Graduate School of International Cooperation Studies (GSICS), Kobe University
Dear all the candidates to Ogawa seminar,
Hi, my name is Kana Takahashi, and I graduated from a Master’s course at GSICS in March 2016, and am now working as an Education Development Consultant with PADECO, a Japanese development consulting firm. I feel so fortunate to jump in the profession I have dreamed of and travel to Laos and Bangladesh frequently. My interest in education development comes from volunteer experience teaching English and Mathematics to children in Cambodia and Japan. Before joining Ogawa-seminar, I worked in study-abroad and volunteer program coordination. The biggest motive for me to join Ogawa seminar was to develop academic skills, especially in quantitative analyses and to start professional career in international education development. As you may know, pursuing a Masters degree backed up with experience is an entry point to this world.
During my academic studies, with strong support from Professor Ogawa, I was lucky to study impact evaluation in the UK as part of Double Degree Program on JASSO Scholarship. This program was especially beneficial as I could consolidate what I have learned in Kobe and East Anglia, and strengthen my analytical and writing skills through writing two theses (I found it very challenging and stressful (!), but at the same time a great chance to practice social research). In my first semester in Kobe, I met with Ogawa seminar alumni working in rigorous program evaluation in education, and got in love with its concept. I thought that impact evaluation has high potential to leverage findings from the grassroots to support policy making and would allow me to combine my background in economics with my interest in education issues.
I got to know the job opportunity through an Ogawa seminar alumnus, and as you can see, one of the great advantages in being in Ogawa seminar is to get in touch with real-world education development professionals who are active and always supportive. Also fellow students help each other because we come from different backgrounds; when we do field work for thesis research, fellow students from those countries are there to help, and that makes a huge difference on emotional health along with research performance. As you will know, what you can achieve is all up to you in Ogawa seminar. You will be exposed to such a big Ogawa family and many education experts, and I believe that being surrounded with people who have similar passions and are one or many steps further is vital to keep us motivated and happy. If you aspire to thrive in this field, I hope you will join us in Ogawa seminar. Best of luck!
Kana Takahashi
Education Development Consultant, PADECO
April 2016
