I came to Japan in March 2007 and spent two years at Shinjuku Japanese Language Institute studying Japanese. This April, I entered Tsukuba University.

My dream is to become a programmer and make it possible for Vietnamese children to use computers with the screen showing their own Vietnamese language.

After I graduate from my Japanese university, I first want to get a job in Japan to build experience, and then go back to Vietnam.

In Da Nang they are now building a "Programming Center" that is supposed to be completed in five years. I hope to work there.

For a long time I had never considered becoming a foreign exchange student. But when I graduated from high school, the assistant principal recommended that I should study abroad in the US or Japan. I decided on Japan because it is closer to Vietnam and the cultural difference is not as great, since both are Asian countries.

In order to study abroad in Japan, I first studied at a Japanese language school in Vietnam. The school is affiliated with Shinjuku Japanese Language Institute. Teachers from Shinjuku Japanese Language Institute came to Vietnam to tell us about their school.

To get into Shinjuku Japanese Language Institute I had to be recommended by my school in Vietnam and pass the exam of Asahi Shougaku-kai, an organization that gives foreign students in Japan a job delivering newspapers. In exchange they pay for airfare and handle all the identity documents and other details. My understanding of Japanese still wasn't that great, so they took care of all the paperwork for me. It was extremely helpful.

I couldn't converse in Japanese, so at Shinjuku Japanese Language Institute I wanted to start with the basics. In my first year I did the beginner and intermediate courses and in my second year I took advanced classes to prepare for further study at a Japanese university. You can take lots of classes for the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) and Examination for Japanese University Admission for International Students (EJU).

In order to be admitted to Tsukuba University, I had to pass the EJU. They didn't require the JLPT. But when I considered the classes I would be taking there, I decided it was very important to boost my mastery of Japanese by aiming to pass the JLPT. The Japanese I studied for the tests serves me well in my classes.

After coming to Japan, I delivered the Asahi Shimbun newspaper every day for two years. It was really tough at first, but after the first year I got used to it.

I would get up at 2:30am and have the papers delivered by 6am. After that, I would eat and take a bath. Between 7:00 and 8:30 I would do all my Japanese homework and then go to school. After school was over I would deliver the evening edition of the paper between 2:30 and 4:30pm. I would eat and bathe again by 6:00. I would study math for around three hours and go to bed at 9:30pm. On Saturday and Sunday when we didn't have school, I would study whatever subjects I didn't have time for on the weekdays.

At Shinjuku Japanese Language Institute, the field trips and opportunities to experience festivals and other parts of Japanese culture were very interesting. We didn't just learn the Japanese language, but also etiquette and practical knowledge for everyday life. The teachers were very committed and kind. I learned a lot from the Japanese students who lived in my dorm, too. They really helped me understand Japan better.

The thing I really struggled with in studying Japanese was reading comprehension. After I had been in Japan for about a year, I hit on the idea of studying while I was delivering papers to boost my reading comprehension skills.

When I was in the elevators of buildings during my delivery route, I would read the front page headlines. I aimed for speed: to read that much by the time the elevator reached the fifth floor.

It was hard to read the paper at first, and by the time I got to the fifth floor. I didn't understand any of it. But after a month, I could understand two or three things off the front page. And by the end I could easily understand the whole thing.

The advice I would give to students who want to study abroad in Japan is to say out loud whatever Japanese you are studying as much as possible. That's the best method of memorization.

Also, put the Japanese you learn at school to real-world use. In my case, I used to study only in my room and in the classroom, but after six months or so I changed my approach. I would go up to Japanese people and speak Japanese to them whenever I had the chance. For example, I tried to time my cooking at the dorm to when Japanese students would be there, and cook along with them, while speaking Japanese. That really enhanced my conversational ability. It's good to figure out ways to build your skills in the course of your daily life activities.