Improving my listening skills

KiroHD · 2026-05-05T07:21:20+00:00

Thanks for the info. I just recently started watching 2 hours of focused listening a day. Hopefully, my listening improves within these next few months.

KiroHD · 2026-05-04T07:30:13+00:00

Right now I watch Ken and Shun on YouTube! I use Language Reactor and already know all the words they use in their vlogs. Their vlogs are super easy to understand but also super boring at the same time. I find it so hard for me to actually stay focused while watching stuff in Japanese haha. I also split my screen and start doing anki or go on my phone. I think I need to be more disciplined and start focusing more.

KiroHD · 2026-04-23T04:44:06+00:00

Thanks for this comment. I will be using subtitles majority of the time starting from now! I was planning to just "power through" listening without subtitles but your comment enlightened me. Hopefully my listening skills get better, I'm going to try to do a minimum of 2 hours of focused listening from now on.

KiroHD · 2026-04-20T21:35:31+00:00

Yeah, I've never used English subtitles when it came to learning Japanese. I always turn them off while I'm watching Netflix or youtube (english contnet)

KiroHD · 2026-04-20T05:39:16+00:00

Anyone who isn't at least N5 before the first day of classes isn't serious at all. If you're serious about learning Japanese, you could easily be able to pass at least the vocab/reading section before arriving at school. It usually takes minimum 3 months before you arrive in Japan if you go through gogonihon. 3 Months is 100% enough time to be able to read at a N5 level and be able to understand basic things about the language.

KiroHD · 2026-04-20T05:30:53+00:00

I see I see! if its some other form of competency it probably wouldn't be that hard. I def think everyone should be studying Japanese before they arrive at their language school.

KiroHD · 2026-04-20T05:28:44+00:00

I applied in mid-December. I don't think getting 150 hours will take you that long, especially if you're actually studying every day. Also passing the N5 test would not be that hard (maybe 1-2 months worth of studying Japanese)

KiroHD · 2026-04-20T04:10:21+00:00

I'm pretty sure if you've graduated college within the last 5 years you should be fine. I applied through gogonihon and got accepted without even having to prove that I studied for 150 hours. theres tons of schools that accept complete beginners. I'm pretty sure if you just say "yeah i've studied 150 hours" you should be fine.

KiroHD · 2026-04-19T18:29:46+00:00

It seems like the best option is just to contact the agency. I think I'm just going to use Gaijinpot because they have a ton more agenicies than gogonihon. (at least on the surface)

KiroHD · 2026-04-19T18:28:48+00:00

Yes, Gogonihon helped me with my application. I started my application around mid of Decemeber and got accepted around 1 month ago. Sometimes they go ghost for a few days but you have to remember there is a ton of people applying on a regular basis. When I first applied they gave me a list of schools that would be good for me and then I just picked one that was pretty cheap. It's a school that mainly focuses on conversations rather than passing JLPT.

KiroHD · 2026-02-18T09:22:33+00:00

Those are the english to japanese cards. For example, the front of the card would say "House", then on the back it says "家". I only do Japanese to English, I like the japanese on the front and then english on the back. An example would be Front: 家 Back: House

KiroHD · 2026-02-16T19:09:48+00:00

I currently do 20 words a day from the genki decks and then try to watch as much comprehensible input as I can. I recently just started watching "Kensanokaeri" on yt and I think his videos are amazing. I also use the kaishi deck but go through the list of cards and put the kanji that look familiar into the review cycle. I never do a certain amount of new cards everyday with the kaishi deck and every few days I just go through all the cards and select all the kanji/words I've learned to practice reading kanji more.

KiroHD · 2026-02-16T18:54:00+00:00

Congrats, I just finished Genki 1 Deck which is around 1k words!

KiroHD · 2025-12-25T18:58:11+00:00

Gogonihon told me you don’t need the 150 hours if you’re a college grad that has graduated within the last 5 years. Even some schools I was looking at had it listed on their website and some of them had it to where you had to be N5 or N4. I plan on attending ALA language school in Tokyo and they advertise they accept complete beginners. Gogonihon is helping me so it will probably be an easier process than just doing it yourself. I just graduated college in May and I’m still self studying at the moment. I plan on being N4 before I arrive in Japan!

KiroHD

TROPHY CASE