ORIENTATION:THINGS
TO DO SOON AFTER ARRIVAL
Student Registration and ID Card
The International Office will assist you to register with the Student Affairs
Section (Gakusei-ka), at the Administration Building, 1F. Please supply two
3x4cm photos (there is a coin-operated photo booth in the cafeteria building,
2F). Your student card will take up to a week to be issued. It also functions
as a library card (for swipe-card entry to the Media Center, and the auto-barcode-reader
book borrowing check-out).
Tour the Campus
A guided tour of the campus is part of initial orientation.
Buy a Prepaid Card for the Cafeteria/Coffee Lounge
Plastic prepaid cards are available from the vending machine in the main
entrance of the Cafeteria, located appropriately right beside the plastic
food display.
Cafeteria
prices
are mostly about half what you would pay off-campus…
Locate your Mail Box
There will be a drawer with your name on it in one of the “mail
cases” in the International Office. Check it occasionally for
incoming letters, and Seika notices etc.
Register as an Alien
Anyone who enters Japan on a study visa must apply for an Alien Registration
card (gaikokujin toroku shomeisho) at the local Ward Office,
within 90 days of arrival. We provide application forms.(Do it in your
free time
before classes start!)
Take your
passport,
your
Kyoto
address, and two passport photos with you (Note:sorry, but they do
not accept the adhesive-backed photos from the booth on campus). Your
card
will
be available
after about
one month. If you lose it, you have to report it missing (at the Ward
Office) and get a replacement within 14 days. Hand it in at the airport
when you
finally leave Japan.
Sign Up for National Health Insurance (kokumin kenko hoken)
You must join Japan's National Health Insurance (70% off
necessary standard medical and dental expenses), when applying for
your alien card
at the Ward Office. Billing is by monthly payments (currently ¥1,700
per month) through any bank, convenience store or post office. Excellent
cover, significantly reducing medical and dental costs, but don’t
forget to cancel it before leaving Japan!
Pay
Your Dorm Rent and other essential payments
From Spring 2009, KSU requests incoming exchange students to pay dorm room
rent
for
their
full
semester,
on
arrival.This
payment should be made within two weeks of arrival, and within one month at the
latest. Please pay in cash, to the Accounts Office (next door to the International
Office).
Other necessary payments,
for futon rental (currently 10,500 yen), and
comprehensive AIU insurance (as of fall semester 2009, it was 5,380 yen),
must
also
be
paid
to
the
Accounts
Office,
within
one month of arrival.
Get a Mobile Phone
As of Fall 2009, we are loaning prepaid mobile phones to all exchange
students. You buy the prepaid cards (3,000 yen each).
Voice charge is 2 yen per second (120 yen per minute!), text messages
15 yen. Card is initially good for 2 months maximum (if you can
make
it last
that
long). If there is money left on the card at the end of that time
you need
to
buy a
new
card
to avoid
losing
the remaining amount.
Explore Downtown
Use our “Self-Guided Introduction to Downtown Kyoto” map
to stroll through various areas of interest, and locate some particular
sites
that should be useful. Don’t miss Seika’s International
Manga Museum!
Go by subway, return by Keihan line/Eiden line or Kyoto Bus.
Get a Bicycle
The best way to see Kyoto!
Some bikes may be left by previous students.
Again, "First come, first served." Alternatively, there’s
a good used bike store in Imadegawa-dori south of Demachi-Yanagi
station, Eiden line. See our “Off-Campus
Kyoto Information” handout in your On Arrival package.
Get an International Phone Card
Best deal: Rechargeable brastel card,
available at Int. Office, payable at convenience stores or online.(Of
course, these days most people use Skype, for free). Other prepaid
international phone cards are available at up to 10%
discount
from cheap ticket counters at Sanjo-Kawaramachi, NE corner, at Shijo
near Teramachi (south side), or at Qanat (on Kawabata, just south
of Kitaoji bridge).
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