Becky Said:

What is the tuition cost of studying Japanese in Japan?

We Answered:

It depends on where you'd like to study. To say the least, it is significantly less expensive than studying at a private university in the United States, but some of that savings will be offset by travel/housing costs. (Many Japanese college students live at home to save on housing costs). I am starting a Master's course at a Tokyo University (a national university), and the tuition is roughly USD$6000. A dorm is between US$60/month and US$300/month plus utilities, but an appartment (in Tokyo) will be "crazy expensive". I think Keio/Waseda (which are private universities) run in the neighborhood of US$15000. If you are a solid student you might want to check out the MEXT scholarship (I think it used to be called the Monbugakusho scholarship). Be forwarned, gaining admission to a Japanese university isn't easy (but certainly worth the effort). If your goal is to spend time in Japan, check out the JET program through the Japanese government (English teaching), or Fulbright (English teaching / research grant) through the American government. There are also some American schools with campuses in Japan. Drexel, for example has a campus in Tokyo. I think there are also intensive Japanese-language programs that run over summers, and the cost around $US5000. Good luck!

Claude Said:

A good place to study Japanese in Japan while taking high school classes?

We Answered:

You should probably go through a program such as AFS or YFU (both offer strong programs to Japan, YFU for sure has a lot of scholarship opportunities). If you are accepted, they will find an appropriate school for you and, in most cases, there is no language requirement. However, having said that, any opportunity you can take to learn some Japanese before you go, the better your experience will be.

Ben Said:

I'm looking to study Japanese in Japan in 2010. Which courses are the best?

We Answered:

You could try the Daiwa foundation.
My brother is currently doing that, he got awarded a scholarship after finishing college - so they pay for his rent, food and tutoring, they even paid for his air fare!
Heres the link http://www.dajf.org.uk/

Adrian Said:

What movies do you recommend watching to study about Japan and Japanese culture?

We Answered:

If you're not willing to read a book, I'm not sure if there's much you can learn before you go. Anyway, I answered your question at the bottom, but I have a few warnings, based on my own two years in Japan.

First, books and movies are likely to give you a false impression, a way of interpreting everything you see in Japan. Seriously, being an armchair anthropologist really makes for a shallow experience in a foreign country. You end up learning no more than what you could have learned at home.

It's better to spend as much time as you can with Japanese people and take them one at a time, as you would people in your own culture, learning what you can of Japan from multiple, local perspectives. It'll be really tempting to spend all your time with other Westerners, coming up with "theories" fed by the kinds of movies you plan to watch.

But if you at least want a positive fantasy experience before you go, I recommend Tony Takitani, The Seven Samurai, Totoro, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Whisper of the Heart, Grave of the Fireflies, The Twilight Samurai, and Hula Girls.

Donna Said:

I've heard in japan Japan side patronizes such forign people who wanna study japanese in japan, is it right?

We Answered:

There are programs that will pay for you to go to Japan, but they're mainly employment programs and a lot of them are teaching English. Other programs include school exchanges and business exchanges, neither of which sound like you'd be interested in. With an M.A. you might be able to go over on some one year teaching program and find a job at a University over there.

Once you're over there for contract, you could either find work in your field part time, learn Japanese (most jobs have a Japanese language class/program) or learn enough to get a scholarship to study in country. Most universities want you to know Japanese, and while there are some scholarships, they're really competitive.