<p>At first I was planning on becoming an OB/GYN (Obstetrician/Gynecologist), but the more I thought about it the more I realized that it was what my family and teachers wanted for me and not what I wanted for myself. So I thought about what made me happy, and right away these came to mind: Japanese Language (even though I can't speak it), Japanese Culture, manga, and anime. Then I decided that I would make my career in Japan. However, I am not exactly sure about what it is I would like to do. Although, I have heard that teaching english is the easiest and best way to go in Japan for American foreigners, but I am not completely sure if that is something I would enjoy doing. So, I figured that I would continue thinking about it and in the meantime I would head torwards teaching english. </p>
<p>Now, If I want to teach in Japan, I have to know how to speak Japanese. I have done some research, but I am still a little unsure about which colleges offer the best Japanese Language courses. Also, since I plan on having two majors (one for Japanese Language and most likely one for English Lit.) I have to think about the english courses as well. </p>
<p>I'm only 15 but I will be graduating either late this year or mid next year (that doesn't mean I am a "genius" or a something like that). So I am running out of time, but I do not want to rush things and make a mistake. That is why I am hoping that a few people would help me with a few options and opinions.</p>
<p>Sadly, Japanese seems to get the short end of the stick at most smaller schools, so my usual LAC foreign language recommendations don’t really fit. You might look at UW-Madison or (if you’re hardcore christian) Brigham Young. Any other flagship would probably do alright as well. You just need to find a university that’s large enough that they offer more advanced classes. It’s not as common as Chinese or Spanish, so at smaller universities you’re going to find they only have 2, 3, or 4 years (even 4 years is lacking, really, especially if 4th year majors don’t get into classical Japanese).</p>
<p>Also, if you’re passionate, it’s very possible to simply self-study the language. Japanese is a lot more friendly to self-study than other languages because the pronunciation is simple and there are tons of resources on the internet. Google “Tae Kim” and “AJATT” to get you started, and then just get to work memorizing the hiragana, katakana, and then the kanji. It’ll take a long time, but it’s very doable and most of the work is simple memorization rather than tangling with foreign concepts, declensions, conjugations, etc. that you would be doing in western languages.</p>
<p>You can PM me if you have any other questions about the language or language learning materials. I’m JLPT N1 from nothing but self-study.</p>
<p>One LAC that has a pretty good Japanese program is Lewis and Clark in Portland OR. My D is has taken 2 1/2 years of Japanese and is now in Osaka at Osaka Gakuin University with the CET program. She’ll have added a minor in Japanese after this semester. She said her Japanese is better than her Japanese schoolmate’s English but she’s still slow on reading Kanji.</p>
<p>I agree there will probably be major Us with more depth in the Japanese programs. Many schools in the Pacific Northwest have a tie to Japan so they tend to have more classes available (Seattle actually has Japanese titles on signs throughout the airport).</p>
<p>Check out Willamette university in Salem. They have a sister school arrangement and many Japanese students on campus during the year. They offer a major in Japanese Studies and minor in Japanese language.</p>
<p>Many schools have good Japanese programs. Focus first on identifying the best schools to which you can be admitted, which you can afford, and which fits your other preferences (size, location, etc.). Don’t pick a school for its Japanese program unless it’s a good fit in these other respects.</p>
<p>Having said that, here are some schools with good Japanese programs: Chicago, Princeton, Johns Hopkins, U Washington, WUStL, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio State, Middlebury, Oberlin, Macalester, Earlham, UCLA, Berkeley, Hawaii, Columbia, Harvard, Yale, Cornell, Michigan State, Stanford, Oregon, Oberlin.</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice everyone ^-^
I’m trying to look into all the programs and whatnot that you’ve metioned :3
So far I’m working on the self-teaching Japanese site Tae Kim and it seems really promising ^-^
Also, I’ve looked up the Shansi Foundation and College Navigator (still working on it <.<). I just have some of the other things you guys suggested to look up.
I’m slowly but surely making progress as to where I’ll decide to apply to for college ^-^
Thanks again everyone :3
Oh! And more advice is welcomed :D</p>
That list is highly misleading. Note that Indiana U is nowhere on the list, for example, despite being world-renowned for its foreign language offerings. The reason for this is because, like many colleges, it has an East Asian Language/Culture major with a concentration in Chinese, Japanese, etc.</p>
<p>In fact, I strongly suspect that many of those colleges with Japanese majors are a great deal weaker than those with East Asian departments.</p>
<p>Warblerrule, thanks for the information. Obviously, I don’t know much about the major and I was just going by what I could select on College Navigator. I appreciate you pointing out the importance of East Asian Departments.</p>
<p>As Dadwithmodem says, the clear choice here would be Earlham. The second choice would be - heck, there really isn’t a second choice. Earlham is so integrated with Japan, Japanese language and Japanese culture, that many Japanese world maps actually show Richmond, IN!</p>
<p>Another vote for Earlham :). There are many schools that offer a Japanese lanugage major, but be careful about schools that only offer the major through their East Asian Studies program. Often you have only 1-2 years of Japanese language and cannot take further courses once you are at the intermediate levels of proficiency. Abroad programs are helpful at achieving fluency, but without having advanced level language courses, you may not reach your goals. I’m only telling you this so that you eliminate schools that don’t offer you a full range of Japanese language courses all the way through advanced level (years 3-4). You have to really dig through each school’s course offerings. Just something I’ve discovered having been looking at schools with Japanese language major programs for my D1. There are plenty of highly selective schools to choose from, but my D1 is a B range student, so we’ve focused on those. Although, Earlham is by far one of the top for Japanese regardless. You may really like Earlham and they have the longest standing exchange program with Wasada U. It’s excellent for Japanese Language.</p>
<p>My daughter at 17 loved all things Japanese and wanted to major in Japanese. With some prodding, she decided that she would select a second major. Anyway, after three years of language and culture study, her comments run along the lines of the more she knows about Japan and all things Japanese, the less she likes it. So my advice? Jump in with both feet, but have a solid back-up plan.</p>
<p>@ gadad and jkiwmom - wow :o that’s intersting to hear As of current I was thinking of making my first college choice Ohio State but I’ll take Earlham into more consideration ^-^
And i’ll also take jkiwmom’s advice about how many levels of Japanese Language a college has to offer :3 </p>
<p>
I see. Don’t worry ^-^ I thought about that already. So i’ll be coming up with one :3
and Thank You for the concern :D</p>
Look for both, and certainly don’t assume that a Japanese major makes a college superior to one with an (East) Asian Studies department. High school students and even some parents are too often dazzled by free-standing majors, when a track within a larger major/department at another college may actually be a good bit stronger. </p>
<p>Colleges with broad offerings tend to congregate languages in area studies departments for convenience. While a small school with a few faculty in languages might offer Chinese and Russian majors, for example, a larger school would have a Slavic Studies department (offering Russian, Czech, Old Church Slavonic, Lithuanian, etc.) and an East Asian Studies department (offering Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, etc.). Area studies departments are also more likely to have culture/civilization courses that would be useful for those planning to live or work overseas.</p>
<p>Ohio State is a great option too. My sister just finished her PhD there in linguistics in '11 (Spanish major at Kenyon initially). They are well known for their Language Dept. Some of the larger universities will offer Japanese courses through the 4th year and have an Asian Studies Major with more cultural/political/history basis (some will let you self-design too). So just go through their dept. course listings to see the level of language instruction --just confirm that advanced level of instruction. But yes, Earlham is very known for their Japanese program, so definitely look into EC. </p>
<p>My D has been taking Japanese for over 3 year now in HS, and also plans to major in art. Which one is our “back up plan”? LOL! Both my older sisters were language majors (one at UCB in French and Italian, and the one I mentioned above in Spanish and Italian, and she later learned Japanese while living in Kioto). You can take it as far as you choose. The OSU sister has focused on research and now travels all over the world presenting her life’s work at international conferences and teaches at a U in Denmark. I guess my point is, you should study what you are passionate about. If you take a couple years of Japanese and change directions, then no loss. Learning another language is always a plus :)</p>
<p>@warblersrule - ok, ^-^ Thanks for the help x3 now I have a better idea of what to look for @jkiwmom - yeah, i’ve looked at Ohio’s course listings already ^-^ (or was that Earlham O.O? Maybe i’ve looked at both already? -_-’’) Anyways, I’ll be sure to double check! ^-^’’
And, wow :o that’s pretty cool! Your family sure has learned a lot of languages </p>
<p>Side note - as of now my top 3 schools for consideration are Earlham, Ohio, and Princeton, Oberlin, and Middleberry at a tie for third. :)</p>
As of current I was thinking of making my first college choice Ohio State but I’ll take Earlham into more consideration ^-^
</p>