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Living in Japan

GRIPS Housing Information 2011

GRIPS provides assistance in arranging accommodations for newly enrolled students upon request, at one of the following three facilities:

(1) Tokyo International Exchange Center (TIEC), in the bayside area (Schedule for closure in March of 2012 in the middle of your stay; please read the explanation below carefully.)
(2) GRIPS International House I (GRIPS IH) in Nakano, a convenient residential area close to downtown Tokyo
(3) Misato Housing Complex in Saitama prefecture, in the suburbs of Tokyo

The specific unit that a student is ultimately assigned to depends on his/her preferences as stated in the Pre-Arrival Questionnaire, which all students must complete and submit to us. Sometimes, however, we may be unable to accommodate your preferences. Due to limitations in available rooms at TIEC and GRIPS IH, we may implement a lottery to decide the allocation of housing units. Those who wish to live with their family will be assigned to the Misato facility (select “Family room” on the Pre-Arrival Questionnaire). If you do not need assistance from GRIPS regarding housing and will arrange accommodation in Japan on your own, please provide necessary details/addresses on the Pre-Arrival Questionnaire.

Special circumstance about TIEC

The Japan Student Service Organization (JASSO), which is a public organization that operates the TIEC decided to sell the facility. Therefore, all rooms must be vacated by March 31, 2012. For GRIPS students enrolling in October of 2011, this means that they are guaranteed accommodations at TIEC for the first six months only, and they may be required to find alternate accommodations halfway through the academic year. There is a possibility that the new owners will allow GRIPS students to continue their stay past April.　However, the new owners have yet to be decided; it is also unclear as to whether the new owners will utilize the facility as a student housing as it is presently. GRIPS is currently working towards a reasonable resolution to this issue.

*Important Note: Due to GRIPS’ arrangements with the facility management, once you are assigned a unit at TIEC or GRIPS IH, you cannot change or transfer to a different unit during the academic year. Hence, it is very important that you consider your circumstances carefully before stating your preferences. This limit does not apply to Misato.

Tokyo Academic Park is located along Tokyo Bay. It is a 45-minute commute from the GRIPS campus in Roppongi. The complex was constructed by the Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture, and can accommodate 800 students/researchers affiliated with universities in the greater Tokyo area. GRIPS has been allocated a limited number of rooms in the TIEC. Almost all available units for GRIPS students in the TIEC are single rooms.

GRIPS International House (GRIPS IH) is a brand-new, stylish studio-type facility that can house approximately forty-five international students/ researchers, and is the first such facility owned by the school. A live-in English-speaking manager and two resident assistants provide daily 24-hour support. Located near JR-Nakano Station, in a most convenient part of town, it is an easy commute of about 40 minutes to the campus. Nakano is near the world-famous Shinjuku area, one of the liveliest places in Tokyo, packed with countless shopping, walking, dining, and entertainment options. A hospital is situated directly across from the dormitory. For anyone eager to experience the real downtown of Tokyo, Nakano is an exciting place to be, with its unique mix of people of all ages and types.

GRIPS International House I

For those who wish to bring their family, the Misato Housing Complex (Misato Danchi) is a great place to live. There is a GRIPS staff member residing in the Misato Danchi, for round-the-clock care of international students. Though commuting time to GRIPS is longer (around 70 mins.), accommodations are more spacious and cheaper than in Tokyo.

Quite unlike the Tokyo metropolitan area, living in Misato is a unique experience. Attached to Shin-Misato Station, you will find the brand new Lalaport shopping mall that boasts around 200 shops and restaurants flanked by enormous IKEA and Costco stores. There is also a Mega Don Quijote discount store that sells everything from fresh fish to TVs at reasonable prices.

Misato Danchi is one of the largest apartment complexes in Japan. It consists of more than 130 apartment buildings spread out over almost 700,000 m2 of land. It houses many facilities within the complex including two supermarkets, a 100-yen shop, liquor store, meat shop, fish market, vegetable/fruits shop, bicycle shop, second-hand (recycle) store, sweets shop, pharmacy, stationary store, bank, post office, city hall branch office, police substation, general hospital, kindergartens, daycare centers, and restaurants. Most of the doctors at the hospital speak English; one of the pediatricians is an especially fluent English speaker. There is even a mosque on the Misato Danchi premises. The mosque also sells halal meat, among other specialty goods. One can also purchase halal meat, spices, and other groceries at two specialty stores in Minami-Koshigaya, only three stations away by train.

We understand that many students wish to bring their families to Japan, so that they may experience life in another culture and because it is difficult for families to be separated. However, we urge you to think very carefully about bringing your family. Students quite often do not anticipate the difficulties that can arise as a result of bringing their families to Japan. In making your decision, please take into consideration that your family will most likely encounter great difficulty in communicating with neighbors and other locals, as well as with the environment overall. Also, consider the amount of time you will be able to spend with them; how they will spend their own time; how much they will miss home and other family members; and how unhappy they might become. In addition, having your family in Japan may create serious financial problems for you. Housing and living expenses are significantly higher for families than for single students, and no additional family allowance will be provided.

If you have children, please bear in mind that it is not easy to enroll foreign children into a kindergarten; sending children to international schools is prohibitively expensive and out of the question for those depending on scholarships.

Finally, GRIPS can assist you with inviting your family (spouse and children only) only following your arrival in Japan.

Please complete and submit the online “Pre-Arrival Questionnaire,” which includes questions about accommodations. To access the questionnaire, please follow the onscreen instructions after logging in at https://gremote.grips.ac.jp/, using your ID and password. If, for some reason you are not able to submit the questionnaire online, please contact your Program Coordinator as soon as possible.

For further information and questions concerning accommodations, please contact the GRIPS Student Office.

Tel: +81-(0)3-6439-6048
Fax: +81-(0)3-6439-6070
Email: studentofficegrips.ac.jp

Student Office

National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies
7-22-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-8677 Japan
studentofficegrips.ac.jp
Tel: +81-(0)3-6439-6048
Fax: +81-(0)3-6439-6070

Officehour:

Monday-Friday: 9:30 - 17:30

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