| Alvaro Drukaroff
Hello, I am from the Polytechnic University of Madrid. This was my second and last year of internship in Asahi Kasei. I feel particularly lucky as during this time I have had a terrific experience in this big company, watching it growing and participating into the process in a comfortable working environment.
I'm sure I will treasure every memory I got in Japan, where everything is so different and amazing. I would like to thank the other students and the staff of the company for their continuous support. To the previous trainees, to the current ones and to the ones to come, good luck everyone!
Bas Vijfwinkel
I am working on the Dutch acoustic models. As for my education, a long time ago I decided to pick up the challenge to study both Japanese and mathematical computer science at my Dutch university.
Working on speech recognition offers a great challenge and opportunity to be involved in the development of new techniques that will become just as common as in our daily lives as for example our mobile phones. Although speaking Japanese in Japan can be very convenient, most of the Japanese staff we work with in the office understand English without any problems. But after this year I hope to have translated all available Japanese documents to English. The friendly and supportive working environment, enables us to focus on improving our speech recognition models and to go boldly where no man has gone before.
Life in Japan can be very exciting and fun, as long as one has a realistic view. Also living about 50 minutes from the center of Tokyo enables us also to experience other aspects of living in Japan. After living in Japan for 3 years previously, I still manage to be amazed by daily occurrences ranging from adventurous cold canned coffee to having one's car blessed at a temple.
David Wang
Hi! I am from Canada, the "True North, Strong and Free". I am a computer engineering student at the University of Waterloo and I can tell you working here in Asahi Kasei is a lot more fun than going to school in Waterloo!
I am currently working on the super duper top secret DSP chip project under the supervision of Dr. Kobayashi (if I told you what I were doing I'd have to have you terminated). Currently my task is to work on a prototype version of the DSP chip that supports debugging instructions as well as memory and register scanning (can I read you your last rites now?). The project is full of technical challenges and it is a tremendous learning opportunity. If you are looking for an all-around design problem ranging from low level circuit design to writing client GUIs for Windows, then this is the place to be!
Apart from work, I only have to say this: Japan is Japan. Japan is cool and Japan is different. It has its positives and negatives. But then again, which country doesn't have negatives? Be assured that you will never experience something like it and I certainly would not trade this experience for anything in the world.
Dominik Zorn
In German:
Hallo Leute! Ich bin jetzt seit 3 Monaten hier in Atsugi und wurd am liebsten gar nicht weg! ;) Naja, irgendwann schon, aber die Zeit hier vergeht eben ziemlich schnell! Falls irgendjemand schon den englischen Text oben gelesen haben sollte, kann ich nur nochmal sagen: Es lohnt sich! Besonders herzlich faellt hier bespielsweise schon die Begruessung aus...
Vom Willkommenstrunk am Bus, bis hin zur abendlichen "Einweihungs"feier, alles da - Was die Sprache angeht, kann ich (als jemand, der praktisch mit Null,0 Japanisch hierher kam) nur sagen, dass es auf Arbeit absolut kein Problem ist! Sicherlich kann es des naechtens in der Bar um die Ecke von Nutzen sein ein paar Broeckchen Japanisch mitzubringen, aber das kriegt man dann schon raus! Bis dahin: Es gibt immer einen Weg! (Mit gutem Handzeichenrepertoire verhungert keiner) ;)
Also keine Sorge! Kann aus eigener Erfahrung sprechen und Euch echt beruhigen! Auf Arbeit bekommen alle Anfaenger soviel Zeit sie eben brauchen, um sich einzuarbeiten, wobei einem fuer gewoehnlich ein persoenlicher Tutor (meisst Vorgaenger) zugeteilt wird. Also wie bei allem anderen, auch hier keine Sorge! Hatte ausnahmslos alle o.g. Sorgen selbst und sie waren ebenso ausnahmslos alle unbegruendet (selbst das Bier ist ganz gut). Also, kurz und buendig: Wer hierher kommt, der erhaelt einen bis ins kleinste Detail perfekt organisierten Aufenthalt, mit vielen interessanten Leuten, Aufgaben und Erfahrungen! Den Spass gibt´s gratis dazu!
In English:
Hi! My name is Domi and for the moment, I'm the German internship at VORERO. As this shall be an information for all of you, who think about applying to the internship, let me say it by two words: do it!
This internship is, compared to lots of others out there, very well organized and will be a more than fruitful experience for you! As I know about the worries one has before applying for such an internship, please let me take away most of them. First of all don´t be worried about communication purposes, as at work English language is the way to go! So even if you are not that experienced with Japanese (or don't even speak it at all) there will be no problems! Second is of course the work itself, on which you will never be left out in the rain! This is teamwork! Besides are you given enough time to get into the matter...
Well, Japan may be considered a quite exotic country for doing an internship, but the more interesting it is! Definitely take this as another big advantage this program is offering to you! All colleagues you will encounter are more than nice people and fun never comes too short! I'm sure, everybody leaving here will do this enriched by lifetime memories and excellent practical experiences!
Apart from this, Atsugi is very close to metropolitan centers as Tokyo and Yokohama, guaranteeing unlimited possibilities for thousands of internship stays! If you want to make friends from all over the world, gain insights to a different culture and get practical experiences, this is what you have been waiting for!
Ioannis Pavlidis
I am a Greek university student, studying Electrical & Computer engineering at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece. I am currently working on a pattern recognition related research, targeted to IR sensors. The Asahi Kasei internship is a wonderful opportunity to gain invaluable professional experience as well as to satisfy any interest for the Japanese culture.
All the people, including the other interns and Asahi Kasei employers, are so friendly, you never feel uncomfortable, making this experience even more rewarding!! The work conditions, and the facilities of the company are very good, allowing you to enjoy the time you are spending here, working Also, the goals of this project are very challenging for me, and provide me with the appropriate hands-on experience i need, to complete my studies.
So, gaining technical knowledge from a company that specializes in new technologies, meeting people from all over the world, getting familiar with Japanese way of life, but most important, doing something different than the usual, make this experience definitely unforgetable... Try it! You wont regret it! Even if you'll have to meet German guys like Patrick. :-p
Jay Hwang
I have already graduated from the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) last June, and I have started this internship since this September. My job at Asahi Kasei is to develop and evaluate the Non-Audible Murmur (NAM) speech recognition. The NAM is inaudible speech produced without vibration of the vocal cords, and this is the first trial in the world.
I am very happy to join this internship program, and I enjoy what I do at Asahi Kasei so far. I am gaining a lot of knowledge from this internship, and I also apply things that I have learned from my university to this field. It is very interesting and challenging.
I really appreciate Asahi Kasei for giving me this great opportunity, and thank all coworkers at Asahi Kasei for making my life in Japan so pleasurable. My internship at Asahi Kasei would be great experience, and my time in Japan would be unforgettable.
Jenny Ko
An-nyung-ha-se-yo. I am a Korean Canadian who lives in Waterloo, Canada. I am a student at the Univ. of Waterloo.
I have joined Asahi's VORERO research group to develop the Korean acoustic model since August 2004. First of all, I absolutely love their flexible hour system. Another thing I love about this job is that everyone is so willing to help and explain things very thorougly. Unlike many companies in Japan, they have a lot of English books and documentation that are very helpful for learning Speech Recognition Processing.
My life in Japan is not just about work. I've made so many friends here at Asahi. These internship students are from all around the world and that's what makes our friendships so unique.
I'd like to thank Asahi for giving me this amazing opportunity. This is the kind of experience one will never forget in his/her life. Gam-sa-ham-ni-da.
Patrick Buehler
I am a computer science student at the University of Mannheim, Germany. I'll be here for 12 months as part of the Image Sensing group. I hope to use this year to learn as much as possible about Japan and to deepen my knowledge in the Image Recognition area.
I am very thankful for getting accepted as an intern at Asahi Kasei. This is a great opportunity to experience what life on the other side of the globe is like. We are living in a very friendly environment with always something new to discover. In addition I really like the fact that I am working and living with people from all over the world.
Because of all these reasons I am certain that this will be a great year for everybody!
Pedro Cardoso
Hello all.
Starting with a simple introduction of myself, I came from Lisbon, Portugal. While being at the very last of my master course in Instituto Superior Tecnico, in Lisbon, I applied to Asahi Kasei internship, to work on the voice recognition project, VORERO, for the Portuguese acoustic model.
I think I still can't tell how much I like the work in Japan since I'm still in the beginning of my internship, being here only for 3 months, since August 2004. For the moment I can tell that it's been a nice experience, in professional terms and personal growth. Work itself is very exciting, with possibility to use your creativity, and with great conditions. The office is in this modern tower where you can see Mt.Fuji one side and Yokohama on the other. It's in the middle of a small city with a nice feeling. Yes, this is actually the only really tall building in city. Living near the center of the city and even closer to work gives also a lot of life quality, especially if you just use your bike to get any place. ;)
Regarding all my colleagues, even with the common idea that Japanese people are very closed and not so friendly towards foreigners, I can say that haven't felt that in general, and specially at the company. Everyone is extremely nice and always available to explain something to you, if it's just work related, social life or nice ideas for sightseeing and travel in Japan. Having also many other foreign students in the same condition helps to integrate in the society, explaining all you need to survive in the first days ... you get the best help possible. And since life is not just work ... well, Tokyo and Yokohama are near for real party and all you might think of, and with so much nature and nice cities to see all around, maybe not even one year is enough.
Everything accounted, I can tell that this has been a really nice experience, and never boring, and I have to thank Asahi Kasei for this nice opportunity to experience Japanese life.
Phillip Auger
I am a Computer Science major from Florida Atlantic University (FAU) from the United States of America. I have been working here now for three months, and I have enjoyed the experience immensely. I have learned many technologies and current events in the Computer Science field. This company has definitely shown me what it is to work for a leader in the field.
I have learned a lot about the Japanese culture. I have also learned a lot about other cultures, as there are many different European, Asian, and Canadian interns at the company.
I was interested in this internship originally because I always enjoyed reading and learning about Voice Recognition. But now, instead of watching from the sidelines, I am part of a team that will be responsible for changing the way we communicate with technology. I have used all my skills that I acquired from my college, including Artificial Intelligence and Statistics, so I have found this internship to be quite challenging, but in a good way.
With everything this internship has been so far, I know what I learn and do here will help me far into the future.
Pierre-Louis Hazart
I am a student at the CPE Lyon France (computer science, electronics and telecom). I am currently on an 11-month internship in Asahi-Kasei working on French speech recognition. I will go back to France at the beginning of August 05. I would like to thank all the staff that have made this internship possible for me. Working here is really interesting and I particularly enjoy the international atmosphere (15 students from 10 different countries). Japan is an amazing country and there are a lot of nice places to visit. It is a pleasure to discover every day all the differences of local culture and way of living. Above all things, I want to thank Japanese people for a hearty welcome and kindness that make life here just so easy.
Steffen Bittner
I am an electronic engineering student at the University of Technology in Dresden. During my internship at Asahi Kasei I worked on parts at an ongoing Voice over IP project, that is to implement G.729a speech codec application on a custom digital signal processor (DSP). For that I designed special DSP instruction extensions and improved the performance through both hardware and software design.
To work in a team together with people from all over the world, made working at Asahi Kasei an unforgettable experience for me. And Japan itself is a great country with friendly and lovely people.
I really enjoyed my time in Japan and would like to thank Asahi Kasei, especially Dr. Shiro Kobayashi, for the great opportunity they offered to me.
Stuart Gerrard
I am currently studying Computer Science at The Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen, Scotland. I have been working at Asahi Kasei since November 2003, developing UK English ASR within the VORERO Modelling Team. This was a one-year internship, and I will return to Scotland in November 2004. Originally, another student was selected for this internship - but fate has a way of making things happen; and I'm all the more grateful for the unique opportunity and life-changing experience.
((Even before arriving in Japan the company had displayed the highest standard of organisation, making special considerations to allow my Fiance to accompany me to Japan. ))
I think this year is the most important in my life so far! I have learned so much from my work and colleagues, as well as from the life outside the company, Japan is truly an amazing country to work in and live in.
I will leave Japan wielding a wealth of experience; a superb knowledge and practical skills in ASR; and more over anything a network of international contacts and some great memories with some true friends. Asahi Kasei & the Vorero team is THE way forward, ganbatte.
Wang Weiguang 
Hi, I am from Zhejiang Univ, China. I work for the modeling team of VORERO project. It is a perfect opportunity for internship, since not only you can put what you learned at school into practice but also can develop your new interests or enchance your technical abilities. Researching, programming... choose whatever direction you like.
Thank Asahi Kasei for bringing me to this land of fascination! In spare time I enjoy the wonderful landscape and unique culture of Japan. People are so nice that I feel like at home. How time flies when staying with the team, but I will keep it for myself as a most valuable memory.
Zhang Haiwen 
I am a computer science student from Beijing University of Post and Telecommunications, China. I came to Asahi Kasei to train and improve Mandarin acoustic models. It is my first time to come to Japan which is a fantastic country. I meet all kinds of people and experiense the perfect mixture of modern and tradition.
About work, I had the opportunity to take part in the Mandarin voice recognition, although I am in the Modeling team, I also gain a thorough insight into the whole amazing voice recognition world and determine whether an academic career was the right path for me. The experience was extremely refreshing! During the trainee program I got to know experts in voice recognition, who have often answered all kinds of questions and gave me useful advice. Thanks to the variety of projects on which our team works, no two days are ever the same!
Michael Jellinghaus
I am a computational linguistics student at Saarland University, Germany. Starting in September 2003, I spent one year in Japan under the Vulcanus Programme of the EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation. This programme consisted of a four-month intensive Japanese language course in Tokyo and an eight-month internship at Asahi Kasei's Voice Interface Project in Atsugi, where I worked on the advanced development of German acoustic models and a German pronunciation dictionary.
Well, what can I say? It was GREAT!!! The experience of living and working in such an interesting and exciting country as Japan was simply amazing. This year changed my life and I can definitely count it among the best in my life. I got a warm welcome and a lot of support from all the nice colleagues at Asahi Kasei (both the Japanese staff and the other interns), some of whom became good friends over time. But not only that, I also learned so many new things that will certainly help me in the future. Of course, not everything was always perfect but to everyone thinking about whether or not to apply for this internship, I can only give the advice to just do it. It is very rewarding, it will broaden your horizon in every way, and it will provide you with a whole new perspective -- beyond the limits of what you can experience in your home country.
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