one will be held in August.  Duties will include the following:

• Attend lectures about different aspects of American culture with the Keio students.
• Meet with your focus group every day to facilitate the completion of the research project 
• Help them refine, focus, and organize their ideas.
• Assist the group with their presentation skills.
• Meet regularly with a graduate student classroom instructor (CI), who will monitor the progress of your group and lend assistance on occasion.
• Update the classroom instructor and work with her/him to solve problems that may arise with your group’s project.
• Participate in program activities, sharing the experience with the Keio students.
• Reside in the dorms and hotels with the Keio students and program director.    
• Dine with the students from time to time

Introduce the Keio students to life at William and Mary and help to ensure a safe and rewarding study abroad experience for them.

Compensation: $1,750