35yrs Looking to Attend Japanese Language School

6 comments

1. This is a copy of your post for archive/search purposes.

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   **35yrs Looking to Attend Japanese Language School**

   Hi! New to Reddit so please bear with me.

   I am interested in attending a Japanese language school and moving to Japan for about a year. I’m 35 years old, and while I’m college educated I don’t officially have a degree.

   I do have the financial funds to support a year (or more) long stay, and I’m also open to working part-time.

   My Japanese is pretty minimal. I can read hiragana and katakana, although I may not always know what the word means, and a few kanji. While I usually don’t have trouble reading or writing, my conversation skills are lacking (I’m so self-conscious and haven’t had many people to practice with).

   A few questions I have are:

   How often to Japan Language Schools reject applications?

   What are some things I can do to strength my application?

   Does anyone has suggestions for schools that may be a little more lenient with their admission?

   Do we have to put work history in applications? (I ask this because I’ve been a marketing associate for a cannabis company for 3 years. I know they’re pretty strict about that, so I’m afraid that may effect my chances with school application or the visa).

   Thank you for your help! 🙂

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2. I’m not sure how most people can reply to your 1st question if they pass the 1st time round.

   Just apply and see how it goes. Different schools have different levels of strictness, requirements.

3. Google “Coto Japanese Academy Intensive Courses”

4. I’m currently attending a language school, and while I can’t speak to for other schools, I can at least help answer some of your questions!

   My school never actually said I was accepted to the school. The staff helped me with all the immigration applications and paperwork which led to my Certificate of Eligibility and Student Visa being accepted (I don’t know how often these are accepted/rejected, apologies). From there, they asked for tuition payment, told me about my apartment accomodations, etc. I was never “accepted,” I assume my school just takes in anyone who obtains their COE and visa on time lol

   The paperwork for immigration is fairly straightforward, I’m your run-of-the-mill college dropout and didn’t need to strengthen any of it! There was a form I filled out that asked why I want to study at a language school in Japan, so if you too receive this form, you could probably strengthen whatever you feel is necessary in there. You should be just fine either way, though 🙂

   Most language schools have a varying degree of coursework and class time, but I’m going to bet that the ones with a more lenient schedule and less rigorous/low intensity classes will be more lenient with admissions. I don’t think it would hurt to reach out to schools you’re considering to ask this question!

   I don’t know about anyone else, but for my immigration paperwork, I had to list every single school I’ve ever attended and every single job I’ve had, along with the month and year for all of them. The staff member at my school that assisted me with the paperwork needed a reason as to why there was roughly a year long gap in my work record. It seems likely that you will have to include the cannabis company in the work records, but I’m not sure if/how it could affect the applications. I would also ask the schools you’re considering this question, just in case!

   I wish you the best on your journey 🙂

5. Do you have 10+ years of experience in a relevant industry like IT?

6. As long as you have the cash for tuition and the visa, you are good to go. However, without a degree, you will have to leave Japan when you finish.