Cambridge vs Edinburgh for Japanese

I'm going to study Japanese at uni and cannot decide between Cambridge and Edinburgh because there are pros and cons with both

I've been studying Japanese since year 7, did GCSE and doing A level

Cambridge- A*AA (tbh not even sure I can get this)😅
Edinburgh- ABB

But I'm conflicted because firstly Cambridge is a really good opportunity and I'm in a fortunate position. I also like the independent style of working and close support etc. It's closer to home and I'm worried about going too far (especially because my 3rd year will be all the way out in Japan) and if probably get a flight to and from Edinburgh to go back home, whereas Cambridge is just a couple hours train ride.

But I have so many concerns about Cambridge because I am a really slow learner and they condense terms into 8 weeks instead of 12 which would also perhaps impact my mental health.

I also suffer with SAD so going upto Edinburgh.... it would be super cold and I literally can't do anything when I'm cold and depressed 😭
But at Edingburgh, if I do Japanese, they also make you do two extra module thingies that contribute to your final result and since I also love classics I was thinking of adding that onto my degree because I would also really like to carry it on (possibly along with another language)...

But then I'm not sure if it would be a good idea with a scatter brain like mine to study multiple things.... should I just study Japanese at Cambridge or do Japanese at Edinburgh with the extra parts (I think the extra parts you only study for two years)??

(side question: if you meet the grades for your firm but decide you prefer your insurance, can you pick it instead?)

Thanks in advance !

Reply 1

Snufkin

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post by beaniehutton

I'm going to study Japanese at uni and cannot decide between Cambridge and Edinburgh because there are pros and cons with both

I've been studying Japanese since year 7, did GCSE and doing A level

Cambridge- A*AA (tbh not even sure I can get this)😅
Edinburgh- ABB

But I'm conflicted because firstly Cambridge is a really good opportunity and I'm in a fortunate position. I also like the independent style of working and close support etc. It's closer to home and I'm worried about going too far (especially because my 3rd year will be all the way out in Japan) and if probably get a flight to and from Edinburgh to go back home, whereas Cambridge is just a couple hours train ride.

But I have so many concerns about Cambridge because I am a really slow learner and they condense terms into 8 weeks instead of 12 which would also perhaps impact my mental health.

I also suffer with SAD so going upto Edinburgh.... it would be super cold and I literally can't do anything when I'm cold and depressed 😭
But at Edingburgh, if I do Japanese, they also make you do two extra module thingies that contribute to your final result and since I also love classics I was thinking of adding that onto my degree because I would also really like to carry it on (possibly along with another language)...

But then I'm not sure if it would be a good idea with a scatter brain like mine to study multiple things.... should I just study Japanese at Cambridge or do Japanese at Edinburgh with the extra parts (I think the extra parts you only study for two years)??

(side question: if you meet the grades for your firm but decide you prefer your insurance, can you pick it instead?)

Thanks in advance !

The foreign languages forum is a little slow at the moment so I've moved your thread into the Cambridge forum, hopefully you will get more replies here.

Personally, I think for difficult languages like Japanese, distracting yourself with other subjects (or other languages) is a bad idea. If you meet the grades for you firm but prefer your insurance you can ask your firm to release you into Clearing then then your insurance choice can fish you out, but there's no guarantee, which is why it's very important to speak to both Cambridge and Edinburgh before you do anything. You can read more here: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/university/apply/changing-your-mind-about-your-firm-or-insurance-choice

Reply 2

username1865079

14

Original post by beaniehutton

I'm going to study Japanese at uni and cannot decide between Cambridge and Edinburgh because there are pros and cons with both

I've been studying Japanese since year 7, did GCSE and doing A level

Cambridge- A*AA (tbh not even sure I can get this)😅
Edinburgh- ABB

But I'm conflicted because firstly Cambridge is a really good opportunity and I'm in a fortunate position. I also like the independent style of working and close support etc. It's closer to home and I'm worried about going too far (especially because my 3rd year will be all the way out in Japan) and if probably get a flight to and from Edinburgh to go back home, whereas Cambridge is just a couple hours train ride.

But I have so many concerns about Cambridge because I am a really slow learner and they condense terms into 8 weeks instead of 12 which would also perhaps impact my mental health.

I also suffer with SAD so going upto Edinburgh.... it would be super cold and I literally can't do anything when I'm cold and depressed 😭
But at Edingburgh, if I do Japanese, they also make you do two extra module thingies that contribute to your final result and since I also love classics I was thinking of adding that onto my degree because I would also really like to carry it on (possibly along with another language)...

But then I'm not sure if it would be a good idea with a scatter brain like mine to study multiple things.... should I just study Japanese at Cambridge or do Japanese at Edinburgh with the extra parts (I think the extra parts you only study for two years)??

(side question: if you meet the grades for your firm but decide you prefer your insurance, can you pick it instead?)

Thanks in advance !

Why do you have to choose between them now?
You can (and should) apply to 5 universities and both of them can be among them
So have you already decided 4 other unis to apply and it’s for the last remaining place?
If so, do look at the course content of both universities as they can be very different. (Also the way they include a year-in-japan during the course). That’s more important than the locations of the universities IMO.

Reply 3

Doones

21

Original post by beaniehutton

(side question: if you meet the grades for your firm but decide you prefer your insurance, can you pick it instead?)

If you meet the grades for your Firm it will go Unconditional on Track and your Insurance will disappear. But you can *potentially* go to them via Clearing.

See here:
https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/university/apply/changing-your-mind-about-your-firm-or-insurance-choice

Original post by vincrows

Why do you have to choose between them now?

I think they are deciding between their firm/insurance offers. But yes they have until May to do so...

(edited 6 years ago)

Reply 4

username1865079

14

Original post by Doonesbury

I think they are deciding between their firm/insurance offers. But yes they have until May to do so...

That was what I thought first but then the way op put the question doesn’t sound like coming from an offer holder without any mention on as level/a-level prediction grades.

(edited 6 years ago)

Reply 5

rz290

2

I know quite a few people who take Japanese as their AMES option at Cambridge and I’ve taught myself Japanese too so I think I might be in a position to give an at least semi-relevant opinion.

At Cambridge, although 1st year mainly focuses on language learning, you have to do 2 additional papers in 2nd year that aren’t related or directly related to the language - e.g. East Asian Cinema, Japanese History, Japanese Politics, Japanese Society, Structures (borrowed from Linguistics/MML), etc. I’m not sure if that’s similar to roughly what you meant by two additional papers at Edinburgh but if it is, then the courses wouldn’t be that different from that perspective.

A lot of people switch out of Japanese quite early on in 1st year apparently. This year’s intake was quite bad in that respect - I think almost half did (but bear in mind the intake is very small anyway) – so I’m guessing it is quite fast paced and a lot of people struggle to handle it. You do have the advantage of having taught yourself for quite a while but A-Level Japanese is fairly low level in my experience and I’m not sure if it has changed that much from when I did it. I learnt very little when I self-taught myself for the A-Level Japanese course quite a while ago and I wouldn’t be surprised if they cover the language in more depth before the end of 1st term of 1st year. You would probably have a very easy Michaelmas but might find Lent and Easter a bit of a struggle because of the sudden increase in workload.

Also, if mental health issues are a concern for you, I would advise pretty much anyone to make sure they have adequate support in place before they think of accepting an offer from Cambridge. Plenty of people probably go through Cambridge fine but many people I know struggle mentally or emotionally even if their grades are fine.

Reply 6

ljcrisp

13

Both are amazing offers おめでとう！ I would say choose which one you feel more comfortable being at! Hope you do amazingly in your A Levels!! I do wish I could’ve done A Level Japanese though 😓

Reply 7

Doones

21

Tagging @Steliata :smile:

Cambridge vs Edinburgh for Japanese

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