Become Proficient in Japanese: Complete Guide to Your Tests

Japanese proficiency tests primarily refer to assessments that measure the Japanese language ability of non-native speakers. The most well-known and widely used is the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT), which is internationally recognized and consists of five levels, from N5 (basic) to N1 (advanced). The JLPT is held twice a year and tests reading, listening, and language knowledge (grammar, vocabulary, kanji). Aside from the JLPT, there is also the Business Japanese Proficiency Test (BJT), which focuses specifically on business communication skills in Japanese. Various institutions and companies recognize these tests to evaluate candidates’ language proficiency for educational or professional purposes.

Key points about Japanese proficiency tests:

• JLPT measures general language ability from beginner to advanced in five levels.
• BJT assesses Japanese language skills in business contexts.
• Tests are held regularly with global participation.
• Preparation involves vocabulary, grammar, kanji, listening, and reading comprehension.
• Passing higher levels signifies ability comparable to native speakers in various contexts.

If a complete guide is needed, it should cover:

• Overview of JLPT and BJT tests
• Test structure for each proficiency level
• Scoring and certification details
• Registration and test dates
• Recommended study resources and strategies
• Practical uses of test certification for study, work, or immigration

The Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) is the cornerstone of these exams and includes levels N5 to N1, with N1 being the most advanced. The Business Japanese Proficiency Test (BJT) is designed for those needing to use Japanese in a professional environment. Both tests help demonstrate language ability for academic, personal, and career advancement purposes.

Would a detailed breakdown of each test’s levels and preparation tips be helpful?

References

• Library guides: Japanese: Proficiency tests

• A Comparison of Distractor Selection Among Proficiency Levels in Reading Tests: A Focus on Summarization Processes in Japanese EFL Learners

• The moderating role of L2 proficiency in the predictive power of L1 fluency on L2 utterance fluency

• Endoscopic Evaluation of Pathological Complete Response Using Deep Neural Network in Esophageal Cancer Patients Who Received Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy—Multicenter Retrospective Study from Four Japanese Esophageal Centers

• Detection of pathologic complete response using deep neural network-based endoscopic evaluation in patients with esophageal cancer receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy: a nationwide multicenter retrospective study from 46 Japanese esophageal centers.

• BJTビジネス日本語能力テスト公式ガイド = BJT business Japanese proficiency test official guide

• ジェトロビジネス日本語能力テスト公式ガイド = JETRO business Japanese proficiency test offial guide

• Informal learning of Japanese as a foreign language through watching anime

• Individual differences in L2 listening proficiency revisited: Roles of form, meaning, and use aspects of phonological vocabulary knowledge

• The role of automatised and non-automatised explicit knowledge in general L2 proficiency

• JGLUE: Japanese General Language Understanding Evaluation

• Sentence Suggestion of Japanese Functional Expressions for Chinese-speaking Learners

• TGT (Teams Games Tournament) Cooperative Learning Model in Kanji Courses to Improve Japanese Vocabulary Mastery

• Japanese Lexical Complexity for Non-Native Readers: A New Dataset

• STRATEGI BELAJAR KELOLOSAN JAPANESE LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY TEST N1 (STUDI KASUS MAHASISWA SASTRA JEPANG)

• BUNPO: A COURSE IN JAPANESE LITERATURE WITH USING A PROJECT-BASED LEARNING MODEL

• Handwriting recognition and automatic scoring for descriptive answers in Japanese language tests

• The “News Web Easy” news service as a resource for teaching and learning Japanese: An assessment of the comprehension difficulty of Japanese sentence-end expressions

• The Performance of ChatGPT-4V in Interpreting Images and Tables in the Japanese Medical Licensing Exam

• Performance of ChatGPT 4.0 on Japan’s National Physical Therapist Examination: A Comprehensive Analysis of Text and Visual Question Handling

• Subject & Course Guides: Resource Guide for Japanese Language Students: Japanese-Language Proficiency Test (JLPT)

• Speak Japanese in 90 Days: A Self Study Guide to Becoming Fluent

• Research Guides: Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) Study Materials: Home

• Pelatihan Membaca Wacana Ujian Japanese Language Proficiency Test Level 4 Bagi Calon Perawat Lansia Magang Jepang

• Progress Report on the Revision of The Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT)

• 26 Years of Japanese-Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) in Hong Kong

• Pengembangan Sistem Informasi Penerimaan Peserta Japanese Language Profiency Test (JLPT) Universitas Darma Persada

• Review of the Japanese-Language Proficiency Test

• Mapping Japanese Language Proficiency Test Needs for Vocational Students Based on Industrial World Demand

• Application of Differentiated Instruction on Japanese Language Proficiency Test to Build Students’ Awareness of Lifelong Learning

• JALEA: an authentic and personal path to JApaneseLEArning

• Development of MojiGoiGo!: Adobe Flash Based Learning Media For JLPT Preparation

• Machine learning approach of Japanese composition scoring and writing aided system’s design

• Japanese-English Sentence Translation Exercises Dataset for Automatic Grading

• ANALISIS KESALAHAN TRANSFER BAHASA PADA KARANGAN NARATIF MAHASISWA BAHASA JEPANG

• Performance of ChatGPT in Board Examinations for Specialists in the Japanese Ophthalmology Society

• Exploiting the language learners ’ speech database for research and education

• Correlation Study of Motivation and Habits to Learn Japanese Language With Result of Japanese Language Proficiency Test

• Research on the development of artificial intelligence systems for the generation of Japanese texts and the difficulty analysis of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test

• ‘Changes’ to the new Japanese-Language Proficiency Test: Newly emerged language policies for non-Japanese and Japanese citizens

• STRATEGI BELAJAR KELOLOSAN JAPANESE LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY TEST N1 (STUDI KASUS MAHASISWA SASTRA JEPANG)

• JCoLA: Japanese Corpus of Linguistic Acceptability

• L2 Learners’ Proficiency Evaluation on CEFR Criteria using Recognition-Taguchi Method

• Compositional Evaluation on Japanese Textual Entailment and Similarity

• Evaluation of the Translated Version of the FMCE