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Ok so I really want to go to college in Japan..but I mean I have about a C average and I'm afriad I might be too dumb to get into any college in Japan? althoug I was thinking of transfering once I get into college in the US Do you guys know of any good colleges? I'm in my first year of Japanese so I'm afriad If I do go I won'y know what the hell they're saying in class. I'll be the stupid gaijin crying

Not to burst your bubble, but I don't even think a 4.25 harvard bound student would have an easy time getting into college in Japan, unless they're fluent in Japanese and go to a japanese highschool. Highschool in Japan is far more difficult that it is here (i'm sure you've heard of the crams school they go to after school and all the tests they have) and college entrance exam are reputed to be very difficult.

But even if it weren't difficult to get in, I think even Japanese people would wonder why you want to go. Outside of the few really prestigious universities, college in japan is like a 4 year vacation, it's near impossible to flunk out, students study very little, there aren't even GPAs, students just get pass/fail grades. Not to say that some colleges in the USA aren't like this, but still, the Japanese students I knew that went to my university didn't speak too highly of universities back home.

I would suggest you find a college that has a good exchange program with a Japanese school and plan your classes around doing study abroad there. Also, if you have a bachelors degree, and you don't mind teaching English, there are plenty of job opportunities for that in Japan.

Unfortunately, there is a strict language requirement for most Japanese college (the National Univ. system requires a 75-80% or more on the level 1 proficency test, which means adult level and beyond) as well as having to pass the entry exams of which each college has there own and they are very very very hard. The only reason I got into a Japanese college was via sneaky government help and my working background. Even then, my pilot program has been cut so it looks like I`ll be headed back once the last of my scholarship dries up.

That said, you probably will get a better college education in N. America simply because Japanese colleges out side of the major universities and specialized universities are a massive joke academic wise. I think an exchange program would better suit your needs. Also, try shooting for a job beyond English teaching. These days, English teaching in Japan is by far the lowest rung on the Gaijin lader and employers often take advantage of eager teachers and force them into what is basicly slave labor. If you work hard and are motivated, then the sky`s the limit.

College and grad school in Japan are very very different things, mind you. Most grad schools conduct the majority of their classes in English and, therefore, require a very minimum comand of Japanese language (I think its only a level 3 JLPT as opposed to level 1 for undergrad). Most Japanese don`t go to grad school unless they plan to do something very specialized like medicine or engineering. The business, accounting, and most of the political classes in my uni`s grad school are all conducted in English, even if the prof is Japanese.

If you took Japanese in college, there are a lot more opportunities to study abroad, like over the summer. My local college offers a lot of things like that. And what would be the need to go to college in Japan?