International College of Liberal Arts (iCLA) at Yamanashi Gakuin University — Attraction in Kofu

Please, and I cannot stress this enough; DO NOT EVEN CONSIDER enrolling at this University, weather you plan to do exchange here, or for some reason decide to earn your DEGREE here, please DO NOT.

Speaking as a former student, who quit after a single year: The amount of lackluster classes, Inhospitable dorms, and everyday negligence by the near useless people at admin has led me to write this review.

For one, there are a lot of (I'll just say) "interesting" people that enrol here. the kind of people that come to Japan soley to drink and party, along with doing other nefarious things as well, just using iCLA as an outlet to do so.

The Dorms are a sorry state, filled with rotting food in the sinks, along with black mold. (Also, from what I have heard, the girls's dormitory is currently suffering from a cockroaches infestation)

And may I mention, the "non-smoking" policy on campus is largely ignored, with one of my friends even being sent to the emergency room by a student who repeatedly smoked in his dorm room.

What did Admin do upon hearing this?

Absoluteley Nothing.

They promised to my friend that they would kick the offending student out if he smoked again.

The offending student did, and Admin (once more) did nothing.

This level of negligence is unsafe, it is unfit for anyone to study here, and is only scratching the surface of how bad this place is.

The only saving grace were the professors, they were all great.

I Would personally go to Keio University, or Sofia University Instead, If you are looking for an actual decent (English Speaking) university within...

This university has been the most disappointing academic institution I have experienced, with extremely poor local conditions.

The dormitories, which are mandatory for exchange and degree-seeking students, are in an unacceptable state. Trash accumulates in the common areas, and despite repeated reports to the administration about cockroaches and flies surrounding the waste, no action is taken. The students responsible for maintaining cleanliness neglect their duties, and complaints to the administrative office are ignored. Nevertheless, students are still required to rent these dormitories for two semesters.

Additionally, the university imposes excessive fees for even the most basic administrative tasks. Despite paying approximately 1.5 million yen per semester, every document and service came with an extra charge—including a 300-yen fee for a simple email.

The only good thing here, are...

I am currently a second-year student at iCLA, and so far I have had only positive experiences at this university. The faculty members are very helpful, and I really enjoy the community. In the first year, it’s mandatory to stay in the dorms and enroll in the meal plan, but after that, students can move out and cook for themselves. However, I find the dorms and meal plan so easy and convenient that I decided to stay. The professors are also very nice, and I really enjoy taking classes with them. At first, I was very afraid of how I would adapt to a foreign country, but the transition was very smooth thanks to the friendly iCLA community.

P.S. iCLA rooftop is enough to fall in love with the...