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Japanese Language/studies Applicants For 2011

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Original post by moonlight_caster
Sheffield or SOAS???

which one which one!!


Sorry to hijack but this is my exact dilemma. (although for chinese :ninja:) They are so different but I love them both! Which do you prefer?
Reply 401
Original post by Dizzee1
Do you guys have any suggestions or gap year ideas for a student planning to do Japanese at university?

Ideally I'm looking for a school in Japan, accommodation provided, where I can spend 3 or 4 months studying with other foreigners roughly my age (18). I've looked for these and somewhat failed :frown:

Thanks guys! :smile:


Weirdly enough that is exactly what I'm going to be doing soon :smile: I'm going to GenkiJACS in Fukuoka, Japan for 8 weeks (you can choose for how long) to learn the language... and I got accommodation through them aswell :smile: It's actually the same accommodation that uni students in the area use, and the language school itself focuses on westerners (unlike others which have high percentages of chinese or korean students)... I think the ages are typically varied though, and it is quite expensive, but you can start from any level

if you're interested just google GenkiJACS

I start my course there on Feb. 7th :smile:
Reply 402
Original post by IBzombie
Weirdly enough that is exactly what I'm going to be doing soon :smile: I'm going to GenkiJACS in Fukuoka, Japan for 8 weeks (you can choose for how long) to learn the language... and I got accommodation through them aswell :smile: It's actually the same accommodation that uni students in the area use, and the language school itself focuses on westerners (unlike others which have high percentages of chinese or korean students)... I think the ages are typically varied though, and it is quite expensive, but you can start from any level

if you're interested just google GenkiJACS

I start my course there on Feb. 7th :smile:


Wow thank you! :smile:

What's Fukoka like, and are you apprehensive at all about living there?
Reply 403
Original post by Dizzee1
Wow thank you! :smile:

What's Fukoka like, and are you apprehensive at all about living there?


I've never been so I'm not too sure but it's a coastal city in the south, and there seems to be plenty to do :smile:

and I am apprehensive, especially since I'm going by myself, but it will be an amazing experience :biggrin:
Reply 404
Original post by Dizzee1
Do you guys have any suggestions or gap year ideas for a student planning to do Japanese at university?

Ideally I'm looking for a school in Japan, accommodation provided, where I can spend 3 or 4 months studying with other foreigners roughly my age (18). I've looked for these and somewhat failed :frown:

Thanks guys! :smile:



I can definitely recommend Kudan Institute of Japanese Language and Culture which is in Tokyo. I've been with them twice before and I'll be studying there again in April. They can sort out accommodation for you including homestay, living in a share house with Japanese people or an apartment. You can also get a transfer from the airport with them so that you don't have to wander around Tokyo trying to find your accomodation :smile:

I've done lots of research into other Tokyo language schools and I found Kudan to be the cheapest.
Reply 405
Original post by Fayzles
I can definitely recommend Kudan Institute of Japanese Language and Culture which is in Tokyo. I've been with them twice before and I'll be studying there again in April. They can sort out accommodation for you including homestay, living in a share house with Japanese people or an apartment. You can also get a transfer from the airport with them so that you don't have to wander around Tokyo trying to find your accomodation :smile:

I've done lots of research into other Tokyo language schools and I found Kudan to be the cheapest.


Hey there! I looked up that school and it sure is a lot cheaper! What was it like, which course did you do? How was tokyo as a guest, did you have a lot of fun? How was the accommodation!? A lot of questions i know, but really intrigued.
Original post by avila

I hope this next part doesn't come across the wrong way.

@Everyone:

Out of curiosity, how many here have done a Japanese language course before? A proper one with a teacher, homework, tests, quizzes, and all that. Browsing through TSR and some other forums, I'm getting this feeling that many happen to have caught a bit of "yellow fever" and are in for a shock once they start Japanese at university. :V

I guess that's why they say ~60% drop out after first year Japanese at uni. :/


Hey ive doing japanese for A-Levels and got an A* for GCSE and an 97 in AS level. I'm also quite good at kanji like i naturally remember most of them and so I like to find loads of kanji to learn out of the syllabus and ones found for the literature part of the exam and also the ones on the JLPT revision websites :biggrin: when i start uni hopefully try and get JLPT 2 level :biggrin::biggrin:
Reply 407
Original post by Narutofan88
Hey ive doing japanese for A-Levels and got an A* for GCSE and an 97 in AS level.


Haven't seen the syllabi for those. I'd assume A-Level is essentially working through Japanese for Busy People or an equivalent text book. GSCE French was really easy. I guess GCSE Japanese is similar.

Original post by Narutofan88
I'm also quite good at kanji like i naturally remember most of them and so I like to find loads of kanji to learn out of the syllabus and ones found for the literature part of the exam and also the ones on the JLPT revision websites :biggrin:


As long as you're not a follower of Heisig, that's all cool. How do you cope with the ??? and ????

edit: TSR fails at Japanese. Those were supposed to say kunyomi and onyomi.

Original post by Narutofan88
when i start uni hopefully try and get JLPT 2 level :biggrin::biggrin:


N2 now.
Have you taken a JLPT before? What's it like? Just like any old test?
Reply 408
Original post by avila
Haven't seen the syllabi for those. I'd assume A-Level is essentially working through Japanese for Busy People or an equivalent text book. GSCE French was really easy. I guess GCSE Japanese is similar.



As long as you're not a follower of Heisig, that's all cool. How do you cope with the ??? and ????

edit: TSR fails at Japanese. Those were supposed to say kunyomi and onyomi.



N2 now.
Have you taken a JLPT before? What's it like? Just like any old test?


Just wondering, what's wrong with Heisig? :s-smilie:

Spose I might as well confess now that I've completed that book. :rolleyes:
Reply 409
Original post by Chayne
Just wondering, what's wrong with Heisig? :s-smilie:

Spose I might as well confess now that I've completed that book. :rolleyes:


So you know 2000 english meanings but can't read kanji compounds?
Or did you also finish book two?

Heisig has a large religious following on the Internet, so I have to be careful what I say. Pretty much all Japanese teachers have told me it's a sh1tty way of learning kanji.
(edited 13 years ago)
Reply 410
Original post by Supfresh.
Hey there! I looked up that school and it sure is a lot cheaper! What was it like, which course did you do? How was tokyo as a guest, did you have a lot of fun? How was the accommodation!? A lot of questions i know, but really intrigued.


Haha no worries about the questions :smile:

In 2008 I did the 3 week summer language and culture course. The language and culture courses are the most expensive but they do include excursions and activities in the price. I think it cost around Β£3500 when I took it but that included trying on and receiving a yukata, 2 weeks of class, glass bead making, Tokyo Disney but the best was a 3 day trip to Kyoto and Osaka taking the Shinkansen. I'm pretty sure the courses have changed now but it was definitely worth the money. I'm still in touch with some people I met there as well :biggrin:

Last year I did 3 weeks on the intensive course and I'll be doing another 5 weeks this April. You need to know hiragana and katakana to take this course option. If you don't, you have to take the kana course and then can move up to intensive. I'm not sure what beginner classes are like as I'm intermediate but you are taught exclusively in Japanese. You have 2 hours of kanji of a week and the rest is grammar, speaking, writing etc. People tend to be 19+ in these and most of my classmates were Korean, American, Russian or Taiwanese.

I personally love Tokyo as there is always so much to do. The subway is really easy to use, but I recommend getting a suica/pasmo card as soon as you get there. It's the same as an oyster card and will save the confusion of different tickets for the different lines. Obviously things will be a lot easier if you can speak some Japanese but if not, most places have things written in English. Japanese people will also try to help you out as best they can if you get lost/need help :smile:

First time I went I lived in a host family. I personally had a bad experience but they had trouble placing me due to my diet (wheat allergy, no meat) and I also wanted to live with another student. I wouldn't recommend asking to be placed with another student as being alone forces you to practice speaking. A lot of friends had brilliant host families but if there are any problems then there are always staff at the school who are willing to help. One thing to note is that the host families usually live quite far out of Tokyo so you will have a longer commute, but that's not always a bad thing. Also, some families are very strict about the school imposed curfew. One of my friends, he was 15 at the time, was allowed out all night but my other friend's host family insisted on meeting her from the station when she came home. It just varies depending on the family.

Second time I went I lived in what was known as the "school dorms". These aren't available as an option anymore but they were alright. As I was living on my own I found it pretty lonely at times so wouldn't advise an apartment unless you already have friends living in Tokyo. I'm going into a shared house with language students but also Japanese nationals this time which I'm really looking forward to. I think it'll be a nice balance between host family and living alone. Plus, no curfew so I can go out all night :biggrin:

Feel free to ask/PM me any more questions you might have :smile:

Also, sorry to everyone else on the thread for the super long message.
Reply 411
Original post by avila
So you know 2000 english meanings but can't read kanji compounds?
Or did you also finish book two?

Heisig has a large religious following on the Internet, so I have to be careful what I say. Pretty much all Japanese teachers have told me it's a sh1tty way of learning kanji.


Aha, don't misunderstand, I do not know 2000 english meanings. I know 2042 english key words - there's a difference. :tongue: The method means Heisig had to put one word to each character - which is pretty freaking hard when you take synonyms into account. But nope, can't read kanji compounds, but when you see two kanji like "garment" + "clothes" together (not an actual japanese example, but this was the case for me when I saw it in my Mandarin class) the meaning is pretty obvious.

The biggest advantage of doing it for me, is the fact that I can now break things down into their primitives. Those horrible 1000 stroke kanji (okay, exaggeration, but you know the type I am talking about) are no problem. In fact, sometimes depending on the primitives used, they are easier to remember than the simple ones. Anyway not gonna promote Heisig, just wondered why you thought it was so bad. :s-smilie:

Oh and, nope. No one really likes book 2 it seems. To start learning readings I have my Japanese DS game (Kanji Sonomama Rakubiki Jiten), plus my manga (reading Crayon Shin-chan atm) like everyone else. I've pretty much done the AJATT thing with that and try to find loads of source materials. There's really no structure with my learning atm, so looking forward to uni in that respect :biggrin:

And aha, right you are about the religious following :tongue: Along with the AJATT method (yes, I admit again, huge AJATT fangirl over here too. :colondollar:). Yeahh, I've heard Japanese teachers say that too. But hey, I had the time to spare, I now have seen some 2000 characters and have an idea of what most of them mean. I've already done it now, so it can't really hurt, can it? :rolleyes:
Reply 412
Original post by Chayne
so it can't really hurt, can it? :rolleyes:


Probably not. I still believe rote memorization and Anki-based flash card reviews (with a custom deck designed for kanji memorization) are better. So far it's working for me.

To each his own, I guess. :smile:
Original post by IBzombie
Weirdly enough that is exactly what I'm going to be doing soon :smile: I'm going to GenkiJACS in Fukuoka, Japan for 8 weeks (you can choose for how long) to learn the language... and I got accommodation through them aswell :smile: It's actually the same accommodation that uni students in the area use, and the language school itself focuses on westerners (unlike others which have high percentages of chinese or korean students)... I think the ages are typically varied though, and it is quite expensive, but you can start from any level

if you're interested just google GenkiJACS

I start my course there on Feb. 7th :smile:


i think i saw their video on youtube
Original post by avila
Haven't seen the syllabi for those. I'd assume A-Level is essentially working through Japanese for Busy People or an equivalent text book. GSCE French was really easy. I guess GCSE Japanese is similar.



As long as you're not a follower of Heisig, that's all cool. How do you cope with the ??? and ????

edit: TSR fails at Japanese. Those were supposed to say kunyomi and onyomi.



N2 now.
Have you taken a JLPT before? What's it like? Just like any old test?


umm well i havent use that book but A2 u learn quite a few grammar points and we have to do 2 essays for the exam. 1 question on the research of japan like all the festivals and celebrations and the other is an essay question on a short story.
Ummm wats Heisig? no i just follow the syllabus coz my skool make rly useful kanji vocab book with all the kanji and how to say it including the kunyomi and onyomi.

umm its like a japanese profecieny test which if u wanna work in japan, emplyers will look for and u need like a minimum of JLPT N2 withe N1 being the hardest, if u pass N1 ur basically fully fluent and can live in japan without a single problem haha. It basically tests ur grammar, ur kanji knowledge and theres a listening too.
Reply 415
Original post by avila
Probably not. I still believe rote memorization and Anki-based flash card reviews (with a custom deck designed for kanji memorization) are better. So far it's working for me.

To each his own, I guess. :smile:


Ah, now with Anki - I totally agree :wink:
And tbh, s'long as we reach the end goal of being fluent in Japanese, who cares how we got there.

EDIT: Also, is there anyone else who has been invited to a SOAS interview? It really surprised me to see that email...
(edited 13 years ago)
Original post by Chayne
Ah, now with Anki - I totally agree :wink:
And tbh, s'long as we reach the end goal of being fluent in Japanese, who cares how we got there.

EDIT: Also, is there anyone else who has been invited to a SOAS interview? It really surprised me to see that email...


I've been asked for interview as well [21st Feb], in my case its probably because I don't have an A Level foreign language. But then my friend doesn't either and she was given a conditional to study Japanese at SOAS :confused:

So who knows! Maybe they want to quiz us on our personal statements :tongue:
Original post by mmm-dorayaki
I've been asked for interview as well [21st Feb], in my case its probably because I don't have an A Level foreign language. But then my friend doesn't either and she was given a conditional to study Japanese at SOAS :confused:

So who knows! Maybe they want to quiz us on our personal statements :tongue:


That's the same date as my interview at SOAS too :smile:
I too do not have a language A-level, however, I am a mature student (23yrs)
(edited 13 years ago)
Reply 418
Any Cambridge Japanese applicants lurking here?
Hello,

Would anyone be able to offer an insight into the differences between SOAS and Sheffield for a Japanese Degree?


Cheers

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