Message from a Graduate Student of the Graduate School of Economics

I commute to campus about three days a week, taking around five classes per week in my first year and about three classes per week in my second year, primarily seminars. In the first year, there were many foundational subjects such as microeconomics and econometrics, and I was initially overwhelmed by the difficulty of the content. However, my understanding deepened by holding study sessions with fellow students after class, and I was able to learn while being inspired by my classmates' high level of motivation. In the second year, seminars centered on research reports increased; I not only present my own research but also gain a wide range of knowledge about analytical methods and social issues from other students' research.

On days when I am not on campus, I spend a lot of time at my own pace, such as auditing classes at other universities or working on my master's thesis. I also have opportunities to participate in joint projects with companies and professors, and I feel that my research perspective has broadened by engaging with themes different from my master's thesis. Sometimes I go on trips to refresh myself while focusing on my research.

I am currently majoring in urban economics and working on verifying the effectiveness of compact city policies during a period of population decline. I always receive constructive comments from my academic advisor and classmates, and I have been blessed with opportunities to present at academic conferences. The ability to encounter diverse perspectives is a unique appeal of graduate school. Being able to compile my results into a peer-reviewed paper during my studies has given me great confidence. In the future, I hope to proceed with analysis based on more rigorous causal inference and share new research results. Before enrolling, I had a strong impression that "graduate school = nothing but research," but in reality, there are many interactions with people and encounters with new learning, and I am having a fulfilling time.