Last year I was invited to European Higher Education Fair (EHEF) in Tokyo and Osaka, Japan to represent TalTech and promote educational opportunities in Estonia. Most of the visitors were high school students and their parents but some educational professionals as well. They had already decided which booths (or actually countries) to visit but I managed to attract them as an actual student studying abroad.

I was quite shocked that most of visitors didn't really know about Estonia nor TalTech, but few knew it for cyber security. The common questions at the fair were:

• Available study programs
• Application process
• Tuition fee/living costs

I answered those based on my experience and it was delightful to see them surprised, "Estonia is actually nice as a destination" as they said to me. There were also some students who had just started thinking about studying abroad and telling me how overwhelming it is, which I also had in past. I hope my advice helped them in some way.  

I think it's going to attract more students if universities or Study in Estonia catch up with those potential students with different approach, even though overall admission process and information on websites were satisfactory for me.

But it was such a rewarding experience not only for me representing TalTech and communicating with visitors, but also I could rediscover what I love about Estonia and studying at TalTech as I was explaining to them.

Easy living

One of the things that makes Estonia special is how easy it is to settle down and start a new life. Once I received my ID card, I remember it felt like I opened a treasure box. Opening a bank account in one day, signing contracts digitally, and accessing my information on the State Portal. All of these made life so much easier. And whenever I had to go to some office, people were genuinely willing to sort things out for me. This might not be something you notice at first, but it saves a lot of time and energy, especially for students.

In everyday life, I also appreciate the freedom and social trust that exist in Estonia. In Tallinn, public transport is free for residents, the city feels safe even at night, and people respect each other’s privacy. These created my trust or relatedness toward Estonia.

Student life

Before coming to Estonia, I studied mechanical engineering in Japan for a few years. I wanted to continue a similar path, but I wanted a little twist— earning the degree in English and in EU, which gives me more access to advanced technology and research environments.  

I happened to know about TalTech through a portal site of European institutions. But as I looked deeper, I was particularly attracted by its start-up culture and advanced IT education.  

Now, a year has passed, I am very much satisfied with my study program. Especially, rapid prototyping course in the first semester was quite challenging because nobody knows each other well but have to communicate and produce a product in such a short time. I sometimes still think what I could have done better in team discussions and design process. But I interpret that it gave me a good idea of working internationally under uncertainties and pressure from competitors. 

Also, I enjoyed a lecture about intellectual property, such as how to protect or make benefits from inventions and establish your brand. The knowledge from this is the first key to entrepreneurship and innovation.  

Wide range of opportunities

Lastly, thanks to Erasmus+ program, I am now on an exchange study at Aalto University in Finland. Studying at TalTech already gave me many new possibilities and I can’t wait to join more activities when I’m back there.

As a conclusion, I appreciate this opportunity to represent TalTech in my country, Japan and I hope Estonia will be a famous educational destination in Europe. It's full of opportunities and a concrete place to start a career. I will happily continue to promote TalTech and studying in Estonia. 

Read more about studying engineering at TalTech