Reviews

The homework given was surprisingly very helpful for practice of the grammar learned in class. The teachers are some of the best I’ve ever had in my academic career, and their help and styles really kept my learning and interest on track.

I enjoyed interacting and practicing conversational Japanese with other people and teachers.

I found the culture class to be very satisfying and informative. through this class I was given a chance to see places in Japan that I probably would not have seen otherwise.

I was really impressed with Tanaka-san, Ryuhei-san, and Kato-sensei, who all worked very hard to make a life-changing experience for us in Japan. I also was super impressed with my host family and I can’t imagine a better match for a host family. My host mother is one of the best people I’ve ever met, and I hope I will stay in touch with her.

If you do not know any Japanese going into the program, you might want to take a few classes before hand. I had two years of Japanese Language classes in college before I graduated in 2010, and that was baby steps compared to KCP. They really care about you learning the language, but it is fast-paced so be prepared!

I’ve never had Japanese classes every day, so I think speaking Japanese a lot during class helped. Everyone, teachers/staff and students, were so nice and helpful.

Definitely study! There’s a lot of material that you cover and you’ll fall quickly behind if you don’t. I would go to school early every morning to study which gave me more free time in the evenings to enjoy Tokyo. 🙂

The culture class trip to Enoshima Island and Kamakura. This was an overnight trip where we stayed at a ryokan. The difference between learning about something (how you receive a yukata to wear, the tatami, the futon, the public bath, etc) and actually experiencing it is astounding which is what made this trip so unique and something that one cannot do in the United States.

I thought overall it was very productive, but the level of independent study is very rigorous. I was prepared for it but I could see others were struggling with the pace and learning what level of work was expected of them outside of class time. I think learning alongside my Chinese and Korean classmates was the most interesting aspect of the program. I made some great friends and our only language in common is Japanese!

If you do take the appropriate level and really dedicate your free time to studying and staying on top of homework, your Japanese will really improve.