Japanese Language Program

Poised just off the edge of the Asian continent, Japan has been an important bridge between Asian and Western cultures since the 19th century.

Gateway to the East

Many vocabulary items in modern Chinese and Korean were coined from Japanese inventions for English words such as "electricity" and "democracy." In addition to serving as a mediator of Western scientific and technological knowledge for Asia, Japan is a center of commerce, trade, education, and culture in East Asia. Today, in Asia, "Japan is in vogue," writes a Taiwanese scholar. Japan is a trendsetter for Asian fashion, and "Japanese cultural commodities are ubiquitous" throughout Asia (and, one might add, through manga, anime, Godzilla, Ultraman and the Pokemon, throughout the West as well). Japan, one might say, is the gateway to the East.

Careers

Students who have studied in KU's Japanese Language and Literature/Culture program have found employment in countries around the world. One student who combined computer science studies with Japanese worked for a Japanese computer firm in Japan and then for an American firm that based him in Zurich, Switzerland. Another student added Japanese studies to his business major, attended Sophia University through KU's Study Abroad Program, and is today a CPA with the Deutsche Bank Group in Tokyo. Another combined Japanese with computer science, acquired a law degree, and became a legal expert on technical affairs in charge of Microsoft's Pacific Region. Yet another former Japanese major now teaches English at a Yokohama National University and acts in Japanese television dramas and t.v. commercials. Many who majored in Japanese have gone on to graduate studies at Michigan, Columbia, the University of California, and other universities. Many are now teaching Japanese language and literature/culture at universities, colleges, and high schools.

Fascination

Beyond the practical advantages that comes to those who learn it, studying Japanese possesses its own intrinsic rewards. Learning a language whose syntax is virtually the reverse of that of English and whose writing system of two phonetic syllabaries and several thousand Chinese characters is the world's most complex and exercises the mind in unique ways. Learning the language opens the door to the world of a very different culture with very different thinking patterns and over a millennium of outstanding cultural achievement. As anyone who has made the effort to learn Japanese can attest, studying the Japanese language can be the beginning of a fascinating, all encompassing relationship with a people that grows richer and more interesting as one goes on.

Japanese Placement Exam 

Placement exams help to determine the course in which you should enroll if you are continuing your study of a language with which you have had previous experience.  These exams focus on your abilities and knowledge of the language rather than the amount of prior coursework that you have had.  

Proficiency exams allow undergraduate students to gain exemption from the Non-English Language Proficiency requirement in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences by establishing that their ability in a second language is equivalent to that of someone who has studied that language for four semesters at the college level.

If you are enrolling at KU for the first time and want to continue your study of Japanese, you should take an on-line placement exam prior to your arrival on campus. To take the exam, you will need to request a single-use username and password. Once your request is processed, you will receive an e-mail containing full instructions for the exam, including the username and password that you will need. Upon completion of the exam, you will be given a preliminary placement, which you should use to register for a specific Japanese course. During the first week of classes, you should meet with your instructor to confirm the accuracy of the placement. If it is determined that another course would be more appropriate, you will be allowed to transfer to that course.

For more information on placement and proficiency exams, please visit the OLRC page.

Proficiency Goals for KU Japanese Language Courses

Students can communicate with formulaic and rote utterances, lists and phrases. They can ask and answer simple questions on familiar topics with some difficulties. Specifically, they can:

  • communicate in simple sentences using memorized speech patterns.
  • read and write hiragana, katakana, and about 100 kanji.
  • comprehend and use the newly-learned grammatical rules, vocabulary items.
  • gain knowledge about a variety of aspects of Japanese culture.
  • use non-verbal gestures (i.e. bowing) and understand when they are appropriate.

Students can create with language, ask and answer simple questions on familiar topics, and handle a simple situation or transaction. Specifically, they can:
• communicate in simple sentences on familiar topics. 

  • read and write hiragana, katakana, and about 300 kanji.
  • use expanded idiomatic and colloquial expressions.
  • gain deeper cultural understanding of real-world aspects of life in Japan.
  • execute the Japanese language in a culturally appropriate manner and gesture.

Students can ask and answer questions on familiar topics with some reasons and explanations. They can narrate and describe with some difficulty. Specifically, they can: 

  • communicate in complex sentences on familiar topics.
  • read and write hiragana, katakana, and about 600 kanji.
  • analyze and understand long complex sentence structures that characterize modern Japanese prose.
  • exhibit deeper understanding of Japanese culture in their speech and writing.
  • apply newly and previously learned grammatical structures in verbal communication in a culturally appropriate manner, which sounds natural to native speakers of Japanese.

Students can narrate and describe using appropriate time frames (past, present, or future), and handle a situation with a complication. Specifically, they can:
communicate in complex sentences on not only familiar topics but also various modern-day and historical topics.

  • read and write hiragana, katakana, and about 800 kanji.
  • use different levels of speech styles (honorific, polite, casual, etc.) depending on the situation.
  • read authentic materials (news, articles, etc.) with the help of a dictionary or online tools.
  • discuss social issues and cultural topics providing reasoning and supporting arguments