Study Holidays in Japan: Leonardo’s Story

Today, we would like to share with you the story of one of our students from Switzerland. His goal is to enrol in Yamanashi Gakuin University. He has already been accepted, but unexpectedly encountered a problem: the immigration office refused to issue him a student visa because he did not have a confirmed history of studying Japanese.

Leonardo with his CLAY classmates, May 2025

To resolve this situation, he came to Japan as a tourist and studied at the Culture and Language Academy of Yamanashi for three months, attending classes every day, taking the JLPT exam (level N5), and receiving over 150 hours of official Japanese language training, as required by the immigration service.

In addition to studying, he is also a professional rugby player! So even in Japan, he has two trainings a day!

So, how did he manage to organise all this? Why did he choose Japan? How is he preparing for university?

Today, he shares his impressions, difficulties, and advice for other students with us.

CLAY:  Hello, Leonardo. Can you please introduce yourself to our readers?

Leonardo:  My name is Leonardo Aiello, I’m from Switzerland, and I’m 21 years old. I’ve lived in New Zealand and Australia for the past 2 years playing rugby full-time.

CLAY: You are now one of our students in an Advanced Japanese language course, the course for those who want to go to University in Japan. Why did you choose Japan as your study destination?

Leonardo: Last summer, I came to Japan to visit a couple of friends, and I absolutely loved the country. After leaving, I immediately looked up where I could play rugby here and found out that I could go to university and play rugby. Once I discovered that, I was set on coming to study in Japan.

CLAY:  What university do you want to enter and how did you find it?

Leonardo:  I put myself out there with my agent, and YGU (Yamanshi Gakuin University) was the first university to contact me. The rugby coach there had coached in Switzerland, so we had a few mutual connections. That really attracted me to YGU.

CLAY:  So you were going to start your study in April 2025 (the interview was made in July), but had difficulties with receiving your Japanese student visa. What happened with your first visa application?

Leonardo:  I found out the hard way. My first visa application was declined just two days before my planned departure for Japan because of a new rule we weren’t aware of.

Leonardo, when he first came to the Culture and Language Academy of Yamanashi

CLAY: What rule was it?

Leonardo: It is the 150 hours of Japanese language study that are now mandatory to obtain a student visa.

CLAY:  How did you find out about the 150-hour Japanese language study requirement?

Leonardo:  After my visa was denied, we acted as quickly as possible to find a solution. That’s when the coach told me about your school (Culture and Language Academy of Yamanashi). I started taking Japanese classes here the following week.

CLAY: Why did you choose CLAY for your Japanese language studies?

Leonardo:  The school supported me immediately. The principal (Yoda sensei) understood my situation and was willing to help me right away.

CLAY:  What was your level of Japanese before coming to Japan?

Leonardo:  I had zero notions of Japanese before coming here - except for one or two phrases my friends taught me, and a few hiragana characters. That was it.

Preparing for the Japanese language course with Shimura sensei (hiragana and katakana practice)

CLAY:  What was the most difficult part of learning Japanese?

Leonardo:  The hardest part at the beginning was being thrown into the deep end, with almost no one speaking English around me. It is tough at first, but it actually makes the learning process much better after you get over the initial part.

CLAY:  I know you took your first JLPT exam just a week ago. How was your experience preparing for and taking the JLPT N5 exam?

Leonardo: Taking the JLPT N5 was a hard task, considering most people had studied much longer than I had. I only had three months, but with hard work, it's possible to pass in that time.

CLAY: Do you think you passed it?

Leonardo: Yeah, I  think I passed. Because you don't need a perfect score to pass, just 50% correct answers will do. The hardest part was understanding the whole exam. Sometimes I would not understand just one phrase and it would make answering the whole question hard. 

CLAY:  You are a professional rugby player, which means you have training every day. How do you manage your daily schedule during your time at CLAY?

Leonardo:  My schedule is really busy. I am training in the morning before school, go to class, then train again in the afternoon. I am trying to squeeze in as much study as I can before going to bed.

CLAY:  Your day sounds so full. But I hope you had some free time to enjoy Yamanashi.

Leonardo:  Having a really busy schedule means that I use most of my free time to rest to ensure I get a good amount of sleep and the recovery I need to have my body and my brain functioning at 100% of its capacity. But I've been to the river a couple of times. And one of my friends is from Kawaguchiko, so we visited there to see Mount Fuji and enjoy the lake. It was pretty good, but the tourist spot was a little bit crowded.

CLAY:  As a professional rugby player, how do you balance training and studying?

Leonardo:  The hardest part about being a student and an athlete is definitely managing your time. Balancing school, training, and personal life can get really tricky.

It took me a while to adjust and find that balance. But having a set schedule is the best way to stay on track.

CLAY:  Soon, your tourist visa will expire. What are your next steps after finishing your course here?

Leonardo:  After I finish the course, I’ll return to Switzerland, spend some time with my family, and restart the student visa application process for next year. And of course, I’ll continue learning Japanese.

CLAY:  When do you plan to return to Japan for university?

Leonardo:  I plan to return in March or maybe a bit earlier.

CLAY:  Do you have any advice for other international students who want to study in Japan?

Leonardo: Nowadays, studying in Japan has become a lot more difficult, but I still think it’s 100% worth it. If this is something you really want, go for it and give it your all. Embrace the journey of learning a new language.

Thank you very much, Leonardo-san. I hope your story will inspire other students who wish to study Japanese!