Hi! My name is Badra. Currently, I am based in Indonesia, working in a global bank strongly rooted in Japanese culture. I previously graduated from Ritsumeikan APU College of International Management in Beppu, Japan with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration, Accounting and Finance.

Up until 2014, my whole life had been in Indonesia. Then, a thought came into my head--the world is more than this. I wanted to expose myself to the international community and I wanted to develop an international perspective. Luckily enough, there were some senpais that came to my high school to talk about Ritsumeikan APU and the scholarships available to Indonesian students. With this as a starting point, I learned more about how APU had a strong international community where you could learn and challenge yourself, exactly what I had been looking for. So I decided to go to APU to start a 4-year course focusing on Accounting and Finance.

On the academic side, I focused on classes in finance, where I could learn about topics like financial analysis and budgeting. But apart from this, I was part of a circle made by the Indonesian community. Like any other university, APU had a wide range of circles, but the unique point of this circle was that we could showcase Indonesian culture. One of the biggest events we have is “Indonesian Week” where we have different kinds of events over the course of a week. We invite Japanese and international students to participate and experience our culture firsthand. 

 Aside from this, I also participated in the ASEAN community called “Connext ASEAN.” Here, we spread recent economic and political news in ASEAN countries and talked about ASEAN culture to the rest of the APU community.  One key activity that we had was creating an overseas field trip for APU students to help spread ASEAN culture to different countries like Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam. The aim of this group was to make events and programs so the APU community would also be aware of what is happening in neighboring countries.

The most memorable or proudest thing during college

One of the most memorable moments in my college years was when I directed a drama performance to showcase Indonesian culture. This performance was part of the yearly Indonesian week where we mixed traditional performances like dramatic shows and dance acts. The preparation for this took about two semesters and was easily one of the most highly anticipated events in APU. We had the challenge of keeping everyone engaged so we did our best to keep it authentic. Thankfully, it all paid off when we successfully presented it to an audience of 700 people. 

What you wish you had done during college and why? 

Looking back, I think I should have explored more networking opportunities with students from Western countries. APU was a particularly diverse university but most of the students come from Asia, and I felt like I wanted to know more about the other side of the world. Since I never got the chance to experience this directly, I feel like I don’t have a profound understanding of the difference in culture. Because of this, I am planning to continue to graduate school in the US or Europe in the future.

Find a company with a similar vision and culture as yourself.

Thankfully, APU provided a lot of opportunities for us to participate in 説明会 (company seminars) which was a great chance for us to see how companies in Japan are like. Through this, I gained an interest in electronic companies, sales, and banking. When APU held a 説明会 with Resona Bank, Ltd (りそな銀行), I was able to pass the first step of the interview and was brought out to Tokyo for the second interview, which not a lot of people get the chance to do. However, around the same time I was also applying to MUFG Bank based in Indonesia. As a result, I got the job offer at MUFG Bank first and had to respond ASAP before Resona had released their results.

Be adaptable.

Japanese language skill is one of the fundamental skills needed in order to be able to communicate with the group. But more importantly, you need to be highly adaptable. Most Japanese companies, even abroad, look for students who have a strong intention to develop themselves and those who are aligned with the company’s mission and vision. Additionally, they want people who are willing to stay with them long term because they are going to invest their time and money in you. 

Enjoy your working environment. 

Apart from this, you have to like the working environment and continuously want to keep growing. You will start at the bottom but will definitely move up the ladder multiple times as your experience and time with the company grows.