Hi guys,
For quick background, I am working in the Department of East Asia of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in my home country. I completed my undergraduate degree in Public Administration and then did an MA in IR in the UK. I have a JLPT N1 certificate but speaking is my weakest area with loads of mistakes..
Japan is my dream posting. To set myself apart from my colleagues, I would like to apply for the MEXT scholarship to enroll in an master's program in IR in Japan. But since all the classes are taught in English (plus I already hold an MA in IR from a UK university) and 6 month Japanese language training is definitely not enough to improve my Japanese speaking skills as a diplomat, I was thinking about doing my master's in Japanese and intensively learn the language.
I just found out that all my fellow colleagues who are working at the embassy in Tokyo have a Bachelor's degree in Japanese language, so they are very fluent in speaking.
As a diplomat, who wants to achieve a high level of competence in formal Japanese (especially speaking), what kind of route should I take? Master's in IR or Japanese?
Thank you very much!
by mellifluous_07