Kyushu Universityver.2024

STUDENC L U& B
CIRCLEGUIDE
BOOK"Come and join us!"clubs and circles beckon

Let’s joinclubs and circles!
The university life outside of theclassroom setting gives you, student,
the opportunity to not only broaden
your horizons, but also to develop
more multifaceted interests. As oftoday, gathering Kyushu University
students that are from different
backgrounds, there are over 100
clubs and circles on campus that cancontribute to your immersion in thejapanese culture, along with personal
development, to help you impact awider community, and ultimately
contribute to the internationalizationof the university.

In general, “clubs” are officially supported by theuniversity, and hence, are charged with the missionof representing the university in external
tournaments, competitions, and contests. With that
aim in mind, "clubs" tightly organize their activities
and practices. Therefore, their activities are more
intense compared to those of "circles".
On the other hand, a “circle” is an organization ofstudents that aims to develop a mutual interest
among its members. Therefore, circle activities andpractices are more relaxed, and the schedule ismore flexible.

What isthe difference
between clubs and circles?

1 Introduction
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Contents

1 Introduction...p.2-p.3

Things
2to knowKey Information
1. Senpai-Kohai System
A Confucian value that defines Japanese club
culture is called the “senpai-kohai system”.
Senpai can be translated as “senior”, while kohai is“junior”. This system is a two-way relationship; thesenpai is expected to mentor the kohai and takeresponsibility for their performances, while thekohai is expected to show more respect and behave
more politely when senpais are around. An exampleof this system can be easily spotted at drinking
parties and gatherings where kohai pours senpaiʼsbeers and senpai usually gives more treatsfinancially.

...p.5-p.7

Words
to know43...p.8-p.9

List ofClubs andCircles...p.10-p.19

4

2. Membership Fee
Club or circle members are sometimes expected to
pay a membership fee, which is used for financing
the activities or to run the club/circle community.
This fee varies between clubs/circles and ranges
between 2,000 ‒ 5,000 yen per month.

2 Things
to know5

<Sample Email>Subject:
活動参加希望 トム

How to Join
Clubs and Circles
1. Contacting
a desired clubOnce you have found a club you are interested inand their contact email address/SNS account, thenext step would be to send them an email/message
stating your intention to join. Club managers andcircle members usually understand messages
written in English; however, writing in simple
Japanese may get you more attention. A sample
email written in Japanese followed by an English
translation is on the next page. In this email, afreshman named Tom is sending an email to a clubcalled “Soccer Club”.

Body:
Soccer Club様
はじめまして。
私は、九州大学に留学生としてきている、工学部1年のトムです。
この度は、Kyusyu University Student Clubs and Circle
Guidebookを見て、Soccer Clubに興味をもったのでご連絡しました。
一度Soccer Clubの活動に参加したいのですが、いつどこに行けばいいでしょうか。
お返事をお待ちしています。
なお、私は日本語があまり得意ではないので、英語ができる方がいれば英語でお返事をいただけると嬉しいです。
よろしくお願いします。
トム
九州大学工学部1年
メール：iamtom@tomtom.jp
電話番号：000-111-2222<English Translation>
Subject
Joining the Soccer Club, Tom
Body:
Hello,
My name is Tom, a B1 international student at theSchool of Engineering at Kyushu University.
I am sending this email because I found the Soccer
Club in the Kyushu University Student Clubs andCircles guidebook, which made me very interested
in your activities.
I would like to participate in Soccer Club activities
once and would appreciate it if you could tell me
when and where I can go.

2. Go and participate intheir activities

If possible, I would like to get a reply in English
because my Japanese is not so good.
Looking forward to hearing from you.

Usually from April to May, clubs/circles welcome
new students to discover their activities without anappointment.
If you find information about welcome events fornew students or a trial period on their social media
or website, you can go to the site and join themwithout sending them a message in advance.

Tom
School of Engineering at Kyushu University, B1
Email: iamtom@tomtom.jp
Phone number: 000-111-2222

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Best Regard,

7

3 Wordsto know

合宿 (Gasshuku)“Training camp”

遠征試合 (Ensei Shiai)“An away match”

先輩 (Senpai)

監督 (Kantoku)“Seniors.” Someone who is older in age or grade.

“Head coach”

マネージャー (Manager)

後輩 (Kohai)“Juniors.” Someone who is younger in age or grade.

敬語 (Keigo)“Honorific speech.” A respectful way of speaking
from kohai to senpai, coaches and teachers.

A club member who is in charge of taking care ofequipment, members' fitness, performance records,etc.

インカレサークル (In-kare Circle)“Inter-college circle.” A circle that consists ofmembers from several different universities.

新歓 (Shinkan)“A welcome event.” A welcome party or event for
new club members.

飲み会 (Nomikai)“A drinking party”

打ち上げ (Uchiage)“A celebration party.” Usually with drinking.

おごり (Ogori)
To treat someone. It is more common for a “Senpai”
to treat a “Kohai.”

8※Joining a club or circle is not only about
participating in a particular sport or art. Becoming
a member allows you to learn more about andpractice the Japanese language and culture byfollowing many traditions and experiencing intense
yet fun senpai-kohai relationships!

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4 List of Clubs
and Circles
Animation
Research Circle... p.11
Ashihara Karate... p.11
BluePlanche... p.11
Calligraphy Club... p.12
Car Club... p.12
CHANCE

Jazz club... p.14

QESS... p.17

Judo... p.14

QUCC... p.18

Juggling Club(9JUC)... p.14

Rakugo Club... p.18

Kapua Makana... p.15

Science Fiction Club... p.18

Kendo Club... p.15

Soccer Club... p.18

KURT... p.15

Soft tennis... p.19

Kyushu University
Birdman Team... p.15

Starting Business Club... p.19

Contact information isfor the year 2023.
Theinformation
may
beupdated every year, so pleasecheck each circle's website orsocial media directly for themost up-to-date information.

Moreation
informAnimation
Research Circle
Hello! This is the animation
research circle, we talk aboutanime, manga and other topics
that might interest Otaku. We
watch anime and play games inour clubroom. If you’reinterested, please come along!

＠gmail.com
＠q_anikenq.aniken... p.12
Equestrian... p.12
ETOILES... p.13
FIWC Kyushu... p.20
Geoscience
Research Club... p.13
Gymnastics Club... p.13
Ice hockey... p.13
iTOP... p.14

Kyushu University
Chor Akademie... p.16
Kyushu University
Humanoid Project... p.16

Syorinji Kenpo Kyushu
University... p.19
Triathlon GAIA... p.19
Wadaiko-Kakyou... p.20

Legal Research Circle... p.16
Men’s lacrosse club... p.16

Wandervogel... p.20

ASHIHARA KARATE
Have you ever heard of karate?
Karate is a traditional
Japanese martial art.
Joining our club will help you
grow mentally and physically.
We also have international
students.
Come and practice with us!

kyushu.u.ashihara

＠ashihara2022

＠gmail.com

Blue Planche

Ouendan... p.17
Philharmonic Orchestra... p.17
QART... p.17

Hello, we are a windsurfing
circle called blue planche. We
practice at the beach, which isabout 20min ride by bike from
Ito campus. There are sharedequipment to use.
It’s so fun! See you on theocean!
blueplanche

＠gmail.com

blueplanche_gram

1011

E-mailInstagram

TwitterWebsite

ETOILES

Calligraphy Club

Hello everyone! We are thecheerleading club "ETOILES"
We perform at cheerleading
competitions, festivals, and insupport of other clubs' games.
Join us, enjoy cheerleading,and have a full, complete
campus life!

🌟Hello there! We practice
calligraphy and create works
once or twice a week in a
Japanese-style room in
Extracurricular Activity Facility
II. We also do calligraphy
performances at school festivals.
Please enjoy calligraphy with us!

etoiles_cheer

＠kyudaishodo

＠hotmail.com
＠kyudaishodo
kyudai_shodo

Car ClubGeoscience
ResearchClub

Hello there! This is a car club.
Our main activities arepreparing the cars andparticipating in motorsports
such as gymkhana, dirt trail,
and rally. Let's enjoy driving
and fiddling with cars
together!
qucc.org

＠gmail.com

＠qucc_official

＠gmail.com
＠Q_chiken

chiken.information
qu_chiken

Gymnastics Club
Hello! We are a gymnastics
club.We practice on
Wednesdays,Fridays,Sundays
at the gym. Our goal is to win
the Seven Universities Athleticmeet. If you are interested ingymnastics, please join us!!

Hello! This is a volunteer circle
for elementary school students.
Our concept is to encourage
local elementary school
students to think about their"dreams for the future". If you
like interacting with kids,
please join us!

chance_qed

Hello there! This is a circle
which does various activities
related to geoscience,
including astronomy, minerals,fossils, and weather. Let’s
enjoy geoscience together!

＠qucc_official

CHANCEchance.tsunagari

＠gmail.com
＠etoiles_cheer

kyushuuniversity.etoiles

kyushu_univ_gymsta

＠gmail.com
＠CHANCE_QED

EquestrianIce Hockey

We are the equestrian club ofKyushu University. Our main
activities are riding andtaking care of five horses. Theclub members participate inpractice on Saturdays andSundays, and two or threedays a week.
qdaibazyutubu

＠QunivUmabu

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＠gmail.com

Hello, this is an icehockey club.
We have 4 fourth graders, 18
second graders and 15 firstgraders. Of course, we are all
beginners!! So, welcome to join
us even if you are just a littlebit interested!
kyushu_icehockey

13

＠Quni_icehockey

iTOP

Kapua Makana
Aloha! This is a hula dancecircle: a Hawaiian dance. We
wear Hawaian costumes andperform at events! We used tohave international students asa member, so don't worry.
Let's dance with us!

Members, those who aim forcommunity development and local
revitalization are taking on avariety of challenges in iTOP.
We are creating opportunities tobring students and local people
together in Itoshima, Fukuoka.

kyudai.hulaitopitoshima02

＠qucc_official

＠gmail.com

＠gmail.com

＠kyudaihula

kapuamakana.kyudai

Kendo Club

Jazz ClubWe play a wide range of jazz
genres. We have a big bandand many small bands. We also
have international students on
our roster. Let's get to knoweach other through jazz!
kyushu_jazz55

Hello !
This is a kendo club wherestudents practice Kendo .
Kendo practice is so hard.
However, if you have aninterest , you can give it a try!

＠gmail.com
＠kyudaijazzken

kyushu.university.kendo@gmail.com

qjazz_rhythmsociety

JudoKURT

Why don’t you play Judo?
You can learn the techniques ofthrowing, choking, and jointlocking.
We have no club expenses.
Please feel free to join us.
Let's spend a lit life together.
kyudaijudo2016
kyudai_judo

KURT is a robotics competition
team. We work hard but wehave fun building robots forvarious competitions andevents. Why don't you join us
at KURT and try your hand at
making robots?

＠gmail.com
＠kurt_Qdai

＠gmail.com
＠kyudaijudo

kurt.9dai

Juggling Club(9JUC)
We are juggling circle at
Kyushu University. Juggling isso much fun! We hope it will
also be your lifelong hobby!
Let's play juggling with us!
9juc.kyushu.1
ninejuc

＠gmail.com
＠ninejuc

Kyushu University
Birdman Team
Hello everyone! This is a
Birdman Team where students
make a hand-made glider. Weare building our glider every
day for the "Japan International
Birdman Rally" held every
summer. Non-scientific course
students are also welcome!
q-birdman
q_birdman

14

15

＠hotmail.co.jp

＠Q_birdman

Kyushu University
Chor Akademie

Ouendan
We are Ouendan, a Japanesetraditional style cheerleading
team. We mainly go to cheer
the baseball games, lacrossegames, rugby games, and soon. In addition, we havespecial stages to show ourdance, too.

This is a male chorus, usuallysinging simple, beautiful songs
like canons, hymns and so on.
we sing more than 300 songs ayear!!
Join us and sing!!

＠chor-akademie.net
＠KCA_information
KCA_official

＠gmail.com
＠qdqi_endan
qdai.endan

Philharmonic Orchestra

Kyushu University
Humanoid Project

Do you like classical music?
If you do, you can enjoy
orchestra with us!! We practicefor the concert that is held
twice a year.
You are welcome to join us!!

This is a robot production circle.
We mainly produce biped walking
robots. You can learn how tobuild and how to move robots byprogramming. It's a lot of fun, so
let's join us!
humanoid.9dai

＠QUHP_9dai

＠gmail.com
＠quphil_official
＠kyudaiphil
qdaiphil

＠gmail.com

Legal Research Circle

QART
This is an art club whose
members like drawing,
painting, sculpturing, papercutting, etc.
We hold exhibitions threetimes a year, and enjoy
croquis together twice a week.
We welcome everyone that isinterested in art!

In the Legal Research Circle,
we have discussions about
laws. The content is difficult,but it is very rewarding whencircle members discuss and finda satisfactory answer.
https://kyudaisoudan.web.
fc2.com/index.html

＠QU_hoso

k-artclub

Men’s Lacrosse clubThis is a men's lacrosse club.
We practice on Ito campus
ground. Our goal is to be asemifinalist in Japan lacrossecollegiate championship.
We are looking forward tomeeting you!
rnntnb112@gmail.com
ballena_kyushu

16

＠qdai_endan

＠ballena_lax

＠live.jp

＠Qartclub

QESS
Hello! This is Q.E.S.S(Kyushu
University English SpeakingSociety). Q.E.S.S is divided
into 4 sections, speech,debating, guide and drama. If
you are interested in our club,please contact us!!
qu.english.speaking.society

＠qu_ess

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＠gmail.com

QUCCSoft Tennis

Hello there! This is QUCC,
Kyushu University Cycling Club.
We ride our road bikes every
Wednesday. And we regularlyorganize various long-distanceriding events.
Come to join us and enjoy road
biking with us!
info.qucc

Hello! We are a soft tennis club.
We usually play tennis on thetennis courts in the center zoneof the Ito Campus. Please comeand see even just once!
9dai.softtennis
9dai.softtennis

＠gmail.com
＠9daiSofttennis

＠gmail.com
＠qucc_2023

qucc.cycling

Rakugo ClubQUSIS (Kyusyu University
Startup Innovation Society)

What is Rakugo? It is a 400year-old tradition of comic
storytelling in Japan. A
minimalistic performance art,
Rakugo features alone
storyteller dressed in kimono,kneeling on a cushion. Enjoy
Japanese culture with us!

Hello! We're a community of
about 60 people who want tostart a business, engineers,finance, etc. We welcome
international students as well,since about 10 of our clubmembers are currently foreign
nationals!

＠gmail.com
＠Kyushu_Ochiken
＠kyudai_ochiken
kyushu.ochiken

Science Fiction Club
Science fiction, movies, novels,manga, anime, games, SFX,robots, TCG...
This is a place where people who
like a wide variety of
subcultures can interact witheach other!
qsfcomm＠gmail.com
＠_Q_S_F_

qusis2022@gmail.com

＠qusis2022

Syorinji Kempo
Kyushu University
Do you know Syorinji? It's aJapanese martial art! Not only
you can learn tons ofinteresting techniques, butalso enjoy events liketravelling or BBQ with lovelymembers in our club. Don’t
hesitate and join us!

＠qu_shorinji

Soccer ClubHi! We practice soccer on
Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays
and weekends. Someinternational students are in thesoccer team with us too. So
please contact us if you areinterested! We look forward toplaying soccer with you!

＠gmail.com
＠kyushu_univ_fc
kyudaisoccer_official

＠QUSIS_＠shorinjiQU

Triathlon GAIA
Hi everyone! We are thetriathlon club, GAIA.
We are practicing swimming,
riding a bicycle and runningevery day except Fridays.
All members do their best toachieve their own goals!
Let’s have fun together!

＠thriathlon_gaia

＠thriatlon_gaia

kyushudaigakufc2012※Not everything is listed here.

1819

Wadaiko-Kakyou
Hello there!
We are a Japanese Drum circle.
We play Japanese Drum in Kyushu
University festival or local festivals
near Kyushu University.
It's a lot of fun!
Let's play Japanese drum together!
iyudaiwadaiko.kakyou

＠kyudai_wadaiko

＠gmail.com

Wandervogel
Hello! We do trekking, hiking
and cycling. We often climb
mountains in Fukuoka City andKyushu, but in summer we also
go on expeditions to theJapanese Alps. Let's climb
mountains with us!
q_wander_vogel
q_wander_vogel

＠yahoo.co.jp
＠q_wander_vogel

Friends International
Work Camp Kyushu(FIWC)
Hello there! This is a volunteer circle
that holds work camps.
Our activities include agriculturalwork, educational support,
infrastructure development, andvisits to Hansen's diseasesanatoriums. Let's create the best
memories together!
fiwc2021@gmail.com

＠fiwckyushu

＠fiwckyushu

SCIKyu九州大学国際化学生委員会

This guide book was made by SCIKyu(Student Committee for theInternationalization of Kyushu University), an official committee
set up by the university to contribute to the internationalization
through students' initiatives.
We hope this guidebook will be of help for international students
in Kyushu University.
Contact us at scikyu.official@gmail.com, or visit our social media
pages at www.facebook.com/SCIKyu, andhttps://www.instagram.com/scikyu.official.

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