Job Discussion Forums

[Yakamo]

Hello everyone, I am moving to Japan in March 2009.

I will be somewhere in the Kanto area. Not sure yet, the board of education is slow in their placement. Anyways, I was wondering if anyone could recommend a good school there for studying and learning japanese. I am currently at an intermediate level, and would like to become fluent.

Any suggestions or websites that I could go to would be very helpful. Thanks in advance.

[JL]

I, myself, learned Japanese over the years by living and working in the country. So, unfortunately, I can't offer any first hand advice. I'll defer to the others who have first-hand experience to offer. But like anything else, wouldn't you want to wait to get here, so you can actually visit a few schools, and get a slight feel for them? Just as almost all foreign language schools in Japan allow prospective students to take a free trial class, I've got to believe that most Japanese language schools will also allow you to observe a class, with no obligation. Since you don't know where you'll be placed yet, it probably also wouldn't hurt to find out first where you'll be working and living, before going school hunting. The "Kanto Area" can mean anything from Odawara to Tsukuba, it which case, even a centrally located school in the center of Tokyo wouldn't be very convenient.
Anyway, gather some school reviews from the others on this forum . But then, as Smokey Robinson's mother used to say, "You better shop around."