i want to know the cheapest place EVER to study in JAPAN!!!!

[Killer Tofu]

heh heh we think alike :P

[Taro Toporific]

"THE shanghai knight" wrote: Whats the most god damned cheapest school for international students in tokyo? i mean cheap.

Tada hodo takaimono ha nai!*

The cheapest is free. You should check out their local Ward office for free classes.

You should ask for the "General Education Counseling Center" (kyoiku sogo sodan senta) for advice and counseling about Japanese language ability, education in Japan etc.


See A buyer's guide to Japanese language schools from the 8/30/98 Asahi Shimbun Online.

Also see JAPANESE LANGUAGE SCHOOL GUIDE.

*"There ain't no free lunch." ... Literally, 'Free things are most expensive'.

[Taro Toporific]

HOLY schmolly!! will they give me a student visa?! and can I work on a student visa?

Hell no. You have to get a student visa to study some bunka-baka thing like underwater senko sniffing that's cho cheap. You'll learn plenty of Japanese in the process and you can sign up for nearly-free Ward classes in Japanese.

With a bunka-baka student visa you can work up to 20 hours a week.

----------

The typical way the bunka-baka student visa scam works is:
1. Come to Japan on a tourist visa.
2. Find a job that will sponsor you,
<OR> visit many bunka schools taking the "free trial lesson"" looking to a good/interesting one that can sponsor you as a student (You can actually study 3 months of Japanese this way for free).
3. Fly to Korea for 15,000yen to apply for that work or student visa. Wait 3 days to get approved.
4. Work or study until you wise up or hit the bigtime.

WARNING: You must be MOTIVATED, worth-a-shite or damn luckyy to succeed at this. My wild guess is that 70% of Westerners fail to reach their Japan "goal" in the first 3 to 6 months.

[Taro Toporific]

okay.. let me repfrase..

whats is the most god damned mf'ing cheapest school in tokyo that will hook me up w/ a student visa?

"Sponsorship" was the bigger problem for me than the student visa. $50 a month to a hungry-but-respectable Judo dojo will get you a student/cultural visa.

Make f&$ing sure the school give you proper sponsorship. Basically that's what your paying for not the Japanese lessons which you get get anywhere for f---ing free (or more accurately, 'free for f---ing').

Whatz the "mf'ing cheapest school"?

Damn, if I would know. The cheapskate Chinese students hang out at:
Interworld Educational Center
Hirata Building, 3F
11-3, Nishi Shinjuku 7-chome, Shinjuku-ku
Tokyo 160, Japan
(03) 3369-5010
<and>
Human Academy(Tokyo)
Nishi-Shinjuku Showa building 10F,1-13-12 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku,Tokyo
TEL 03-3342-4741


Oh and there's always the Y...they are fair with prices:
YMCA Asian Language Institute
2-5-5 Sarugakucho, Chiyoda-ku,Tokyo
TEL 03-3233-0611

BTW: Do yourself a favor and read a couple
"Jobs in Japan" books to learn all your options.

[Taro Toporific]

whats the difference between sponsorship and a visa? i thought you needed a sponsor to get a visa... or is that for a work visa? how can i get this $50/month student/cultural visa? and i can work up to 20hrs/ week with it? anywhere? does this work for americans?

Saaaaa... read something, dude. Like do your homework.

The cheaper way is the cultural visa now called the "Pre-college Student VISA (4-1-16-3) is good for a maximum of 6 months and can be renewed up to a maximum of two years. A student on a cultural visa for Japanese art like "loose-socks rolling" may work up to 20 hours per week to help for expenses while studying. READ the Visa Game.
In this case you must find an accredited teacher who is willing to sponsor you. Cultural visas are often granted for Shodo , Ikebana, Ochakai to name a few besides "loose-socks rolling". Where to find such an accredited teacher?---That's up to you, dude.

Student Visas

Zillion types of visas---generally, most people come to Japan on a tourist visa, pre-college student (shugaku) visa, university student (ryugaku) visa or work visa.

Sponsors, actually a personal guarantor("hoshounin") is someone in Japan who will legally, morally and financially responsible for you.

Here a so-called "Independent" Rankingof all Accredited Japanese Programs.

[Taro Toporific]

i know what my job options are if i get fvckin work visa.. but i need a BA first..

Nope. You don't actually need a BA: it's Japanese Case-by-case depending on your special skill/talent. Italian chefs, construction demo experts, models, and most importantly, entertainers don't need them.

If you want cheap, think out of the box.

I know Africans who have come to Japan with less than $500 in their pocket and no high school education who have studied Japanese to the point they now own their own stores and cafes.

[Taro Toporific]

i know what my job options are if i get fvckin work visa.. but i need a BA first..

many English teacher folks have, in fact, graduated from the highly esteemed UNIVERSITY OF XEROX with a major in mass media copy technology.

YES! ALL HAIL THE COLOR LASER PRINTER!

Refer to the classic threads..

Getting a work visa in Japan
Can i be issued with a work visa, if i'm sponsored but I haven't got a bachelor's degree. I have a two year Advanced Diploma in Information Technology. Could I still score a work visa?

Working Visa without Degree
What is the worst that can happen to you if you use a fake degree...?
---For example:
The extremely successful entrepreneur/millionare, Terry Lloyd of JapanInc.com brags about being a high-school dropout. I've watched in person a couple of English language journalists here get a Work Visa with a bogus degree AND fake college transcripts.

[Taro Toporific]

What does the YMCA cost/year do u think? and will they hook me up w/ a student visa?

See How to Keep Costs Low.
OR see...
I've gotten lots of questions from people about studying Japanese in Japan so I've decided to put together my answers to those questions a

YWCA Q & A
What are some bad points of the YWCA?
Is $150/wk tuition expensive?
Can I find a cheaper school?

Summer Language Courses
How do I find a summer course longer than 3 weeks?
Application process seems too complicated, can't I do it more easily?
What about summer programs in Tokyo?
I'd like to be go to Japan and have a private tutor for 3 months, how can I do this?

Visa and Application Questions
How do I make sure the school won't reject my application?
Do I really need $15,000 in savings or a Japanese guarantor to get the Student Visa?
If I go early on a Tourist Visa do I need to return home to get the Student Visa?
Should I go to Japan and inspect the language schools before I decide where to go?
What's the deadline for applications?
Was it hard to get into the language school you wanted?
Is it easier for Westerners to enter than for Asians?

Questions about Part-Time Work while Studying
How easy will it be to find part-time work after I arrive?
Is it hard to find a part-time jobs teaching French?
Do I have to be an English or ESL major to teach English?
Do I need a college degree to teach English part-time?
Did you go to Japan with lots of savings or did you start working immediately?

Questions About Life in the Classroom
How large are clases, what % of students come from countries using Kanji, etc.?
With so many people from countries using Chinese characters how hard is it to keep up?
Is there a mixture of ages or is it geared towards younger people?
Should I know some Kanji (Chinese characters) before I go?

General Language School Questions
There are so many schools, how do I go about picking a "good" school?
What level will you be at when you finish a language course?
I heard health insurance in Japan is very expensive, is that true?
I'm third generation Japanese and want to learn the language, what will the experience be like?
Is it possible to get a scholarship for Graduate School in Japan?
What was the attitude of the Japanese people to you?
When I finish the language program how hard will it be to find a job in Japan?
How can I find a cheap part-time Japanese course in Japan?
Do you know of any correspondence courses in Japanese?

[Big Booger]

I don't know where you are from, but why not enroll at your local uni, get in on their Jap program, come over, spend a year or a year and a half, get brushed up on your Japanese, party like there's no tomorrow, and then if you still want to stay, research more of the work/student visa for staying.

That way you'd get your feet wet without falling in. Try your local uni. They always have programs to study abroad, and the ass kicker is that more often than not, you only pay your local uni tuition, room, and board...
Some even sponsor your flight, living expense, book fees, everything...
just depends on your University.

One girl I know, fucking sold candy bars to earn up enough money after her scholarship to stay for an additional year.. and that was just from selling candybars at the UC (university Center)...

Check it out knuckle brain. hehehe
BB

[ex ceo]

When I decided to basically purchase a visa for Japan, I looked in Chiyoda central Tokyo and located a langauge school that could provide student visa support documentation. I was in the USA at the time, and I had one of my Japanese friends call the school and negotiate all of the details. 4 months prior to going to Japan, I submitted all paperwork to the school, along with photos, proof of previous Japanese langauge class enrollment, copies of passport and previous visas etc.. A few months later came my visa support documentation from the school, and I used that to get a visa from my embassy in the USA. To study at a language school cost me $9000 per year, or $4500 per semester. My visa allows 20 hours of work per week, but as you will discover, work possibilities are endless if you are resourceful. I had to provide proof that I had the means to support myself, so I gave them a copy of my savings account statement, listed my work background etc. I sold my company in June of 2004, and having not yet graduated from my uni, yet wanting to stay in Japan for a year or more, I found a student visa the easiest way. After rent, tuition, books, subways passes etc, my entire year long stay will range from $15000 to $20,000. I chose a cheap apartment which was only available to students, but the rent was only around $590 per month and it is not a shared room or anything, it's my own place.

There are much cheaper ways to go, but I actually wanted to learn Japanese in structured classes that catered to people of my experiance level. I have one friend who got a cultural visa for ikebana which costs not nearly as much as my school, but you must consider the cost of living, eating etc. I find endless opportunities for work, not just in Roppongi but everywhere. I got many offers for jobs teaching English (yeah, not the best job, but oh well) and I still have one year left at my University before I get my BA. You just have to look the part and rise to the occasion. Present yourself in a professional way, get at least one good suit that fits well, some clean, shiney matching shoes, keep yourself well groomed, speak professionally, act professionally and the jobs will come, the majority of which will be part time, and who says they have to know about other part time jobs you have? When I first set out to go to Japan, it was a huge pain finding a school, apartment, all that stuff, but it was worth it.

My suggestion for cheap study and visa sponsorship would be a judo school, karate school, Japanese traditional arts, ikebana, etc. Then stay at a hostel or something if you don't really care about quality over price.

[tatsujin]

Guys, thanks for the invaluable advice on visas. I am heading over next week to stay for a month on hols. Can you recommend any good hostels to stay in? I have found a few on the web - Cozy House, Shrek Watta to name some but they all look the same to me....

Thanks in advance

[Ptyx]

About that student visa have you checked if you can work in a bar or nightclub with it ? Obviously that's what you want to do, since you mentionned a job in roppongi.
I know that working holiday visa holders for example cannot work at a bar or a night club and wouldbn't be surpised if it was the same deal with the student visa. It might be a good idea to check this.