Hello,
I would like to take the N1 test in December 2023.
Right now my listening skill is enough to understand grammar explanations videos (Nihongo No Mori for instance) or easy slice of life anime but certainly not 100%. I still have to work a lot on listening and I was thinking about using podcasts during my commute time.
I am not too sure about what kind of podcast I should listen to for N1: podcasts aimed at learners or for natives? Also what kind of topic would be well suited for N1?
Fellow N1 takers please share your recommendations 🙂
2 comments
Have you ever listened to Japanese with Noriko? I used her podcasts for the N2 last year, so I think it’s still a bit too easy for N1, but maybe just right for you to slowly work your way up? Because I think for the N1 you should aim for native level speed and vocab.
https://www.youtube.com/c/LearnJapanesewithNoriko
I like the podcast 話し方のハナシ. It’s for native speakers, but the presenter is a professional announcer, so very clear speaking. She uses polite language, which is probably good for practicing for the JLPT since it’s mostly more business/adult life orientated.
I think in terms of topics, you should be aiming for adult life stuff, which is super vague, but you’re not really going to come across video game terms for example in the JLPT, so you won’t get as much out of a podcast about that. Otherwise, it’s also good to vary your topics, because you can get some really weird topics. When I took N2, I got a paper discussing the functions of sweat.
For varied topics, I like ピートの不思議なガレージ, which has interviews with people from the most random of fields. There was one where they were interviewing a guy super into fountains. It’s hard, because it is so varied, but good for exposure to topics you might not generally encounter.
(I’m not an N1 taker, took it a while ago, but I started listening to these some time after I passed N2 and before I passed N1. They were tough to start, but I think they helped.)