Should I Study in Japan at this Time? And Where?

Hi, I'll just get straight to the point:
I want to study abroad in japan for an academic year. By the time I go study abroad, I will have finished the second year of Japanese at my university (if I can give you a slight idea, it will be like finishing Genki I and II). Therefore, my japanese will be basic and kanji will be around 350. So, one of my worries is that my language ability is very weak to stand a year in Japan. I have never been to Japan before, so it's not like I have any prior experience, either. However, whatever program I decdie to go to, it will not be fully based on "Intense Japanese Study." It will be an English program, which brings me to the second issue: where.
My three options are Kyushu university, Keio University and Todai. (The following is not in desired order):
1. Todai for obvious reasons, it's a big deal and it's in Tokyo.
2. Keio, for some reasons, strikes an interest in me. I'm not sure why. I feel that it seems more organized (website-wise) and the international studies program seems to have interesting courses, many of which I would like to take. (and it's in Tokyo)
3. Kyushu because it is cheaper than the Tokyo area, and also because when reading about the program, there are field trips which let you experience Japanese culture, which I think is really cool.
So those are my three options. Based on my limited Japanese ability, and also the fact that I have never been to Japan before, where do you think I am best-fitted? Should I even go to Japan at all at this level or should I wait until I am more confident in my japanese and wait for the JET program (Graduate program) or something to that effect? Any advice, and comments would be extremely helpful.
Thank you for taking the time in reading this.

Two years and you only learned 350 kanji? Wow.

Some government scholarship holders have to study Japanese intensively for 6 months at a designated school before being allowed to take classes.

What major do you propose to have?

Should I even go to Japan at all at this level or should I wait until I am more confident in my japanese and wait for the JET program (Graduate program) or something to that effect?

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I think you might be confused. The Jet Program is for people who want to be assistant teachers in public schools here, not for people who want to be students.

Unfortunately, approzimately 350 is the amount of kanji I will have learned following the course at my university (this is without studying kanji by myself, which I am looking into). But suppose I do not supplement my kanji study and stay with the minimal amount of kanji taught by my university, would it be too soon to study abroad?

Glenski said:

Some government scholarship holders have to study Japanese intensively for 6 months at a designated school before being allowed to take classes.

What major do you propose to have?

I think you might be confused. The Jet Program is for people who want to be assistant teachers in public schools here, not for people who want to be students.

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By intensively, do you mean only study japanese, like at a school designated only for japanese? University credit does not count?
Answering you question of my proposed major, it will not be Japanese (might minor, though). I am deciding between international studies/culture studies or economics, therefore the interest in the english program at the japanese universities.

I do understand that the JET program is for assistant teachers. I apologize for my misguided statement. I meant that after my 4 years of undergraduate study, I hope to be more confident in my japanese and my kanji ability to stay in Japan for awhile, but not as a student. Rather, as an assistant teacher while still going abroad to Japan.

You need prezackly ZERO Japanese skills to be a JET participant. You can arrive with zero, be a JET, and go back home with zero. Put your mind at rest over that little concern.

Mike Cash said:

You need prezackly ZERO Japanese skills to be a JET participant. You can arrive with zero, be a JET, and go back home with zero. Put your mind at rest over that little concern.

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Ah, really? Thanks for the clarification. I'm a bit at ease now that I know I have an open option post-undergrad. But my japanese ability for a direct exchange to those three universities during my undergrad years are important, right?

I regret that I am unable to answer that. Someone who knows the answer will no doubt be along directly to shine some light on the subject for you.

Ah, I see. Thank you very much for the JET clarification and the response, though

JET is for people with degrees to come to Japan for 1-5 years (usually 3 max) and be ALTs. Key point is that you need a bachelor's degree first.

If you want to study at a Japanese college, whether for a year or more, you have to decide what major it is. A very few unis here will have classes taught only in English. Otherwise, just how do you expect to understand any lecture or textbook when you have a working knowledge of only 350 kanji. Imagine knowing how to spell that many English words and thinking one can attend college. (Just for the sake of comparison, American college students have a vocabulary around 20,000-25,000 words.) How are the classes at those unis that interest you?

By intensively, do you mean only study japanese, like at a school designated only for japanese? University credit does not count?

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It works like this. You get accepted to the uni, but they require that you take intensive J language courses for a few months first. Intensive means 6-8 hours a day for 5 days a week during those months. The intention is to drill spelling, grammar, and basic conversation into you. I know you are already studying it, but you may have to do this anyway. It's probably better for you than a class or 2 per week, which is probably what you're getting now. The down side is that a few months may still provide you with insufficient communication skills to survive a classroom situation. Foreign students where I work tell me that is the case for them. Fortunately for them, they are almost all grad students and can get by separately with their own little "gaijin ghettoes" at the school, and teachers will just give them a handout or web page in English to take the place of what the Japanese students are expected to learn in class. I guess that's unfortunate, too, if you want to actually LEARN something.

To get a student visa, you have to prove you can support yourself. Keio says this, as an example:
"Be sure you can financially support yourself during the period of study at Keio. The average cost of living expense is at least JPY 130,000/month if you live in university-subsidized student housing. "

EDIT:
From Keio U site:
Japanese Language Requirement

There is no Japanese proficiency required to apply to be an exchange students at Keio University. Students are required to take a Japanese language placement test run by the Center for Japanese Studies at the beginning of each semester in order for them to register for the appropriate learning level for Japanese language courses
Applicaton Guide for Keio Exchange Program｜Keio University International Center

From Todai site:
To enroll in a faculty of The University of Tokyo (four years for graduation, and six years for graduation in the school of Medicine in the Faculty of Medicine, the Veterinary Medical Sciences Course in the Faculty of Agriculture and the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences in the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences), you are required to pass the same general screening test as Japanese students or a special screening test (for students who have graduated from foreign schools). This document explains about the special screening test. Most of the lectures in the faculties of The University of Tokyo are delivered in Japanese even for foreign students. Taking this point fully into account, foreign students must master the Japanese language before they enroll in The University of Tokyo.
東京大学 | 国際化教育支援室

From Kyushu site: You have to pass a reading test.
Kyushu University International Affairs Department | Admissions

Thank you very much Glenski for the detailed description. I now understand what you were saying about "intensive japanese." I guess scholarships will be a bit more difficult now. I was wondering if your information applies towards graduating from a japanese university or towards being an exchange student for a year at the university?

Based on what I researched, my university has is partner institution with the universities I mentioned, so my thought was that I go to to the japanese university I got into. I sign up for the "International Studies" courses rather than the Japanese courses (obviously since I have a basic understanding of japanese). Then I come back home after a year and transfer my credits. These were the programs I was looking at, to make it a bit more easier to visualize:

Keio:
Keio University International Center (Keio International Program)

University of Tokyo:
-AIKOM- ONE YEAR STUDENT EXCHANGE PROGRAM

Kyushu University:
JTW



I will not be graduating from the university but only as a year exchange. So, to make my point a little shorter, does the detailed langauge requirement you have stated only for four year enrollment does it also apply for the yearly exchange? If so, should I wait until I graduate to go the Japan? If not, does the limited ability of japanese affect my prospective lifestyle if I

Hi (I'm not sure if I re-posted so if you see 2 comments that I similar, than ignore one of them).

Thank you for the detailed description and clarification of the intensive japanese. I was wondering though if the information you have described applies towards a 4 year enrollment at a university or just a year exchange? I am planning for a year exchange since my university is partners with the 3 I have mentioned. I plan to go my 3rd year of undergraduate and then come back and transfer my credits. These are the programs I was looking at:

Kyushu: JTW

Tokyo: -AIKOM- ONE YEAR STUDENT EXCHANGE PROGRAM

Keio: Keio University International Center (Keio International Program)

These are the programs for a year exchange? Do I still need the advanced Japanese ability? If not, do you still recommend a high level of japanese before I decide to live a year in japan?

Thanks for your information. I now understand the idea of "intensive japanese."

I was wondering if the information you described about language ability is for a 4 year enrollment or for a yearly exchange (or both)? I am planning to go for a academic year exchange to one of the 3 universities mentioned above, not graduate from the university. I them plan to go back to my home university and transfer the credits. For some reason, when I posted links about the programs, my comment couldn't pop up so I am responding for a third time (so sorry, if the spam does come, I will do my best to delete it as soon as possible). I would either join Keio's "Keio International Program," Todai's "Aikom Program," or Kyushu's "JTW Program." So with these programs that offer english courses, would I still require the langauge proficiency you write about? If not, would you in any case recommend a high level of Japanese since I will be living in Japan for a year?

Thanks

I studied abroad for a year in Japan, although I did not attend any of the programs you are interested in. The amount of language proficiency you need is entirely dependent on the program and you would get better answers by looking at their website or directly emailing someone. My program required zero language proficiency but others required anywhere from 2-4 semesters of Japanese. As Mike pointed out, it is perfectly possible to go with zero language ability and leave with zero language ability. I certainly know people who did that in my program. The more of the language you know and study the more you will enjoy life there, obviously.

Anyway, don't let your Japanese ability affect your decision. You'll never feel quite ready and you will "learn" most of your Japanese by actually using it in Japan..

Thank you for your response. If I may ask how well did you know japanese before studying abroad and what program was it? I'll take your advice and email/ask advisers about each specific program.

I studied for a year at my university plus a lot of studying on my own. I managed to test into the highest level, but my speaking was still pretty weak as I had not had much practice with it. I studied in the JYPE program at Tohoku University.

Thank you, Half-n-Half. I guess I should look more into studying by myself, and going to Japan with the ability I have now is a definite option.

Hopefully, someone on this forum has experience or knowledge of the universities I'm interested in...

We can sit here and speculate and copy/paste web links all day. Bottom line: contact the schools themselves and ask. I suspect you'll still be asked to take some sort of fluency level test. Imagine someone wanting to come to your own country and saying they knew how to read 500 words but could speak a little more (textbook conversation, though). What do you think a college would say even to a year's admission?

Money first (aside from visa eligibility)
Language fluency a very close second.

OP: Just make sure you don't fall into the old thing we see so often with people contemplating something like this, which is the more they talk about the less likely they are to actually do something about it.

I actually am doing something about it. I am going to contact the programs I am interested in and ask them. On their websites, they do indicate that the courses will be taught in english. However, none of the websites I have gone to state the "life" the student will have in Japan for that academic year.
Let's put the "japanese fluency for university admission" aside, since as I said, I will be contacting them already. I am asking if this limited fluency will be too much of a hindrance in my life in Japan. My speech is basic, my Kanji limited. I am asking whether a limited language capability will be too uncomforting to live in Japan. In the country I live in, I am assuming that if someone wants to live here, do groceries, meet friends, and go travelling, they need to know english. From a personal,not academic, standpoint, will the limited ability in japanese be a major problem in adjusting?

I hope my question makes sense. And don't worry, I will do something. I am the type of person that won't be satisfied until I get answers

As I said before, many people get by with zero Japanese ability for an entire year. Are you planning on studying abroad only if you feel comfortable in your Japanese ability? Because I can guarantee you'll never feel comfortable until you actually go there, make mistakes, faux pas, struggle, whatever until you get used to it. If you want to study abroad in spite of language ability, which I suspect you do, then you shouldn't worry about it. Just study as much as you can before you go.

I understand your anxieties very well. But the whole point of studying abroad is to take you outside of your comfort zone both culturally and linguistically.

This is Japan, where everything seems to work out somehow or another in the end; put your mind at ease.

Thank you all for the kind advice. I will look further into studying abroad in Japan I guess there is no harm in trying as long as I prepare myself to the best of my ability and just let everything happen as it will. Thanks once again.

The Lord takes care of little children and idiots. The Japanese, for some unfathomable reason, take care of gaijins. This is such an easy country in which to be a foreigner, especially in the age of the internet, that a stay here should hardly qualify as an adventure or accomplishment.

marblink said:

I actually am doing something about it. I am going to contact the programs I am interested in and ask them. On their websites, they do indicate that the courses will be taught in english.

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Really? Then why does the Todai site (as I pasted above) say this:

"Most of the lectures in the faculties of The University of Tokyo are delivered in Japanese even for foreign students."

However, none of the websites I have gone to state the "life" the student will have in Japan for that academic year.

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Are you asking us now? The answer will be widely varied depending on your age, experience overseas, experience with foreigners, language fluency, openness of mind, lucky break or otherwise at the school, etc.

I am asking if this limited fluency will be too much of a hindrance in my life in Japan. My speech is basic, my Kanji limited. I am asking whether a limited language capability will be too uncomforting to live in Japan. In the country I live in, I am assuming that if someone wants to live here, do groceries, meet friends, and go travelling, they need to know english. From a personal,not academic, standpoint, will the limited ability in japanese be a major problem in adjusting?

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For daily survival, you'll probably be ok. You didn't really ask that before, though, and my answers were directed only at academic concerns. That should be your major priority anyway.

As much as the others here have told you things will generally be all right with non-academic concerns, I have 2 things to say.

1. There will likely be a support person/network at your school to answer academic questions. Even in my small school the staff asks us to help translate stuff for foreigners (pamphlets, instructions, etc.).

2. You should mentally prepare yourself for a bureaucratic mindset here. If all your Ts aren't crossed and Is dotted, paper pushers will give you problems. If you think American red tape is convoluted and rigid, wait till you get here. Just don't let it overwhelm you. Deal with it in a straightforward and (as much as possible) calm manner.

Glenski said:

Really? Then why does the Todai site (as I pasted above) say this:

"Most of the lectures in the faculties of The University of Tokyo are delivered in Japanese even for foreign students."

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As I mentioned before, I won't be enrolling as a four year student at Todai. I will be enrolling in the Aikom program, which says this: "Lectures and seminars, all taught in English, where AIKOM students can study together with Japanese students the dynamics of Japanese culture, society, and political economy in a broad international context." Keio and Kyushu have similar programs.

Thanks again for your responses. I apologize if my questions were not as clear as I intended them to be. I know where to go from here.