With the daylight hours getting shorter by the day in late August, our MBA programme is coming to the end and we have many moments to reflect on our year at Cambridge.

We remember a year ago when we were surprised to find that many more of our classmates were interested in Japan than we had imagined. Before coming to Cambridge, we had only thought that Japanese food, manga and anime were somehow popular. However, some classmates knew more deeply and widely than some of the Japanese MBAs.

Since there were classmates who were interested in Japan, we wanted to tell them about Japan from our own mouths! With this in mind, we started our activities as the Cambridge Japan Business Club (the Japan SIG).

The first event was Japan Night in November, a party for about 60 people in a convention room at Darwin College. As it was the first event, the Japanese MBAs were very enthusiastic and wore the Sushi T-shirts together. They are full of talent! They performed Okonomiyaki making (Japanese savoury pancakes), iaido and kimono dressing.

We also organised other cultural events such as Mochi making, bean throwing and sake tasting. Of course, we couldn’t get all the same items in Cambridge as in Japan, but we tried to create a Japanese feel with our ingenuity.

The Japan Trek in April 2023, for the first time in three years, was another important memory for the Japan SIG. We travelled to Kyoto, Osaka and Tokyo with fourteen MBA students. Although it was only a one week trip, we were able to convey the charms of Japan to the fullest. The feedback “I highly recommend this trip to any future MBA students – you will not regret it!”, is the best reward! 

Link to the 2023 Japan Trek previous write up >

The Japan SIG activities were an opportunity for the Japanese MBAs not only to tell about the beauty of Japan but also to take a fresh look at the country of their birth. We would like to thank all the Japanese MBAs who supported the Japan SIG.

To our MBA cohort – Please contact us when you come to Japan!

To future MBAs – Although we learnt in class that it is not good to label people based on their nationality, Japanese love to live up to expectations. Please tell your Japanese classmates what you would like to know. We are sure you will make good memories.

Co-chairs of Japan SIG 2022/23 – Ryo Ishikawa, Yutaka Iwasaki