kanozyo ha hazimete no ryuugaku de wakuwakusite iru ga, sukosi dokidoki mo site iru.

Because 初めて is being used to modify the noun 留学.

• 初めて = for the first time / first
• 留学 = studying abroad

When a noun modifies another noun in Japanese, you often need の:

• 初めての留学 = her first study-abroad experience / studying abroad for the first time

So here, の connects 初めて and 留学.

A rough structure is:

• 彼女は 初めての留学で = As this is her first time studying abroad / Because this is her first study-abroad experience...

Without の, it would sound unnatural here.

Here, で gives the idea of because of / in the situation of / on the occasion of.

So:

• 初めての留学で わくわくしている = She is excited because it is her first time studying abroad = She is excited in this situation of first-time study abroad

This is not the location で meaning at/in and not exactly the tool で meaning by means of. It is the reason/circumstance use of で.

Common similar examples:

• 病気で学校を休んだ。 = I was absent from school because of illness.
• 仕事で大阪に行く。 = I’m going to Osaka for work.

So in this sentence, で connects the circumstance (first-time study abroad) to the emotional result.

留学 can function as a noun meaning study abroad or studying abroad.

Japanese often uses verbal ideas as nouns. So:

• 留学 = study abroad / studying abroad as a concept
• 留学する = to study abroad

In this sentence, it is clearly a noun because it is preceded by 初めての:

• 初めての留学 = first study-abroad experience

If it were a verb phrase, the structure would be different.

Because わくわく and どきどき are sound-symbolic or mimetic expressions, and they often combine with する to express a feeling or state.

• わくわくする = to feel excited
• どきどきする = to feel nervous / one’s heart pounds

Then in the -ている form:

• わくわくしている = is feeling excited
• どきどきしている = is feeling nervous / is having a pounding-heart feeling

So the pattern is:

• mimetic word + する
• then する → している

This is very common in Japanese:

• いらいらしている = is irritated
• はらはらしている = is anxious / on edge
• わくわくしている = is excited

They are both emotion-related expressions, but they suggest different feelings.

• わくわく

  • positive excitement
  • eager anticipation
  • looking forward to something

• どきどき

  • literally the feeling of a pounding heartbeat
  • often nervousness, tension, anxiety
  • can sometimes also be excited anticipation, depending on context

In this sentence:

• わくわくしている = she is excited
• 少しどきどきもしている = she is also a little nervous

So the sentence captures a natural mixed emotion: She’s excited, but also a bit nervous.

も means also / too.

Here it adds the idea that, in addition to being excited, she is also feeling nervous.

• わくわくしている = she is excited
• どきどきもしている = she is also nervous / also feeling her heart race

The nuance is:

• excitement is one feeling
• nervousness is another feeling added on top of it

So 少しどきどきもしている means:

• she is also a little nervous
• she’s a little nervous too

Yes. In this sentence, が means but.

Japanese が has more than one use. Two very common ones are:

1. subject marker
2. conjunction meaning but / although

Here it is the conjunction use:

• わくわくしているが、少しどきどきもしている。 = She is excited, but she is also a little nervous.

It connects two contrasting feelings:

• positive excitement
• slight nervousness

This が is a bit more written or formal than けど or けれども.

Compare:

• わくわくしているが… = somewhat formal/written
• わくわくしているけど… = more conversational

Because each predicate is its own separate -ている expression.

The sentence has two parallel parts:

• わくわくしている
• 少しどきどきもしている

Japanese often repeats the verb in this kind of structure rather than omitting it.

So the full idea is:

• She is excited
• but
• she is also a little nervous

You could think of it as a balanced structure. Repeating している makes both emotional states clear and natural.

Here -ている expresses a current ongoing state, not a visible action in progress.

With emotion words like these, -ている often means:

• is in that state
• is feeling that way now

So:

• わくわくしている = is excited / is feeling excited
• どきどきしている = is nervous / is feeling nervous

This is different from a literal action like:

• 食べている = is eating

For emotions and states, -ている often sounds more like currently in that condition.

少し means a little / somewhat and modifies the second feeling.

• 少しどきどきもしている = is also a little nervous = is also feeling a bit of nervousness

It softens the statement. She is not extremely frightened; she is just a bit nervous.

This makes the sentence feel natural and realistic: she is mostly excited, but she also has some nerves.

は marks 彼女 as the topic.

• 彼女は = as for her / she

The sentence is telling us about her emotional state.

So the structure is roughly:

• 彼女は = as for her
• 初めての留学で = because it’s her first time studying abroad
• わくわくしているが = she is excited, but
• 少しどきどきもしている = she is also a little nervous

In natural English, we usually just say she, but Japanese uses は to set the topic of the sentence.

Yes, absolutely.

A more conversational version would be:

• 彼女は初めての留学でわくわくしているけど、少しどきどきもしている。

This means the same thing.

The difference is mainly tone:

• が = a bit more formal, written, or polished
• けど = more casual and spoken
• けれども = more formal/full version

So if you see が here, think: This is just a slightly more formal “but.”

Not always.

どきどき literally suggests a pounding heartbeat, so it can be used for:

• nervousness
• fear
• tension
• romantic excitement
• suspense

For example:

• before a test: nervous
• on a date: excited/nervous
• during a scary movie: tense

In this sentence, because it follows わくわく and is softened by 少し, it most naturally means: a little nervous

So the combination gives a very common emotional mix: excited, but also a bit anxious.

Yes. In fact, both ways of understanding it are useful.

• 初めての留学 can be understood as
  • her first study-abroad experience
  • studying abroad for the first time

In English, we often rephrase naturally rather than translate word-for-word.

So these are all good interpretations of the same Japanese idea:

• Because this is her first time studying abroad, she is excited...
• Since it is her first study-abroad experience, she is excited...
• She is excited about studying abroad for the first time...

Japanese often lets one compact phrase cover several natural English versions.

It says she feels excited.

That is because the predicate is:

• わくわくしている = is excited / is feeling excited

So the emotion belongs to 彼女.

The phrase 初めての留学で sets up the reason or situation, and then the sentence tells us her emotional reaction to it.

So the meaning is not just:

• the study abroad is exciting

but specifically:

• she is excited because it is her first time studying abroad