"I have a feeling of satisfaction from having something to show for my efforts in my seminar." What Shima had to show was the Dean's Award in the presentation section of the Faculty of Commerce Essay Competition held on December 3, 2011. In front of an audience of about thirty, including a panel of professors judging the contest, Shima gave a twenty minute presentation on her graduate thesis topic of Cash Retention Determinants in Japanese Business.

This competition has been going a long time, and successive generations of seniors have participated in it, in both a presentation section and an essay section. Shima entered it of her own accord after seeing a notice about it on a bulletin board, and won the competition in style.

In her third and fourth years, Shima studied business management strategy in Professor Yuji Honjo's seminar. In the third year, the emphasis was on group work, with major events being a residential course in September, and the essay competition in December. With those experiences as a base, she tackled her graduation thesis as a fourth year.

Looking back she says, "Study in the third year was tough, but I got a lot of stimulus from my surroundings and the group work was fun." On the other hand, as a fourth year, in order to write her graduation thesis, "I faced a new hardship in having to do everything myself," she said. She added, "Halfway through I wanted to throw it all in, but I became aware of the varied pace of my life."

What kept her going at that time was Professor Honjo and other students in the seminar. Shima doesn't forget to show her feelings of gratitude: "The professor always gave me the right advice. I also received support from my seminar colleagues. I was able to win the Dean's Award because of the people around me."

In the beginning, presentations were her weak point. Because she got stage fright and her hands shook, she started with large group presentations and in stages, got toward a position of presenting by herself, to increasingly large groups of people. "Even now I still get nervous, but as I gained experience, I realized I would somehow pull through," she says.

The teamwork and presentation skills she fostered in the seminar have proved extremely useful in looking for a job. Hearing various ideas and putting together opinions in a group while being careful not to lose direction, turned out to be valuable experience, and she had no problem addressing employers. She was able to make the most of her presentation experiences, even when required to speak in a limited time.

In advising other students, Shima strongly emphasizes, "I want you to be positive and take up the challenges in the things you want to do, or things that weigh on your mind during your four years at university. It is important to find a place where you can try hard." In April, Shima will start working at a regional bank in Yamanashi Prefecture.

(Mishima)