Japanese Language/studies Applicants For 2011

HELLO ALL!! :woo:

Just starting this thread because I want to talk to other Japanese applicants for 2011, but there's not a thread in which to do so!

SOOOOOOOOOOOO! I want to hear about where everyone else is applying... maybe we can unite people going to the same university for Japanese!

I'll start off... I'm Jacob, 18, applying for the second time... just missed out on university by 1 POINT on the IB!! I was going to be doing Japanese and Russian B at Leeds.

I'm applying to Oxford, Sheffield, Leeds, Birmingham and Cardiff.

Hope to hear back from y'all

x

Reply 1

Bella Occhi

16

Hello! Sheffield and Leeds, high five! Have you visited either of them yet?

And bad luck on the IB D: Are you retaking any bits of it at all?

Reply 2

092433

Hi guys!!

Leeds, Sheff, Manc, Newc and OxBro :smile:

Oxford course looked HORRENDOUSLY dull even though i have the AS grades and prediction of AAAB.

I want offers, i really cba with A2's atm, too much work and i'm mega conviced i'm going to slip a trillion grades. already.

Good Luck everybody :biggrin:

(edited 13 years ago)

Reply 3

Enoch.

16

spekstaa

HELLO ALL!! :woo:

Just starting this thread because I want to talk to other Japanese applicants for 2011, but there's not a thread in which to do so!

SOOOOOOOOOOOO! I want to hear about where everyone else is applying... maybe we can unite people going to the same university for Japanese!

I'll start off... I'm Jacob, 18, applying for the second time... just missed out on university by 1 POINT on the IB!! I was going to be doing Japanese and Russian B at Leeds.

I'm applying to Oxford, Sheffield, Leeds, Birmingham and Cardiff.

Hope to hear back from y'all

x

SOAS 2x, Sheffield, Leeds and Manchester.

I can''t go for oxbridge because i didn't get a single A in GCSE :frown:

Reply 4

juxtai

Hello! I'm off to Sheffield in 2011 (deferred a year). So I'd love to talk to other people that might be going there too/ who are generally considering studying Japanese!

Reply 5

spekstaa

OP

juxtai

Hello! I'm off to Sheffield in 2011 (deferred a year). So I'd love to talk to other people that might be going there too/ who are generally considering studying Japanese!

I'm actually looking quite seriously at Sheffield ... my friend is up there at the moment reading Japanese... he informs me that it is "sick" haha!

have you been up?

Reply 6

juxtai

spekstaa

I'm actually looking quite seriously at Sheffield ... my friend is up there at the moment reading Japanese... he informs me that it is "sick" haha!

have you been up?

Haha, I actually know of a blog by a current Sheffield student who is reading Japanese if you're interested?

Yes I have been to visit! I went on an absoloutely awful day, it was foggy and snowing/hailing, and rather gloomy. That said, I still came away with a good idea of the place. Some buildings were rather clinical and city like and not really my thing, but the 'Red brick buildings' were beautiful. I was most impressed with the department to be honest, everyone was so enthusiastic about their job and eager to help you get along. That's what made me pick it as my firm... :smile:

Reply 7

Chayne

Hi all,

Cambridge, Sheffield, SOAS, Manchester and Oxford Brookes atm :smile:

I reckon Cambridge is a distant dream so seriously looking at SOAS and Sheffield in particular. Been to Sheffield and liked it, and visiting SOAS on the 13th =D

I really liked the guy who did the talk at Sheffield too (Hugo Dobson, I think?) Although the statistics scared me. 800 applicants to 93 places. O_o. And for 2011 it's going down to 90 places... with a 25% increase in applicants :woo:

Reply 8

Enoch.

16

juxtai

Haha, I actually know of a blog by a current Sheffield student who is reading Japanese if you're interested?

Yes I have been to visit! I went on an absoloutely awful day, it was foggy and snowing/hailing, and rather gloomy. That said, I still came away with a good idea of the place. Some buildings were rather clinical and city like and not really my thing, but the 'Red brick buildings' were beautiful. I was most impressed with the department to be honest, everyone was so enthusiastic about their job and eager to help you get along. That's what made me pick it as my firm... :smile:

By any case, is the blog you mentioned this one?

http://www.japanisdoomed.com/

Reply 9

juxtai

ussumane

By any case, is the blog you mentioned this one?

http://www.japanisdoomed.com/

Yes, that is indeed the one. Rather useful in its honesty I think. He doesn't 'gloss over' all the bad/difficult parts of the degree, so I found it helpful.

Chayne

I really liked the guy who did the talk at Sheffield too (Hugo Dobson, I think?)

Hugo Dobson? He was the guy who was from Germany originally right? I thought his intro was very good too.

Reply 10

akaihanabi

Well well well! I happen to have just started Russian and Japanese A at Leeds! Btw if you apply to Oxford, as far as I know, Russian and Japanese is a combo that they do NOT offer, so it has to be one or the other.

My limited experiences so far of Russian and Japanese A and Leeds:

Leeds is a nice place. I like it. If you like old/traditional buildings and a lot of greenery, you may think that you won't like it. But there's something about the buildings that have won me over! And if you go to Headingley, which is where some of the further off accommodation is, there are parks galore. Also, there is some decent accommodation that is literally on campus, so you can roll out of bed and straight to breakfast or most lectures. And the route into the city from campus is ridiculously straightforward.

I've already done Russian, so I'm cheating. But the current president of the Russian society did the same course as you, I think, and I'm sure he's doing well. If you have an interest in Russian and Japanese, you should enjoy the course! If you've done any prior Japanese, you should take a test when you get here. It's not really formal and there's no pressure- if you do well, you get placed in intermediate Japanese, if not, you just go into beginner Japanese. And if you're borderline, you can try out intermediate Japanese. The Japanese teaching staff are all lovely. I can't say much about beginner's Russian because I'm doing post-A Level, but I'm sure it's good here.

Reply 11

An Jie

Chayne

Cambridge, Sheffield, SOAS, Manchester and Oxford Brookes atm :smile:

SNAP

I'm exactly the same.

Seems like a lot of people are going for Sheffield, huh? Glad that other people think it seems good too.
I really like that they put up so much information about the course and modules on their site. Some other places I've looked at can be so secretive! :biggrin:

What about you guys? And why did you choose Japanese?

(edited 13 years ago)

Reply 12

spekstaa

OP

juxtai

Yes, that is indeed the one. Rather useful in its honesty I think. He doesn't 'gloss over' all the bad/difficult parts of the degree, so I found it helpful.

I've had a quick glance over it... looks like a fun read! 60 pages of it too! I found one last year whilst researching Leeds...

http://memoirsofagaijin2008.blogspot.com/2008/10/japanese-at-university-of-leeds.html

akaihanabi

Well well well! I happen to have just started Russian and Japanese A at Leeds! Btw if you apply to Oxford, as far as I know, Russian and Japanese is a combo that they do NOT offer, so it has to be one or the other.

My limited experiences so far of Russian and Japanese A and Leeds:

Leeds is a nice place. I like it. If you like old/traditional buildings and a lot of greenery, you may think that you won't like it. But there's something about the buildings that have won me over! And if you go to Headingley, which is where some of the further off accommodation is, there are parks galore. Also, there is some decent accommodation that is literally on campus, so you can roll out of bed and straight to breakfast or most lectures. And the route into the city from campus is ridiculously straightforward.

I've already done Russian, so I'm cheating. But the current president of the Russian society did the same course as you, I think, and I'm sure he's doing well. If you have an interest in Russian and Japanese, you should enjoy the course! If you've done any prior Japanese, you should take a test when you get here. It's not really formal and there's no pressure- if you do well, you get placed in intermediate Japanese, if not, you just go into beginner Japanese. And if you're borderline, you can try out intermediate Japanese. The Japanese teaching staff are all lovely. I can't say much about beginner's Russian because I'm doing post-A Level, but I'm sure it's good here.

Thanks for your reply! I was applying for Japanese and Russian B ONLY at Leeds, Oxford was Japanese, and everywhere else Japanese and Spanish! (Don't know how I managed that Personal Statement!! Haha!)

I LOVE leeds... when I went up it seemed like a great student city, a nice environment to work in. What really got me was Mr David Shaw... he seemed like a wonderful guy, and someone who I could imagine would inspire me to work!

I have taken Japanese previously... I was wondering whether, if I were to get into the intermediate group for Japanese, would this mean that I would do a harder end degree exam (whatever it is called!) and then end up with a different degree? or is it the same end exam? which means that the pace of the intermediate group is slower than the beginner?!

glad this feed is working well!

Reply 13

spekstaa

OP

An Jie

SNAP

I'm exactly the same.

Seems like a lot of people are going for Sheffield, huh? Glad that other people think it seems good too.
I really like that they put up so much information about the course and modules on their site. Some other places I've looked at can be so secretive! :biggrin:

What about you guys? And why did you choose Japanese?

There are indeed a lot of people going to Sheffield to do Japanese!! Its definitely becoming very popular nowdays! I was wondering, what are you doing to prepare for Cambridge?

Reply 14

An Jie

spekstaa

I was wondering, what are you doing to prepare for Cambridge?

Well... I'm really just reading up on things I find interesting: literature, history, culture... whatever floats my boat really! :wink:

Trying to make sure I've got the kana down too.

I'm not really sure what sort of things they'll ask about at interview, since they don't expect us to have studied Japanese before.
Soooo... it's a real toughie to prep for :s-smilie:

And you? You're trying for Oxford, right? :smile:

Hopefully you're feeling more confident than I am right now...

Reply 15

akaihanabi

Thanks for your reply! I was applying for Japanese and Russian B ONLY at Leeds, Oxford was Japanese, and everywhere else Japanese and Spanish! (Don't know how I managed that Personal Statement!! Haha!)

I LOVE leeds... when I went up it seemed like a great student city, a nice environment to work in. What really got me was Mr David Shaw... he seemed like a wonderful guy, and someone who I could imagine would inspire me to work!

I have taken Japanese previously... I was wondering whether, if I were to get into the intermediate group for Japanese, would this mean that I would do a harder end degree exam (whatever it is called!) and then end up with a different degree? or is it the same end exam? which means that the pace of the intermediate group is slower than the beginner?!

glad this feed is working well!

Mr Shaw is great, I met him when I was looking round Leeds, he and the Joint Honours Languages staff are all lovely :smile:

As for the intermediate group, it's the same end result- by second year, if not before then, all Japanese students should be the same level, and everyone is working towards the same degree. The intermediate group simply starts off by hurling you straight in there (not the deep end, just straight into the swimming pool, whereas I'd compare the beginner group as first blowing up their armbands [i.e. learning hiragana and katakana], then dipping their toes into the shallow end then entering the pool). From lesson 1 of intermediate, you're expected to talk in Japanese, or at least try, and the lessons go straight into revision of what you've learned, grammar, particles, some kanji. If this sounds anything more than "quite intimidating", it might not be your thing. But if you feel strongly that you will be wasting your time in the beginner class or that you may sleep through the first few weeks or months of lectures, take the test! You can't fail it, only get put in the beginner's class. Even if you feel that you don't know anything, take the test! It's best to try. If you have any other questions about anything at Leeds, I'll try my best to answer...I'm only a fresher, so I don't know everything yet :P

Reply 16

juxtai

Ahaha yes I really liked Leeds. Mr Shaw was pretty inspirational! To be honest, it was my first choice for a long time, I liked the look of the course etc. Even though I'm not going there, the course looks great.

Reply 17

Chayne

juxtai

Yes, that is indeed the one. Rather useful in its honesty I think. He doesn't 'gloss over' all the bad/difficult parts of the degree, so I found it helpful.

Hugo Dobson? He was the guy who was from Germany originally right? I thought his intro was very good too.

Was he from Germany? :s-smilie:

Aha, sorry it seems I wasn't paying attention to that part because I have no idea. If we are talking about the same person then I agree that the intro was great :rolleyes:

Reply 18

Chayne

An Jie

SNAP

I'm exactly the same.

Seems like a lot of people are going for Sheffield, huh? Glad that other people think it seems good too.
I really like that they put up so much information about the course and modules on their site. Some other places I've looked at can be so secretive! :biggrin:

What about you guys? And why did you choose Japanese?

Wow, nice taste you got there :wink:

Which college are you applying to at Cambridge? And can I ask why you chose Cambridge instead of Oxford?

Sorry for being nosy, I just want to see if your reason is the same as mine :smile: