Information for Japanese Language Courses, 2026

General Japanese Courses, The Institute for Academic Innovation, International Education Center, has announced its Japanese Language Courses for 2026. Please see the information below and check the flyers and course guide for the General Japanese Course.

General Japanese Course and CMC

Semester

First semester: Wednesday, April 8, 2026 – Thursday, August 6, 2026

Second semester: Thursday, October 1, 2026 – Wednesday, February 3, 2027

(Except Saturdays, Sundays, and national holidays)

Timetable

Please refer to the Course Guide 2026.

Classroom Location

Classes will be held mainly in the Student Communication Station (Kita 15, Nishi 8, South of Frontier Research in Applied Sciences Building) with some classes in different buildings on campus such as First Year Education Building (Kita 17, Nishi 8).

Classroom assignments will be announced by the Japanese Course Office before the semester begins.

Class Times

• Period 1　08:45-10:15
• Period 2　10:30-12:00
• Period 3　13:00-14:30
• Period 4　14:45-16:15
• Period 5　16:30-18:00

Eligibility

The General Japanese Courses and Co-learning in Multicultural Classrooms (CMC) are open to:

• international students enrolled at Hokkaido University with a student visa (research students, graduate students, special auditors, and special research students);
• international teaching or research staff;
• and office staff employed by Hokkaido University.

Please be reminded that auditors, credited auditors, and Bachelor’s degree program students are not eligible to register.

In CMC, you can study Japanese language, culture, society, and research methodologies through collaborative learning together with Japanese students. Please note that this course does not deal with language skills such as Japanese grammar, pronunciation, reading, writing, and so on. For those who want to study these skills, please take our General Japanese Course.

Placement Test and Applications Period

The application process will change to a two-step system starting from the second semester:

1. You must obtain the Japanese Course Registration Authorization before class enrollment.
2. You will use Hokkaido University’s Academic Affairs System for class enrollment.

Application Process for General Japanese Courses

To register for the General Japanese Courses, please complete steps A-E below:

1. Placement test
2. Review the syllabus
3. Complete the Japanese Course Registration Authorization
4. Register your course subjects in the Academic Affairs System
5. Attend the first-class session

Placement Test

• New Applicants:
  • New applicants who have never taken the General Japanese Course must take a placement test. However, except for those who have not previously studied Japanese, please DO NOT take the placement test, as you will be automatically placed in Introductory 1.
• Continuing Applicants:
  • Continuing applicants must select one of the following options:
    • A) Taking a placement test
      → Choose your classes based on the test scores.
    • B) Not taking a placement test
      → Apply for a class one level higher than the one you took before
  • In either case, admission is ultimately regulated based on the number of students. There is no guarantee that you will get into the course that you desire.
  • Please check this website and see how to take the test.

Applications

All applicants should submit a Japanese Course Registration Authorization form. Both new and continuing students who have taken the General Japanese Courses before must apply.

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For more information on the course and application procedures, visit our website.

Have further questions? See if it’s in our FAQ.