IBRAHIM AKID

Voices of International Students

Sep 02, 2025

Doctoral Program in Life Science Innovation, Degree Programs in Life and Earth Sciences, Graduate School of Science and Technology / Food and Medicinal Resource Engineering Open Innovation Laboratory (FoodMed-OIL)

From Tunisia

What sparked your interest in this university?

Hello everyone. I'm AKID?Ibrahim, though my friends in Japan know me as AkiDo (秋戸, lit.,?The Gate towards Autumn), a kanji name I composed to bring me closer to their beautiful language. I come from Tunisia, and my journey with the University of Tsukuba began right there. In fact, there is no other Japanese university that has a representation bureau in Tunisia except UT, which is in itself a detail that captures its greatest strength: its outward?looking spirit. You may not know this, but UT is the only national university in Japan with a campus beyond the archipelago, and for years it has led—or ranked among—Japan's top universities for the proportion of international students. In short, this is a place where no foreign student ever feels alone. It is a community of diversity and opportunity, a place where you forge lasting friendships with locals and internationals alike.

This is a cherished photo to me. One day, while I was sitting near the Central Library enjoying the sunset time, a Japanese man appeared out of nowhere. He took a picture of me without my noticing, printed it instantly, handed it to me without a single word, and then walked away. Remember when I spoke about the campus being open to the public where people can enter freely? This photo would never have been possible if the University of Tsukuba did not embrace such a philosophy of openness. Perhaps, by some chance, if he ever reads this article, he will know that I have kept this photo all this time, and that I am grateful!

What aspects of Japanese culture or customs surprised you? How did you adapt to them?

My worst habit is stuffing every vital document (ID, bank cards, cash) into one bulging wallet that won't fit in a pocket, so I keep it in my bag. In my first month in Japan, at Tokyo's very busy Kita?Senju Station, I recharged my IC card and left my wallet on the ticket?machine ledge. Two stops later, panic struck: 30 minutes in one of the world's busiest stations must have doomed it. I raced back, despondent, yet there it sat, untouched! That shock revealed to me a nation scarce in resources yet rich in values. Months of observation have shown why: strict guidance, layers of regulations, and countless tacit moral codes shape daily conduct. Learning these rules by reading and quietly watching Japanese people can be difficult, but remembering that my wallet remains safe because of them makes every effort worthwhile, deepening my respect for Japanese society to this very day.

What do you enjoy about Tsukuba?

As I mentioned earlier, in Tsukuba city you never feel alone as a student from across the seas. Here you will meet countless people who share your background, and just as many who don't. Roughly 5% of the city's residents are foreigners, and both the City Hall and local community work tirelessly to ease our lives (translating documents, providing 365体育投注?language support, and much more). Their efforts truly deserve praise. Personally, I am proud to call myself, even temporarily, a citizen of this beautiful city, and I promote it whenever I can. Tsukuba offers peace of mind, natural beauty, plentiful facilities, and, above all, an absence of crowds. It is unquestionably the ideal place to focus on your study and intellectual output. Home to dozens of research institutes, the city is steadily shaping itself into a world?class hub of knowledge creation!

In the Cell Culture Room at ISODA Lab, University of Tsukuba

What do you hope to achieve during your time here?

Living in Tsukuba opened a remarkable door: a joint research project linking the university with a major institute on the city's southern edge, known as AIST. There I am working on cutting?edge techniques in chemistry and biology that have transformed my outlook on the future. My immediate aim is clear: complete my doctoral work, then secure a position with a Japanese company in my field—ideally one that also operates in Tunisia. I hope to spend several years here, gathering expertise, contributing what I can to Japan's economic fabric, and then carry that experience back home. By entering Tunisia through the gateway of a Japanese firm, I can remain permanently connected, productive, and collaborative with the Japanese people, strengthening, in every way I can, the economic and cultural ties between the nation of my birth, which I cherish, and the nation I have come to love and respect deeply.

What do you think makes the University of Tsukuba special?

Here I have met friends from every corner of the globe. The campus stretches for kilometers, and daily I bump into new faces that greet me with a smile. It is one of the few truly open campuses in Japan, an openness that embodies the university's philosophy: freedom that radiates both inward and outward. The grounds are woven into local life: everyone can stroll freely through its lanes, exploring its distinctive buildings as naturally as if they belonged there. That spirit of openness gave me one of my dearest friendships. During a university event celebrating foreign cultures we met, and soon found ourselves on a fishing trip with other friends, landing a catch as tall as any of us. Without UT, I would never have known that friend or enjoyed such a memory, which was later featured by the Embassy of Japan in Tunisia—a small testament to Tunisian?Japanese friendship.