#1: Mobile Games, Student Ventures and Corporate Accounting
“From Scholars to Scholars” is a series of panel discussions that feature alumni with outstanding professional experiences. Hoping that attending these sessions and interacting with other participants, both students and alumni alike will bring the inspiration to contribute back to society in a larger capacity.
The inaugural event of the MEXT Scholars’ Network “From Scholars to Scholars” Speakers Series was held at the ASEAN-Japan Center in Shinbashi on the 11th of June, 2016.
Our inaugural panel discussion featured the following three alumni:
- Thiago Kimura de Leon, a Brazilian creative director at Yodo1 Games, a Chinese mobile game software developer
- Goi Hoe Chin, a Singaporean senior researcher of entrepreneurship at Keio University
- Edmundo Prado, a Venezuelan accountant at INPEX Corporation, the largest Japanese oil and gas production company.
During the self-introduction section, each speaker kindly shared his personal and professional experiences in Japan, and also provided advice on how to choose one’s path in life. Then the panel discussion started, and with it a lively debate on the various merits and demerits of working in a small company as opposed to in a large, well-established corporation. Of particular interest to some participants was the role of tertiary education institutions in encouraging entrepreneurship.
The discussion ended with a reflection on “being hungry”, a point raised by one of the speakers. This was followed by a networking session with participants bonding over pizza and soft drinks. The event was attended by around 50 MEXT scholar and alumni, the latter of which hail from very diverse industries such as business consulting, IT marketing and commodities trading.
Special thanks go to Sato Taiki of Fourth Valley Concierge for a speech on the challenges faced by international students in job hunting; to Akira Iyadomi, for starting development on a mobile platform that aims to connect MEXT scholars and alumni; to ASEAN-Japan Center for graciously allowing us the use of so accessible a venue. Last but not least, a big thank you goes to all the participants of our event. We hope to see you at our next event!