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Language Schools in Osaka

Osaka YWCA School
Kobe YMCA
Kansai Gaidai University
Kansai Time Out
Other Kansai Schools

Osaka YWCA Language School (also brochures, photos, etc.)

For those who want to study in Osaka, my first recommendation would be the school I studied at, the Osaka YWCA Language School (Phone : 6-361-2955), as I have firsthand experience there and found it to be an excellent school. They can obtain your student visa (make sure you check the application dates, for example for the October course you need to apply by June), place you in one of the cheap Osaka Prefecture dorms with rent under $200 per month, and will be very helpful for whatever else you need.

Among its many qualifications, the YWCA is the oldest Japanese language school in Osaka, which is important when you consider that there are plenty of schools that don't have sufficient expertise. They also have a two year course to train people who want to become Japanese language teachers, some of whose alumni are now teachers at the YWCA, which shows that they are very confident in their teaching method.

There are 60-75 full time Japanese language students each semester, and they are split into 4-5 classes depending on the time (fall semester has 5 classes, summer has 4 classes), with the beginning classes usually having fewer students than the higher level courses. There are also many students studying part-time in the morning and evening, if that's what you want to do.

The only drawback to the YWCA is that it is slightly more expensive (perhaps US$250 per 6 months for a full-time student) than some of the other schools, but I think it is worth the cost to be sure that you are in a quality program.

Osaka & Kobe YMCAs

If you want to study in Osaka then my next recommendation would be the Osaka YMCA language school (Phone : 6-779-8363), which also has a good reputation. There is an Osaka YMCA Home Page but it's only in Japanese and not very informative. As an alternative check the Kobe YMCA Japanese Language School page, it's in English and is very detailed. For that matter, this school also has a good reputation and Kobe is located adjacent to Osaka so you should also consider this school.

Kansai Gaidai University

Kansai Foreign Studies University probably has the largest program in Kansai for University Exchange Students so if you want to do a year abroad and receive credit at your university this may be an option. Interestingly, whereas 90% of the students in a typical full-time language school are Asian, at the Gaidai all but a few of the language students are westerners (mostly American). This isn't just a language school, Kansai Gaidai is actually a university for Japanese who are majoring in foreign languages (that's what "Gaidai" means). Tuition is expensive but they offer a Merit Scholarship for half that amount if your grades are OK.

If you go here I'd recommend the homestay over the dorms, friends in the dorms said it was very hard to get Japanese practice because almost everyone else was also an English speaking westerner. Also, half your classes will be in English with only 2 hours a day of Japanese class, so you will unfortunately advance much more slowly than at a full-time language school or in an Exchange program with Japanese classes only. The school does seem to have good connections, one friend of mine from there got a Full tuition + stipend Monbusho Japanese Government Scholarship to study at a Japanese University after finishing the program and I've heard of others who got jobs with Japanese companies after finishing their university studies back in their home countries.

Kansai Time Out

If you want to check beyond the YMCA and YWCA then you you should check Kansai Time Out, which has a section of ads from perhaps a dozen schools. Unfortunately this magazine can only be purchased in Japan and the Kansai Time Out Home Page doesn't have information on language schools. I have scanned the ads for language schools from an older issue, June 1998, so you can look at the dozen or so schools advertising there, including the YWCA and YMCA (Page 1 and Page 2).

Other Language Schools

A few other language schools in the Kansai area that have home pages include :

Last modified: March 20, 1999
Ravi Montenegro (monteneg@yahoo.com)