Recommends

Wing N.

Joined 4 months ago

I'm currently a junior in SUA looking forward to my study abroad in this coming April. The school has provided me with so many opportunities over the years and has widened my view of the world. It is a graduating requirement for every student to study a foreign language for two years and study abroad for a semester in the country that speaks this specific language. I personally will be able to travel to Sapporo, Japan to study Japanese. We also offer courses specific to SUA such as our Learning Clusters. Learning Clusters are a month long course that allows student to create a unique course that explores a specific topic. We are fortunate enough to be provided with a grant each year for a number of students who wishes to study the topic abroad during this period of time. In my freshmen year I was able to meet with former comfort women and visit NGOs in Korea to learn about the events in East Asia and how these different events affect education in peace in general. Our sports teams are also very welcoming to anyone with the will and passion to join regardless of their experience. Although I have never participated in a sports team in the past I was able to join our swimming team as a freshman and travel to different universities including University of Chicago to participate in meets. These are only a glimpse of what you can achieve in Soka and all of this has been supported by great financial aid and grant system. I personally came from a lower middle class family and would not have been able to afford college if it wasn’t for soka. Soka Provides full tuition for families with the income of less than 60,000 and for students with a strong application, soka also provides merit scholarships. Many people fear that the tuition would be unaffordable, but for most students on campus, soka is more affordable than most public colleges considering the recent budget cuts on education in the United States. Feel free to drop by for a visit. I assure you you’ll fall in love with this place just like I did.

Masako U.

Joined 4 months ago

So many opportunities to go abroad! There is a class called learning cluster (LC) during winter block. Basically, students are able to propose what they want to study, and many students get to go different countries. For example, I wanted to study about poverty and education in Brazil...so I actually made a class with my friends and we were able to go to Brazil and visit some favelas. This became such a precious experience in my life.

Kathrine M.

Joined 6 months ago

Great Academics. The professors are fully committed to giving you an exceptional academic experience. All professors encourage meeting outside of the class room. May incorporate tutorial session as part of their curriculum where they meet with you or one other student one on one to discuss course material. Some of the professors have come from Ivy League school because the support the mission of our school.

Recommends

Junko T.

Joined 6 months ago

Great Scholarship Opportunity. Soka University offers scholarship for more than 80% of the student-body. Perticulary, anyone whose parents' annual income are below $6000 is guaranteed to receive full-tuition scholarship! Thanks to that, Soka University has very diverse student-body from Chile, Venezuera, Malaysia, India, Africa, Japan, Europe, and the U.S. etc.

Doesn't Recommend

jerry g.

Joined 1 year ago

the truth will set you free. I'm sorry to say but you can tell by the terrible grammar of the above reviews that this school can not be that great academically! Never before have I seen such unwarranted praise towards an institution. Students are so eager to give a five star rating to a school that is lacking, only because they feel emotionally/spiritual connected to it. This is not smart at all. Not much critical thinking going on. There is a huge fear of speaking the truth and it is scary.

Recommends

Yuki Y.

Joined 1 year ago

Great Study Abroad Program. Soka University has a great study abroad program. All students are required to go to study abroad when they are junior. Students can take either Spanish, Japanese, Chinese, or French. Then, after studying the language at Soka for two years, you will go abroad! Every students can gain such a precious experience!

Recommends

Yoshiko O.

Joined 1 year ago

Great Opportunities. I am currently a sophomore at soka and loving this school so much so far.

One of the greatest things about soka is the opportunity to go abroad and experience many different aspects of the world.

For the winter block, we have Learning Cluster in which students create classes based on their passion and interest. Our school offers grant to help our reserch. I was really fortunate to go to India this winter for my Learning Cluster. Our Learning Cluster group conducted a reserch and interview on "Tibetan poeple's struggle for Identity" in Dharamsala, India where the Tibetan exile community is located. It was such a great opportunity to interact with local people there and have great dialogue with them. I was able to do successful reserch on how Tibetan people preserve their identity and move forward for their future.

We also have a unique study abroad program which requires all students to go study abroad for 1 semester in junior year. SOKA offers 4 languages, Spanish, Japanese, Chinese, and French. I am going to Beijing, China next semester. I am very excited for my study abroad next year.

Just like these two opportunities, SOKA provides many great curriculums that broaden my perspectives.

Recommends

sokalive

Joined 2 years ago

An all rounded curriculum and a complete learning experience. I am a current junior at SUA pursuing a degree in BA Liberal Arts. Prior to declaring my concentration in Humanities and even afterwards, I've taken many classes related to concentrations other than humanities. This continues to be, for me, a truly enriching experience since I prefer learning over specialization. Since SUA receives no federal assistance and is instead run on donations received by benefactors, it has the freedom to structure its curriculum on the learner centered approach that is the guiding principle of Soka education.

Other than academics, students are encouraged to take classes in creative arts such as visual arts, ceramics,music and dance. The new Performing arts center recently inaugurated on campus has 5 dressing rooms, a dance studio and two rehearsal rooms for student performers. These creative classes start all the way from beginner to advanced levels.

The foreign language program at SUA is I believe, an effective means of understanding foreign cultures. Juniors are required to study abroad in a country that speaks the language of their choice at SUA for a semester. There are four language offerings at SUA- Chinese, Japanese, Spanish and French. Although, it is required of every student to choose a concentration to graduate with in their senior year, they can, if they wish do a double concentration that shall go on their transcript.

Career options post-SUA are diverse. The four concentrations viz Humanities, Social and behavioral sciences, Environmental science and International relations open up a wide field of careers and higher study options to SUA graduates in BA liberal arts.

Recommends

momocali

Joined 3 years ago

Education for Peace. One of the greatest things about this school is the campus. When my friends came to visit me, they said that it was as if I was "studying in paradise." Because it's a new school, it has new facilities, the most updated technology, and the most beautiful architecture.

Another plus is the attention each student receives. The problem with lots of colleges, especially large ones, is the lack of attention, how each student is a number. But here, the student professor ratio is really small so you can learn as much as you want from that one professor you love.

The study abroad program is required here, so everyone gets the chance to go to a different country for a whole semester, all included in the tuition.

I am absolutely certain that I have chosen the best college for me.

Recommends

wwharder

Joined 4 years ago

Beautiful four-year liberal arts college in South OC, CA. SUA's 103-acre campus in Aliso Viejo, CA opened in 2001 and the university received WASC accreditation in 2005. About half of the students are from the US and half are from over 30 other countries. Everyone studies a non-native language, and everyone studies abroad for a semester during their junior year. Study abroad is included in the tuition and is required for graduation. SUA offers free tuition to admitted students whose annual family income is $60,000 or less.