Though the student body is comprised of approximately 17% international students, Choate enrolls only five students from Japan. However, this number may change as starting next fall, the school will grant Murata U.S.-Japan Scholarships to Japanese international students.
This scholarship, funded by the generosity of alumnus Takashi Murata ’93, will aim to encourage more Japanese international students to study at Choate.
Every year, Japanese international students will receive this scholarship to attend the Choate Summer Programs and the full academic year. Headmaster Dr. Alex Curtis announced this new multi-year initiative last December.
The Murata U.S-Japan Scholarship is the first scholarship to target Asian students specifically.
Director of Curricular Initiatives Dr. Katherine Jewett said, “Choate will learn a lot from students from Japan. It is definitely a two-way street. This is the exciting part of Mr. Murata’s generosity.”
Director of Financial Aid Mr. Matthew McDonald commented, “Our hope is to open up the idea of Choate to another part of the world. What we hope is that students coming back from this will be able to talk about the advantage of coming to Choate.”
The Murata U.S.-Japan Scholarship has been in effect for a year, as seven students from Japan received scholarships to attend the Choate Summer Programs in 2015.
However, effective next fall, the scholarship will also start covering tuition for the academic year.
Currently, there are three Japanese students who have enrolled at Choate for the next school year. The students are from Kaisei Academy and Seikei Junior and Senior High School, which are both nationally renowned for having superior curriculums. The students are particularly strong in math and science, according to Dr. Jewett.
In the interview with the Bulletin, benefactor Mr. Takashi Murata shared his inspiration for establishing this scholarship.
He said, “My hope is that by taking the financial burden out of the equation, the program will allow more top-notch students in Japan to now consider U.S. boarding schools as a real option, and help create a bigger trend of Japanese students studying overseas at an earlier stage.”
From his experience working as a partner at Goldman Sachs, Mr. Murata observed, “Japan has been known as somewhat of a reclusive place, and probably more so after two decades of economic deflation. Multicultural, multilingual Japanese talent is in short supply.”
Furthermore, after attending an influencing Choate Summer Program in 1990 as a freshman, Mr. Murata applied to Choate as a new sophomore against his parents’ wishes.
At Choate, Mr. Murata excelled in academics. Mr. Doug James, who was Mr. Murata’s English teacher, described Mr. Murata as, “a resourceful scholar with an engaging style and mind.” Mr. Murata also was a prefect and an active wrestler; he was on the wrestling team that won the Founder’s League Championships in 1992-1993.
Mr. Murata remembers his wrestling experience with particular fondness. He recalled something that his wrestling coach, Mr. Jay Hutchinson, would always say: “He talked about how 90 percent of winning is attitude and all of the rest — physical attributes, technique — is only 10 percent. That frame of mind is something that I have carried with me since.”
From his experiences serving as a prefect, Mr. Murata learned, “You just realize you need to be yourself and do the best you can.” He carried these lesson with him as he went on to business. In order to give back to his alma mater that has taught him so many things, Mr. Murata felt the need to sponsor this scholarship.
According to both Mr. McDonald and Dr. Jewett, the admissions process of the Murata U.S.-Japan Scholarship greatly resembles the general Choate admissions process.
Foremost, applicants should have strong academic backgrounds.
However, students under consideration for the scholarship need not only excellent academic records, but also either a great grasp of the English language or the ability to learn foreign languages quickly. The students who are receiving scholarships will be from international schools, and consequently, it would be very difficult for these students to show their best work at Choate if they do not understand English.
Choate hopes that in addition to offering more students the opportunity to attend, it can attract more Japanese international students to foster a diverse community in which students can learn and grow.
