Welcome to the Student Voice Series. The series interviews students at our English-medium programs. Once a month, the International Admissions Office will release an interview with our students. We hope these interviews can be helpful to you when thinking about choosing to come to Ritsumeikan University. 

Post by International Admissions Office

Christopher from Uganda

Check more about ISSE course curriculum!

Could you explain your graduation thesis/research? Please describe how you conducted it and finalized it?

My graduation thesis was about the mitigation of handovers caused by obstacles such as buildings which lead to more delays in the intra-LTE(Long Term Evolution/ 4G networks) handover procedure.

The reason why I chose this topic, is because it is a daily challenge we all experience as our mobile phones or any other devices face a connection delay when we change from one network connection to another. This delay is technically known as a handover. I was in the Computer Networks Lab for my final year.

In my thesis, a User Equipment (UE)-covered-distance-based algorithm was proposed to mitigate handovers that may be caused by obstacles when an Mobile Node (MN) is still in the radius of a serving eNode B (e NB) in LTE networks. The proposed algorithm was simulated using the Network Simulator 3 (NS3), and results show it has a less latency delay and a better throughput when compared with existing traditional algorithms.

One of the features in ISSE course is Project Based Learning (PBL).

How did you find the PBL approach in ISSE?

PBL was very helpful. It helped us as students to develop good teamwork relationship and get used to the processes for product design and development. For example, during my final year, I worked with three other colleagues, who are Aran from Indonesia, Action from Thailand, and Eros from U.S.A., to develop a weather forecasting application using Swift. In my second year, we were split into 2 groups and each group was tasked with developing a fully functioning prototype for a language translation application. In my third and final PBL year, all students worked on their individual projects. I worked on designing car speedometers using the Interactive Genetic Algorithm (IGA).

To find a job in Japan with a company that appreciates cultural diversity and that can make use of my international language skills.  I continued for further study in the Graduate School of International Relations at Ritsumeikan University in order to gain more knowledge in another field other than Information Science.  I would like to find a job in an IT company or an International Relations related organization.

Could you explain your campus life? Please introduce your favorite things or events.

My campus life was a little bit busy with school work and assignment but it was also filled with meeting lots of students from different countries and cultural backgrounds through events organized by the Beyond Borders Plaza such as BBQs, Halloween parties and tea parties.

What was a challenge in everyday life in Japan and how did you manage or overcome it?

My main challenge was the language barrier problem. Although I can speak Japanese to a conversational level, I had a big language problem when it came to official procedures such as moving out procedures and applications for scholarships that needed high level Japanese proficiency. I got help from the International Center and from a few Japanese friends.

I started to learn Japanese before enrolling ISSE course. I become more fluent in daily conversation through part-time employment where I worked at a convenience store.

Messages in English / Swahili

Overcome all your fears about overseas education such as language barrier and homesickness. Come, take advantage of the various English courses provided at Ritsumeikan and pursue your academic dreams. 

Shinda hofu zako zote juu ya elimu ya nje ya nchi kama vile kizuizi cha lugha na kutamani nyumbani. Njoo, pata faida ya kozi anuwai za Kiingereza zilizotolewa huko Ritsumeikan na fuata ndoto zako za masomo.