FGL — A Three-Week Program for Chuo University Students
Experience an American graduate school, while you are still an undergraduate.
FGL (the Future Global Leaders Program) is a three-week program whose graduate-level lectures are taught by faculty from UC San Diego's graduate school, the School of Global Policy and Strategy (GPS). It runs from Sunday February 7 to Saturday February 27, 2027, on the UC San Diego campus. Participants stay at the Residence Inn by Marriott, with breakfast each morning. The first week is an English preparation program that gets you ready for the lectures.
Operated by Eigo Pro LLC (英語プロ合同会社), established in 2009 at the request of UC San Diego's GPS. Lectures are delivered by GPS faculty.
Sunday February 7 – Saturday February 27, 2027
Graduate professors, teaching graduate-level lectures, to undergraduates.
FGL is the only short-term program that offers this.
Our History with Chuo University Students
Chuo University students have joined every year since the program began in 2009.
The program runs in February, during the Japanese academic spring break — three weeks at UC San Diego's graduate school (GPS). In 2027 it runs from Sunday February 7 to Saturday February 27.
Program at a Glance
- Dates
- February 7–27, 2027 (three weeks). You arrive on the 7th and depart on the 27th.
- Location
- UC San Diego's School of Global Policy and Strategy (GPS), San Diego, California. From the second week onward, the program runs jointly with students from other Japanese universities.
- Accommodation
- Residence Inn by Marriott San Diego La Jolla: an all-suite hotel with a kitchen in every room, serving a free hot breakfast every morning. Next to the UC San Diego campus, with the trolley station, supermarkets, shops and restaurants all within walking distance.
- Academic support
- You do not need perfect English. Small-group seminars led by a GPS graduate student run before and after the lectures, so that undergraduates can follow the material. On top of that, the first week is an English preparation program, giving you time to settle into English before the lectures begin.
- On-site support
- Jacob Searing, who runs Eigo Pro LLC, is in San Diego for the whole program as interpreter, guide, and 24-hour emergency contact, in Japanese.
- Fee
- $4,985 (about ¥750,000 at ¥150 to the dollar), covering accommodation, lectures and other program costs. The total includes the ¥43,400 application deposit. International airfare is arranged separately by each participant.
- Academic credit
- If you want academic credit from Chuo University, you need to complete your university's internal procedure at the Faculty of Commerce office (study-abroad desk). See “How to apply” below for details.
Inside UC San Diego's graduate school (GPS), on video
Short clips showing what classes and activities look like at UC San Diego's graduate school (GPS).
A Chuo University Participant on the Program
Spring 2026 Participant
Chuo University
“If you're on the fence, just go and try it! There's so much you won't understand until you actually go, and I truly believe there's nothing wasted in getting to experience it. There's so much to gain and to learn. It's a great chance to test whether an overseas university environment suits you or not, so I really hope you'll give it a try!”
Room With Friends — or On Your Own
Every participant stays in a suite at the Residence Inn by Marriott — a comfortable, secure, hotel-standard home base from day one. Up to four students share a suite, and each suite has three beds plus a sofa bed — when four students share, one of them sleeps on the sofa bed. There are two bathrooms, so mornings don't back up even with four. Every suite has a full kitchen as well, so cooking for yourselves is an easy way to keep food costs down. Suites are single-gender. Applying on your own is completely welcome. And if you'd like to room with friends, just name them on your application — any number, and we'll do our best to keep you together. Room assignments are finalized about two weeks before arrival, and we'll honor changes right up until then wherever space allows.
English preparation week (February 8–12)
You arrive on Sunday, February 7. Our staff meet you at the airport and take you straight to the hotel.
From Monday February 8 through Friday February 12, you are in the English preparation program: daily workshops in speaking, listening, and academic reading and writing, together with campus orientation and team-building. Nobody walks into a graduate lecture the day after landing.
During this week, founder Jacob Searing personally leads two small-group seminars. Jacob is a graduate of UC San Diego's School of Global Policy and Strategy (GPS) — the same graduate school you will be studying in. Saturday February 13 and Sunday February 14 are yours, with nothing scheduled.
From Monday February 15, students from other Japanese universities join you and the GPS faculty lectures begin. Because you have already settled into English and into San Diego, you start the lectures on steady ground.
3-Week Spring Schedule
Sunday February 7 – Saturday February 27, 2027
English preparation week (3-week course only)
Feb 7–14You arrive in San Diego and get ready for graduate-level lectures in our own English program. Only students on the three-week course join this week.
Activities
- Airport pickup and hotel check-in (February 7)
- English preparation program (February 8–12)
- A free weekend (February 13–14)
Highlights
- Time to settle in, and into English, before the lectures start
- Meeting the others on the program
On campus, and the GPS lectures
Feb 15–21The week opens with a campus tour and orientation, then GPS faculty lectures with small-group seminars around them.
Activities
- Campus tour, orientation, and the Team Building Challenge Course
- Lectures and seminars: entrepreneurship, U.S. foreign policy, Japan relations, international trade
- Weekend activities: the San Diego Zoo and Balboa Park (included in the fee); Disneyland for those who want it, at additional cost
Highlights
- Networking lunch with UC San Diego students
- Speech and debate, admissions and careers workshops
Pulling the lectures together, and the debate presentations
Feb 22–27More lectures and visits, ending with group debate presentations and the closing ceremony.
Activities
- Lectures and seminars: the U.S. judicial system, globalization
- A visit to the San Diego Superior Court, and the Salk Institute architecture tour
- An optional beach day, and preparation for the group debates
Highlights
- Group debate presentations
- Closing ceremony and certificates (February 26); departure on February 27
What a day looks like
There is no typical day, and that is the point. A few days from the week-2 and week-3 schedule:
- Monday might be the campus tour and orientation.
- Tuesday, a team-building course in the morning, and in the afternoon a graduate lecture on entrepreneurship, with a small seminar before it and another after it.
- Thursday, two lectures: US foreign policy, then international trade.
- Friday, a lecture on Japan relations, then lunch with UC San Diego students.
- The next week: a lecture on the US judicial system on Monday, and on Tuesday you are sitting in the San Diego Superior Court, watching it.
- An optional beach day. The Salk Institute.
- A group debate on the last day, and then the closing ceremony.
No day is like the one before.
Detailed daily schedule provided before program start
What's New for Spring 2027
Free online information sessions, open before you apply
Free online information sessions, open to any student considering the program.
October 1, October 15, November 2 and November 12
See the information and prep sessionsPre-departure study sessions for accepted participants (free)
For students whose participation is confirmed, four pre-departure mock seminars online: November 19, December 3 and December 17, 2026, and January 7, 2027. There is no charge.
A UCSD Recreation pass and a visit to the San Diego Zoo
A UCSD Recreation pass (campus gyms, pools and other sports facilities) and a visit to the San Diego Zoo. Both are included in the program fee.
Open to everyone, including students who have not applied yet
Sign Up for an Information or Prep Session
Free online information and English prep sessions. We walk through how to apply and what the program fee covers, and there is time for live Q&A. Joining with your camera off is welcome.
Signing up for a session is separate from the steps to join the program. Attending is not a requirement for applying to FGL.
We email the Google Meet link to everyone who signs up, before the session.
Program Fee
About ¥750,000 at ¥150 to the dollar
Includes the ¥43,400 application deposit
What's Included
International airfare is not included.
Fee detailsEligibility
For Chuo University students
How to apply
There are two ways to apply. Either way, you finish on the same application page.
Step 1: Your university's internal procedure at the Faculty of Commerce office (study-abroad desk)
This is your university's own procedure. For how and when, please check the announcements from that office.
Step 2: Apply to FGL
After the internal procedure, you apply on FGL's own application form at fgl.academy/apply.
You apply directly on FGL's own application form at fgl.academy/apply. No internal procedure is needed.
There is no further FGL selection or interview.
Academic credit is awarded by Chuo University. FGL does not award credit.
The application form is on the page titled “Apply to the Program”.
Takes you to fgl.academy/apply
Related links
These all open external websites.
- UC San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy (GPS)
- GPS faculty
- UC San Diego campus map
- UC San Diego student organisations
- San Diego Zoo
- UCSD Recreation (campus gyms, pools and other sports facilities)
- MTS (bus and trolley maps and schedules)
- Salk Institute
- Residence Inn by Marriott San Diego La Jolla (Japanese page)
Apply here
Places on the three-week program for Chuo University students are limited
Apply to FGLTakes you to fgl.academy/apply