Is studying in a Japanese University Possible?

[Senbee]

Hey guy,

this is basically my situation. I am a 17 year old student who will graduate high school in Germany in two years. I speak both English and German fluently and I will have had three years of studying Japanese when finishing high school. I have been fascinated by Japan for quite a while and actually took my first trip there this summer. And wooow I enjoyed it xD. So I decided that I would really enjoy living/studying there (haha I bet you have heard something like this before in several other threads). I could go to a University in Japan for a one year exchange in college, thats for sure. But I would prefer to actually study there for 4 years instead. My grades are pretty decent but there is the huge language problem. After only 3 years of Japanese classes I will definitely not be fluent nor know 2000 kanji.

So here are my questions

Are there Colleges/University's in Japan where non fluent speakers can apply to? (something like an international college)

And how hard is it to be accepted into one?

How much does the average University in Japan cost?

Am I beeing a complete fool for wanting to study there or is it actualy realistic xD?

I would be very glad if someone replies.

Senbee

[Nyororin]

Yes, it is quite possible. I received my degree here, at a 4 year Japanese university. However, I had already attained a fair level of fluency before even starting, which is going to be your main wall.

Originally Posted by Senbee

Are there Colleges/University's in Japan where non fluent speakers can apply to? (something like an international college)

Yes, there are... But I wouldn`t recommend them. Not because they`re not good places to study, but because they`re most likely not what you`re looking for. They`re aimed, in general, at Japanese students. In other words they`re immersion programs for English, usually based around a US university curriculum, forcing students to speak English and isolating them from Japan to speed up the language acquisition process.
It seems like a complete waste to come all the way to Japan to just be in a pretend US.

And how hard is it to be accepted into one?

I`ve never applied for one of those types, so I can`t really say. Nor did I apply as an international student at the university I attended. (I already had a visa when I started)　I do know, though, that most universities require a minimum of JLPT2 - some JLPT1 - to attend their regular Japanese language classes. Unless, of course, you`re aiming to study Japanese. That opens up quite a few doors.

How much does the average University in Japan cost?

The range really is so large that I don`t think there is an average.

[Yingzi]

Gooten dag!
I'm not so familiar to the system but I think Tokyo university of foreign studies and Sophia University have students who speak foreign languages fluently so I suppose you won't have a hard time rather than other universities
The cost is depends on which uniersity and which department you want to major in,.If you go to public university it costs : 282000yen for an entrance fee,535800 yen for tuition fee. So you need 817800 yen in the first year. But if you want to study in private university it costs at least 1000000yen per a year But we always welcome you!!!!

[Senbee]

Guten Tag xD,

thanks a lot for the answers.
I guess Inernational College is a bad idea if its really just like a fake US. I want to experience the Japanese lifestyle so I will have to apply to a normal College/University. The JLPT 2 and 1 test look pretty difficult though. (even the easier one requires 1000 kanji and 6000 vocabs ). I could try to learn that much Japanese in 2 years but I am not sure if I would succeed xD.
How would doors open up for me though if I studied Japanese? I was planing on doing that in any case xD.

Wow, Public University's in Japan are affordable. (unlike many in the US xD). Tokyo and Sophia University look really nice but I heard its literally impossible to be accepted. I will check out their website and see if I can find something on foreign students.

Senbee

[tommasi]

Why don't you go to Uni in Germany and come to Japan for exchange a program and study Japanese while you are in Uni.

That's what many people do and it is more realistic than any other plan you might have.

Good luck!!

[Miak]

Q. Are there Colleges/University's in Japan where non fluent speakers can apply to? (something like an international college)
A.Yes, google is your best friend in this case

Q.And how hard is it to be accepted into one?
A.Getting into the university itself is not very difficult (As a foreigner), yet dealing with immigration will be a bit complicated.

Q.How much does the average University in Japan cost?
For your first year expect to have ¥834,800 ($7,860 or €4,940). This includes matriculation fees, tuition fees, and entrance examination fees. Each year after the first year is cheaper, seeing how your only pay the examination fees and the matriculation fees once.

Please note that regardless of how much the universities cost, Immigration requires you to have around $15,000 (€9,400) in the bank, or promises of that money from family.

Also, the prices listed above are for national Japanese universities. International universities cost more from what I have noticed.

Q.Am I beeing a complete fool for wanting to study there or is it actualy realistic xD?


Absolutely not. Going to a University in Japan is 100% possible, regardless of what others may tell you.

Save money and learn Japanese before going to Japan. Below is a link with information on how to learn Japanese fluently. To save money, you could either rob a bank (not suggested...) or get a job.

All Japanese All The Time Dot Com

With more info on being a student in Japan, check out the following link.

Student Guide to Japan-English and Other Languages-JASSO

[MMM]

It may not be impossible, but I wonder what the benefits are? American employers are not familiar with Japanese universities, and Japanese employers, in general, are not looking for foreigners who have graduated from Japanese universities. To be honest, for an employer to hire a foreigner, usually they are hoping for someone with a foreign degree.

[Miak]

Originally Posted by MMM

It may not be impossible, but I wonder what the benefits are? American employers are not familiar with Japanese universities, and Japanese employers, in general, are not looking for foreigners who have graduated from Japanese universities. To be honest, for an employer to hire a foreigner, usually they are hoping for someone with a foreign degree.

Your right. Japanese employers already have plenty of (Japanese) people to employ that already have (Japanese) degrees, so their is no need to higher a foreigner for something that another Japanese can do. This isn't racist of the Japanese, it's just logical.

However, that is not to say that a Japanese degree wouldn't be useful. Countries such as Korea and Hong Kong (not to sure about Hong Kong) require you to have a bachelors degree to work in their country, so if you ever wanted to work outside of Japan...

Also, Japanese immigration wouldn't mind if you had a Japanese or American degree whenever you apply for a work visa.

[kyo_9]

Originally Posted by MMM

It may not be impossible, but I wonder what the benefits are? American employers are not familiar with Japanese universities, and Japanese employers, in general, are not looking for foreigners who have graduated from Japanese universities. To be honest, for an employer to hire a foreigner, usually they are hoping for someone with a foreign degree.

I have a lot of seniors from Malaysia who r currently working in Japan after graduating here in Japan.. so it may depends on what field you are in too.. basically my seniors is all in engineering fields..

[Shigeji]

i actually wanna stay in japan for college to so i've been busy doing research. do you know Waseda University? Google Waseda SILS, its "School of International Liberal Arts" and Sofia has one too && also ICU which is "International Christian University"
those are the three schools im aiming for =].
they seem pretty cool so, thought you might wanna check it out!
=]