The 21st Yamanashi International Student Speech Contest was held on December 7th, with 24 international students joining from universities and junior colleges across Yamanashi Prefecture. Organized by The Consortium of Universities in Yamanashi, participants prepare a maximum 5-minute speech in Japanese with a designated theme. The theme of this year’s speech contest was “My Future Self” (将来の私). The participants are judged on their Japanese ability, expressiveness, composition, creativity, logical thinking, and originality. Six students from Yamanashi Gakuin University participated.
Two iCLA students earned top places in the competition. 2nd year student Nehal was awarded 2nd place, and 3rd year student Neema was awarded the Special Sponsor Award: Colany Diamond Award. Judges commended Nehal for her ideas to enhance English education in Yamanashi Prefecture and promoting internationalization in the region. Neema’s five-minute speech was described as impactful, with her delivery praised as comparable to that of a political candidate.
All participating students have shown remarkable determination and impressive effort in the speech contest despite a busy end-of-semester season.
iCLA’s Japanese Language Program’s comprehensive curriculum and dedicated professors mean that students who are passionate about Japanese language learning can excel. iCLA students also received top places in last year’s Yamanashi International Student Speech Contest.
A big congratulations to all participants!