hello people. basically what the title says. i'm 23, turkish, software developer with an associate's in CS (2-year vocational program). i have a place in edogawa and i've lived in tokyo before so this isn't a "should i move to japan" post. i'm going back october 2026 and i'm committing long term. i know october deadlines are coming up so i’m trying to lock things down now
my japanese is roughly N4. been learning for about 2 years but real active study time is maybe 4 months if i'm honest. did 3 months at a language school in tokyo early 2025 but had to leave for personal reasons. i can read with furigana, kanji is rough, haven't studied much since.
my plan is language school first to get my japanese to where it needs to be for university entrance exams, then a bachelor's in CS. i'm planning for 4 years from scratch through the EJU route since that seems like the realistic path, but i'd love to hear from anyone who actually pulled off hennyugaku with a foreign associate's. i also do know a lot of people just use language schools to get a visa and sit in class on their phone, and that's exactly what i don't want. i genuinely want the student experience and i want to actually build a life there, not just exist in tokyo with no real connections and act like a tourist with extended privileges.
as for language school i keep finding the same SEO lists and can't tell what's legit. i've looked into kudan and sendagaya a bit and they seem more serious but i don't know anyone who's actually been to either. i'd rather pay more for smaller classes where students actually care than save money at a visa factory. especially interested in hearing from anyone who did a university prep track somewhere.
for university i don't know what studying CS at a japanese uni actually looks like as a foreigner. what was the workload like, how were the professors with non-native speakers, did the degree actually help you get hired after? cost isn't what i'm optimizing for, i just want to know what's actually worth the time.
if you've been through any part of this i'd really appreciate hearing how it went, what worked, what didn't, what you wish someone had told you earlier. thanks in advance.
by pyth0nix