I’m 20 and thinking about going to Japan for language school, but I’m not sure if it’s the right move. I don’t have a degree yet, and I’m unsure if I’ll go to university. I passed JLPT N5 in just a couple of months back home, so I’m motivated to learn more Japanese, but I’m worried that after the 2-year language program, I won’t know what to do next.
I don’t have a clear plan for the future, so I might end up doing labor jobs instead of anything related to my goals. Should I still go to Japan for language school even though I don’t have a clear plan yet? Or should I wait until I have a better idea of what I want to do? Any advice would be really helpful!
by Substantial_Let_2365
18 comments
I think why not ? It’s not like you’re 50 with a like secure home base . It might be better to do a year a see how it goes I think everyone if they have the opportunity should just do as you never know if you’ll have the opportunity later .
Yeah man, this part of our lives is all about discovery. It’s not a permanent decision either, I say go for it.
I would probably get at least $20k USD under your belt and then go for 6 months. Between plane tickets, tuition, rent, and everything else you will spend at least half of this.
It will go get harder to do this as you get older. Go ASAP
If getting a degree at home is financially viable I just do that and self-study Japanese with the time. There’s a lot of great J-Pop out there to discover and you can do a lot of language study just with that, plus any anime and video media you can find.
With ChatGPT now you can do an IMMENSE amount of language study. Learn all the kanji you need, all the grammar, vocab.
That’s what I did at least in the late 80s and early 90s, and it worked out well for me. Minus the ChatGPT part of course.
Wait to get your degree then do whatever you want. Now NO!
Go have an adventure! You’re 20 and you have time to figure it out. 🙂
If you have the opportunity and money, sure taking a couple years to hang out in Japan and learn Japanese sounds fun!
Remember though that you’ll need to save up ahead of time (need to show immigration that you have enough cash to support yourself), that you’ll only be able to work part time as a student (so don’t count on earning a lot during that time), and you won’t be able to stay in Japan after (no BA degree means no work visa).
If all that sounds good to you, then sure, give it a try. If you want to be more strategic about how you spend your money and time, then you’ll want to reconsider and think about if it actually fits with your long term goals.
28, going to school for an Arts degree, and also some Japanese language, and no clear plan.
Fuck ittttttttttt, why not? Is it the best decision? Nope, but it does have some merits. Japan, despite its aging population, is an emerging market that needs individuals who are fluent in Japanese and English. So worst-case scenario, you could snag a position someplace as a translator.
Also also, would you regret not going? No one goes to their grave wishing they worked more. Take your studies seriously, learn, experience, grow, and seek opportunities. Take it seriously and you’ll be ok
Just do it. You’ll probably have a lot of experiences and encounters here during those two years that will nudge you in the right direction, too. And even if you don’t? That’s fine. It’ll put you on some path, and you’ll have a great life experience! Studying abroad is one of the best things you can do, especially when young, imo 🙂
20 is the perfect age to do whatever you want. Worst case scenario you start university a couple years later than everybody else, no big deal.
Do you have the funds to even sustain this plan? Figure out your life a bit more, youre only 20 and you can learn a language from home. Also, if you are still relying on your parents for money, you should be asking their advice instead of ours.
I would come up with a plan first. You can only do the 2 years in language school once. And being here and finishing opens so many doors as opposed to being in your home country. Even if it’s just college
Although I just moved to Japan three months ago,From my experience, it’s completely worth going to a language school in japan but if your career goals are to work in japan in a professional setting , then I’d suggest studying a bit more and then going while N5 is still accepted, to actually progress enough to be in a professional setting, you’ll want to start at a high level once you’re there. I say this because there are some people in my language course that are having visa issues now because their japanese isn’t good enough to get a job and they’ve stayed the max they can on a language student visa. This is just my advice tho, feel free to do what you think is best after weighing the pros and cons! all the best!
If you do want to live in Japan after that having a degree is very important to get a work visa, but going to language school first to learn the language and see if you actually like it is great!
If you keep up with it while getting a degree after you‘ll have good chances I think
just curious if for one year language school how mach money have to go japan and living for year
I’m currently figuring out myself 23m I just came back from vacation in Japan. And I wbat to move there. The issue is I have no degree. My plan is
Max out credits on sophia. org and study. com for the 90 credits and transfer to WGU and then try to get degree in under 1 year hopefully
Have you been to Japan? Not everyone likes it to be honest, I would come on a tourist Visa and stay for a month or more if you can, take a language class then decide.
I think it’ll be better to have an idea of what you may want to do, which will also serve as a guidepost when things get difficult. I quickly learned the strict immersion style classes in some Japanese language classes weren’t for me, but I was able to enjoy my time since I knew I’d only be in Japan 2 months. If you want to stay longer, you want to have more of a plan, and *definitely* want to have savings