I'm using some of those same lists. That is a great site. Most of the resources online(MLC, JLPT Study, JLPT Kanji Study) obviate the need to buy any of the textbooks. I would like to get some good suggestions for a listening drill book, though.

Also, I really like the idea of doing a little bit of a group or coaching thing with JLPT studying. I'm not sure that it needs to be face to face. I would like to do it over Skype maybe with some people from here. I think that would be very powerful to talk to someone once a week or so to check in on progress and study methods. It would also be useful to bounce questions off that person.

So, if anyone shooting for level 1 or has just already taken level 2 and would like to help me in this way, hit the e-mail link over to the left. I also would be open to doing the same for people shooting for 4-kyuu or 3-kyuu. I'm not a complete expert, but I'd probably be good enough for people focusing on 4/3.

I'm gonna take the 2kyuu this year.

I'm most worried about the reading since it is weighted more heavily and the passages are pretty long, so test-taking strategy in addition to Japanese aibility seems very important.

I think the kanji section well be good.

And I have no clue about the listening...I need to find a copy of some samples to practice.

I'm on summer vacation now...so I'm going to basically start studying full time. I'm going to finish off the kanzen master grammar book to get introduced to all the 2kyuu grammar. (I'm currently about 3/5 of the way through, so I should be able to finish pretty quickly.)

After that, I'll just keep plugging away in Anki and make an effort to read a lot.

And unrelated to JLPT I'm also going to be working on speaking a lot...I think it would be sorta bad if I pass the 2kyuu test but still speak at my 4kyuu level level lol. (And speaking/conversation practice is good for reinforcing stuff I've learned for the test anyhoo)

Quote:Most of the resources online(MLC, JLPT Study, JLPT Kanji Study) obviate the need to buy any of the textbooks

That's also what I thought in the beginning but if you're aiming for 2kyuu or 1kyuu, then online resources are definitely not enough. Actually, the most useful resources are probably not the ones you listed but the news sites like FNN or TBS news. I don't see how you can pass 2kyuu without using textbooks or taking classes. The most useful books are the Unicom and Kanzen Master series.

Yeah, I was trying to get going on some grammar today and it was almost impossible. So, I just broke down and bought some of the drill books. Here is a list of what I bought:

Listening Drills - Unicom 実力アップ!日本語能力試験2級聴解問題
Vocab Drills - Unicom 実力アップ!日本語能力試験2級漢字単語ドリル
Reading Drills - Unicom 実力アップ!日本語能力試験2級 読解編
Vocab - 徹底分析 日本語能力試験 文字・語彙2級
Grammar Book - どんな時どう使う 日本語表現文型辞典

All in all I spent about $120 which isn't that bad compared to other times I've had to buy textbooks for American classes. All of these were recommended by various people from around the internet, and I'm going to work them in conjunction with RTK and SRS stuff I'm doing. From looking at other peoples' experiences with the above books, the methods I'm using, and where they started it looks like I'll be able to pass 2-kyuu no sweat as long as I continue to apply myself.

I'm going to take 1kyuu this year. I studied but didn't have time to take 2kyuu last year and I brave myself to take the higher level this year.

I've been self studying and my test trial result wasn't too bad, though vocabs are really my weakness.

Hopefully Melbourne will still hold JLPT this year. It says "TBC" on the website =(

This is my first post but I discovered this site a couple of months ago and have now decided to do RTK im on frame 352. I went through japanese for busy poeple I and plan to do II by december and of course finish heisig and I plan to a 4kyuu this year. Does anyone think this is a reasonable goal?

If you need to pass, you'll pass 4-kyuu easily where you are right now. If you're going to study, if you like a little bit more of a challenge, if you're emotionally okay with the thought that maybe you won't pass, then go for 3-kyuu.

Take the level check on this site: MLC Level Check. Remember that the percentage you need to pass the JLPT is something like 60%. So that means if you're doing more than okay on these level checks, ~80% then you'll probably be okay for the test.

Work hard on listening skills, though. From my experience with beginners, they do okay with all the written stuff but then they have zero listening comprehension. So I would drill that pretty hard.

I'll be taking 2級 in Seattle. I would've liked to take 1級 but I'm not sure I'd pass and I figure it'd be better to wait for the new version anyway.

chochajin Wrote:I'm not taking it this year. Currently I could pass 3kyu, but I don't care about 3kyu.
I wanna try and go for 2kyu next year either in July or in December.

But I have a question: I'm currently using the JLPT vocab decks that came with Anki but there are way too less vocabs in those decks!
Like for example there are only 400+ words for JLPT3+4 all together! And only 600+ for JLPT2.
Does anybody know where I can find a COMPLETE vocab list for all levels that I can import to anki??

Thanks a lot in advance

As Delina mentioned, http://www.jlptstudy.com is a pretty good site to base it off. I'm creating Anki Decks for Level 4 and 3 at the moment, so I'll make them available once I've finished the decks.

Personally I'm going for "Thanks" level (ha ha, sorry, san-kyuu is just too good to pass up that type of joke) even though I've never taken any sort of formal training. Will need to buckle down and really get my vocab sorted out, but it's a good challenge. Been advised 4 just isn't worth ever taking, as it's too easy - particularly for those of us already living in Japan.

I'm in the boat of knowing too much for 3級, and not enough for 2級. So naturally, I'm taking 2級 and crossing my fingers.

Sevenhelmets Wrote:Been advised 4 just isn't worth ever taking, as it's too easy - particularly for those of us already living in Japan.

Instead of reracking the test for 5 levels in 2009 they should just get rid of ４級, and insert another level between ２級 and ３級. I don't understand why anyone would spend the money to take an exam that only tests the absolute most basic Japanese you would learn in about a semester.

erlog Wrote:

Sevenhelmets Wrote:Been advised 4 just isn't worth ever taking, as it's too easy - particularly for those of us already living in Japan.

Instead of reracking the test for 5 levels in 2009 they should just get rid of ４級, and insert another level between ２級 and ３級. I don't understand why anyone would spend the money to take an exam that only tests the absolute most basic Japanese you would learn in about a semester.

I guess it's as a motivational thing -- they set the lowest level so that beginners can feel like they're getting somewhere. Personally I'd put level 3 in the same category -- it's only worth taking if you want to do it as a personal milestone sort of thing. I'm told that level 2 is where it starts to be actually worth mentioning as a qualification.

The scoring system the JETRO JLRT tests use seems a better idea to me -- you get one test which covers a much wider range, with a final numeric score to indicate what your level of competence is. (I guess it might be a bit demoralising to only be able to answer 25% of the questions, though.)

i was wondering how you go about signing up for the test in america.

i'll be outside of japan while they're accepting tests... so what should i do? how do i get the application in america? can i still sign up for a japanese test site?

TGWeaver Wrote:i was wondering how you go about signing up for the test in america.

i'll be outside of japan while they're accepting tests... so what should i do? how do i get the application in america? can i still sign up for a japanese test site?

You could probably pick up an application and just post it in from the States? Applications are open for a month, will you be away for the entire time?

Yeah, I'll be leaving on the 6th, so I suppose I can just do it before I leave.

Can you really get them from any bookstore? Or just big ones?

I'll try and get it this week in Osaka, and then mail it before I go. That's probably safer than trying to do it in America anyway.

TGWeaver Wrote:i was wondering how you go about signing up for the test in america.

i'll be outside of japan while they're accepting tests... so what should i do? how do i get the application in america? can i still sign up for a japanese test site?

You can sign up at
http://www.jflalc.org/

EDIT: I didn't read that you were trying to take the test in Japan, rendering my post silly. sorry about that.

Applications don't open up for us in the UK until August 16th, anyone else going to London this year?

I'll be aiming for 3kyuu.

First post for me, yay. I'm planning on taking 3級 in London -- probably should book a hotel room and put a reminder in my calendar to buy the cheap train tickets three months out.

I'm gonna also take the Lsat in December. It looks like that is the 6th, Saturday, and then it will be 2 Kyu in Seattle on the 7th.

And the week before that is finals (admittedly, probably nothing too difficult).

That first week of December is going to be a blast!

Hey guys just got a confirmation email from the SOAC in london, the test applications are being sent out soon so now is the time to request one if you haven't already

I sent my application off this week. I'm officially signed up for level 2 of the JLPT, and now begins the real studying. I'm doing a study diary on my blog that tracks my progress. It's gotten me to be a little more honest about how much I study.

Applications for my location don't open until about a week into September. The application is done on the internet though so there is nothing to buy and no postage cost!

Weird, are you still in 大阪? Is there a different process there?

erlog Wrote:Weird, are you still in 大阪? Is there a different process there?

I'm in Osaka right now, but I'm taking the test in Edmonton (Canada) since that's where I'll be in December. I go back and forth between Osaka and various places in Canada pretty frequently.

Does anyone know what the application booklet looks like? I went to the Aoyama bookstore in Roppongi to pick it up, and looked around in the "learn Japanese" section, and couldn't see anything that resembled an application booklet - nor anything that looked anything like it.

EDIT: Ok I found it. Picked mine up from Kinokunia in Shinjuku (next to Takashimaya Times Square), they are really pushing them hard there......