10 Reasons to Study Japanese as a Foreign Language

1. Japan continues to be recognized as one of the world's major players in the global arenas of economics, politics and renewable energy.


“Last year, Japan generated half of all the world's solar power, built 44% of all new solar energy equipment, and installed five time as much new solar power capacity as the U.S.” ( Business Week by The McGraw-Hill Company, September 6, 2004)

“ Broadband service here [ Japan ] is eight to 30 times as fast as in the United States -- and considerably cheaper. Japan has the world's fastest Internet connections, delivering more data at a lower cost than anywhere else, recent studies show. ” ( Washington Post Foreign Service , August 29, 2007 )


2 . Studying Japanese is a wise career-building strategy.


Many CSU alumni with a Japanese minor have been hired by well-established companies such as Sumitomo, Mitsubishi, Oppenheimer Funds, etc. because of their Japanese language ability. More and more Japanese companies are hiring non-Japanese who are fluent in the Japanese language.



3 The study of Japanese language offers unique insights into Japan 's fascinating national culture.



Studying Japanese greatly enriches the study of Japan 's national culture, which boasts a rich heritage in the fields of native craftsmanship, performance art, visual art, music, film and graphic design.


The curriculum of the Colorado State University Japanese Program with a holistic approach is designed in such a way that students at every level learn the language and culture through regular classroom instruction and hands-on culture workshops.


4. Learning Japanese helps students gain an enhanced perspective of their own language and culture.



Through studying Japanese, students have an opportunity to compare Japanese with their own language and culture. Many aspects of their own language and culture are more appreciated when students realize the differences and similarities among different cultures.



5. Studying Japanese builds brain power! Once you study Japanese, you can handle any foreign language.



This goes beyond being able to order sushi in style! Study of a challenging foreign language like Japanese fosters key analytical and critical thinking skills. Learning to write Japanese characters not only improves observation skills and dexterity but also stimulates the front cortex. For Westerners Japanese is the most difficult language among less commonly taught languages. Once you study Japanese with Chinese characters, you will learn strategies to learn other non-alphabetic foreign languages.



6. Japanese language education in the world continues to grow.



According to a survey by the Japan Foundation, in 2006 approximately three million people in 133 different countries were studying Japanese, up 26% from 2003. This number excludes those taking on-line courses.



7. Students of Japanese become eligible for opportunities to travel and/or study abroad.



Colorado State University offers a number of study abroad opportunities in Japan through Kansai Gaidai University , Yamagata University , Sophia University 's CIEE Center , and other institutions. After graduation, many CSU students apply to the Japan Exchange and Teaching Program which grants graduates the opportunity to work with local Japanese government organizations to enhance English language education in public and private junior and senior high schools all over Japan .



8. Japan is increasingly emerging as a point of origin for American pop culture as anime , manga and other Japanese cultural exports hit U.S. airwaves and store shelves.



“… Japan has made deep inroads into American culture, usually written off by the rest

of the world as aggravatingly insular. Bestselling Sony Playstation and Nintendo home video games draw heavily on Japanese anime and manga for inspiration.

So have recent Hollywood films, such as The Matrix , and television series, including director James Cameron's Dark Angel . ‘… Japanese anime-style cartoons currently fill the majority of time slots in the after-school and Saturday morning schedules on

U.S. cable television. The cartoon and video game franchise Pokémon—broadcast in 65 countries and translated into more than 30 languages—even made the cover of Time magazine…



“In cultural terms … Japan has become one of a handful of perfect globalization

nations (along with the United States ). It has succeeded not only in balancing a flexible, absorptive, crowd-pleasing, shared culture with a more private, domestic one but also in taking advantage of that balance to build an increasingly powerful global commercial force. In other words, Japan 's growing cultural presence has created a mighty engine of national cool.” (Douglas McGray, “ Japan's Gross National Cool,” Foreign Policy magazine, June 2002).



“Japanese cultural exports, i.e. revenue from royalties and sales of Japanese music, video games, anime, art, films and fashion, soared to $12.5 billion in 2002, up 300 percent from 1992.” ( Japan Now , New Year's Edition: Volume 1-2005)



9. The Colorado State University Japanese Program has a truly unique program through which native senior Japanese helpers come to CSU and help students learn Japanese in and outside of the classroom.



Since its inception in 1998, the Senior Volunteer Instructor Program has thrived, helping students of Japanese in and outside of the classroom. Having native speakers who are from Japan in class creates an authentic atmosphere and an environment that is conducive to learning. These volunteers often host CSU students in their homes when the students go to Japan .



10. A Colorado State University Japanese class is a great place to make new friends, have awesome senpai (upper-classmen) and find a community!



The Japan Club, the Ramnime club, calligraphy and origami sub-clubs and affiliation with the CSU Japanese Student Association all offer great opportunities to make new friends, explore Japanese cultural activities, participate in field trips and have fun. CSU's Japanese courses feature a highly collaborative learning environment that often sparks lasting student friendships.



“…, it is good to hear from you [Beecken-sensei] and please know that your students are all over Asia using lessons you taught us to explore the world!” CSU alumna (class of 03).

In summary, for students, studying Japanese can be an asset in the job market, a spur to personal and intellectual growth, a source of increased self-esteem, and of course an enjoyable experience. Nihongo o benkyo shimasho! (Let's study Japanese!)