Hi everyone,
Im not sure if this is the right forum to ask. If not, Please point out a better suited Forum!
Im a European living in Japan since 10 years, but planning to leave and apply to jobs in the US. I’m fluent in Japanese (I wrote my PhD paper in Japanese), but have no certificate for it.
Is the JLPT common in job applications in the US to proof your Japanese language ability?
If not, what other certificate could be useful?
Thankful for your input! 🙏🏻
6 comments
If a job requires Japanese proficiency even in the US and they want to verify that some non-Japanese person knows Japanese, I’m sure they are aware of the existence of the JLPT so I’d say yes.
While the JLPT is recognized, if you do not have a certificate but can demonstrate mastery, such as having done your PhD in Japanese, etc, can be sufficient for many jobs.
I know many people with advanced knowledge of Japanese and they’ve never taken the JLPT. I know of many jobs that just require “advanced level Japanese” with no specific certificates required. But this can be industry dependent.
Honestly when you put your spoken languages down, I’d just put English : native (or whatever) and Japanese : excellent.
If Japanese is a requirement they’ll have someone who can just speak to you and verify your skills.
That said, the jlpt can’t hurt and will only take up a few hours one Sunday afternoon and you won’t need to do any prior study, so I’d be tempted to get it anyway.
Knock out the JLPT 1. It can’t hurt. I knew people who passed the 2, and landed jobs in Japan.
Some job listings ask for JLPT but some don’t
I’ve seen some jobs that just say “Bilingual”
Generally speaking, the US doesn’t put a lot of stock in language certification tests. The average America has never heard of them nor taken them nor understands what the cover. Personally, I wasn’t even aware of the concept of a language certification exam until I studied abroad in Europe in college.
Most American companies will either take you at your word about foreign language ability (if it’s not vital to your role), or have you take their in house test (if it is vital to your role). I had a friend who was still required to take her company’s internal test even though she’d passed the C1 exam. The company didn’t know or care whay ‘C1’ ment
An American company that hires a lot of Japanese speakers will likely be familiar with the JLPT and it might hold more weight with them. Overall I’d say there’s no harm in taking the JLPT, but it might not make too much of a difference in the end.