Study Abroad: UH Hilo Japanese studies major Malcolm Fonoimoana spends year at university in Tokyo
Malcolm Fonoimoana’s interest in Japan and its language started during his high school days at Konawaena. He graduates this month with a bachelor’s degree in Japanese studies.
By Lauren Aoki/UH Hilo Stories.
For University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo Malcolm Fonoimoana, now a senior finishing up his degree in Japanese studies, his interest in Japan and its language started in high school. So when he decided to pursue his major, he learned about the year-long study abroad program and built it into his degree pathway. “I wanted to study abroad so that I could improve my Japanese language ability,” he says.
He spent his junior year in 2024-2025 at Meiji University in Tokyo, Japan.
Fonoimoana, who grew up in Kealakekua, graduated from Konawaena High School in 2022 and enrolled at UH Hilo the fall of the same year. This spring, 2026, he’s expected to graduate with his bachelor’s in Japanese studies with certificates in sustainability issues and global engagement.
Mochi pounding and wasabi farms
Fonoimoana says his study abroad experience in Japan wasn’t just confined to the classroom. The community often held cultural events for students staying in the dorms, including mochi pounding and tasting.
“They showed us how traditional mochi was made and the different varieties of toppings and fillings that could be used,” he says.
He also ventured outside the city to try other foods. He visited Atami, a popular seaside town, and Nagano, a large city about three hours from Tokyo. In Nagano, he visited a wasabi farm that offered authentic Japanese wasabi and wasabi ice cream. To Fonoimoana’s surprise, it wasn’t an unpleasant taste.
“It was tastier than I thought it was gonna be,” he admits.
Challenges and friendships
Unfortunately, the year also came with a few uphill battles. Like other students studying abroad, Fonoimoana initially found it difficult to adjust.
“I was plopped into a new culture where I had to learn the new norms, I had to make new friends, I had to find my flow, I had to get used to all this in a second language so of course it was difficult at the beginning,” he says.
The change from Hawaiʻi to the center of Tokyo was also disorienting. The change in scenery and pace of life were vastly different from home. “It was extremely different to my normal life here in Hawaiʻi,” he says. “The school I chose is basically in the middle of Tokyo.”
Surprisingly, his greatest struggle abroad was likely his own middle name. Fonoimoana’s full name, Malcolm Natuitasina Kane Kawaiola Arenui Hing Kalehuaweha Fonoimoana, was often too long for online applications. Its length would cause system glitches and other inconveniences. The print on his student ID had to be made tiny to fit his name in full.
It was also susceptible to mistranslation. In Hawaiian, kane is pronounced as “kah-ne”, but in English as “kay-n”. The English pronunciation was then translated into Japanese as “kein”. Meaning, not only was his full name often cut short, but didn’t match his passport.
“Many documents got messed up because the name I wrote in Japanese didn’t match what they wrote,” he explains.
Luckily, it all worked out in the end. With the support of his friends, he overcame the challenges. Many of them were also exchange students who understood what he was going through. Others were Japanese students, and even though some didn’t speak English, friendships transcended language.
“We were able to bond and find comfort in our shared experiences,” he says. “I also think having a community is really important, despite not all of my friends being exchange students, some not even able to speak English, having them around really helped me through tougher times when I was abroad.”
His friends from home also visited him in Japan and they went to Tokyo Disneyland together.
Coming home to the future
Fonoimoana left Japan with a greater confidence in himself and his abilities, proud of his growth and his own capability. Today, he’s proud of the person he is now because of it. It forced him to step out into the unknown. He had to mature, learn to adapt quickly, and become comfortable with being uncomfortable.
“Everything I experienced abroad was new and forced me to step out of my comfort zone,” he says. “Looking back on my study abroad life it was like, yeah, I did that and I’m pretty proud of myself for doing it and making it out a better person.”
Once his year abroad was complete, he returned to UH Hilo where he was happily reunited with friends and family who he missed. Yet even though he was back in familiar territory, his schedule stayed just as busy. For his senior year, Fonoimoana focused on himself and what he wanted. He began considering what comes after college.
“After everything I experienced in Japan I was ready and excited to come home to begin kind of planning for the future and really investing in myself during my final year of school,” he says.
Fonoimoana will be graduating with his bachelor’s in Japanese studies this month.
More about Malcolm’s study abroad experience
- Major Fun at Meiji University (Fall 2024, The Study Abroad Newsletter)
Story by Lauren Aoki, an English major with a minor in anthropology at UH Hilo. She is literary editor at the university’s student publications Kanilehua and Hohonu.
