This summer, discover each week the portrait of our M1 students who are currently on international mobility.

Today it is Mikael, student in the Software design & development course who is doing his mobility at the National institute of informatics, Tokyo (Japan).

1. What is your background?

My name is Mikael, and I am an M1 EUR Software Design and Development student. To validate my license, an internship was required in L3. During this, I was at the XLIM laboratory in Poitiers, where I met an intern in EUR. We discussed many topics, including his master’s degree, which interested me a lot. I wanted to discover the research side, which is unfortunately little shown in traditional bachelor’s or master’s degrees. After talking about it with the professor responsible for Poitiers and thinking carefully, I embarked on this adventure.

2. Mobility abroad is compulsory in M1 EUR, were you apprehensive about this mobility?

At first, I was very excited about going abroad. Once the process began, my excitement grew. However, as departure approached, I felt a mixture of stress and fear, especially the last days before leaving and the first hours there. Never having left France and finding myself in a country where I knew neither the places nor the people was intimidating. However, I realized how lucky I was to be able to go so far to a good laboratory thanks to my master’s degree.

3. How did the internship search go and how did you choose your internship location?

I looked for a place where living would not be too expensive, without really worrying about rent and travel costs, because these costs were covered by the EUR. I also wanted somewhere attractive and technologically advanced. All these criteria led me to Japan. I spoke with some teachers, and one of them put me in contact with a Japanese teacher from Caen. After exploring the options, I chose NII (National Institute of Informatics) in Tokyo. Despite a few obstacles, we finalized the details and I left in early June.

4. What is your internship topic?

My internship topic is “Discrete Soft Morphing with Convexity Preservation using Discrete Line Properties”. It involves transforming a shape in discrete geometry (composed of pixels) into another shape in a natural way while respecting certain constraints. To explain briefly, at each step of the transformation we need to modify at most one pixel (remove, add, move) while keeping certain properties, like making sure we don’t split a line into two by modifying a wrong pixel.

5. How is the internship going overall?

The internship is going very well, although the subject is ambitious. Integration with the teams is excellent. We had a “Welcome Party” at an izakaya (Japanese brewery). The laboratory is a real melting pot with trainees from all over the world. Arriving in June was a bit difficult because the other interns had already been there for several months and knew each other well. But in the end, no problem, everyone is aware that it’s not easy to be thousands of kilometers from home, so there is a very caring dynamic between everyone.

6. What do your internship missions look like?

My day starts at 9am. I work until 12 p.m., then take an hour break for lunch, often at very affordable restaurants in Japan. Then I work until 5 p.m., although I often stay later to solve problems. Once a week, we have a meeting with our on-site supervisor, a professor from Poitiers and the professor from Caen to discuss our progress and the challenges encountered.

7. Do you have a travel story to tell? A culture shock when you arrive?

The cleanliness ratio is incredible. I remember going out at night in Shibuya, one of the biggest nightlife areas. I celebrated, knowing that after midnight in Tokyo, there is no subway, so you have to stay until 5am! The streets at the end of the night were trashed, with trash everywhere, cigarette butts, bottles and cans. But when I returned four hours later, everything had been magically cleaned, incredibly clean, as if the neighborhood had been transformed. Another impressive point is that people are extremely kind, ready to do anything to help, even if it puts them in a delicate position.

8. What advice would you give to future students who are going to do their mobility?

Go for it! It’s an incredible experience. Discover new cultures, it’s enriching. Even though it can be scary, there will always be someone to help you if you have a problem. Get ahead, learn about customs, and check out Facebook groups like “Les Français au Japon” for practical advice. You will see, it is an unforgettable adventure.