What can I do with a B.A. in Japanese Studies?

The Inter-University Center for Japanese Language Studies, Yokohama (administered by Stanford University), wishes to draw the attention of pmjs members to our offering of a three-week intensive course in reading kanbun in the summer of 2014. The course is intended for students — primarily graduate students — who need to master the fundamentals of kanbun in order to conduct specialized research in various disciplines.

Dates: Friday, June 20 through Thursday, July 10, 2014

Eligibility for Admission: To qualify for admission, an applicant must

(1)     be engaged in specialized professional work or an academic field of study for which proficiency in reading kanbun is required;

(2)     possess an advanced level of proficiency in Japanese language and have knowledge of classical Japanese grammar;

(3)     have an understanding of the grammar and sentence patterns of modern Japanese, and be able to read and write at least 1,000 kanji as well as hiragana and katakana.

Hours: 4 hours per day, 5 days per week, 3 weeks, total 60 hours (including field trips)

Field trips: One afternoon each week, participants will join students in the regular IUC Summer Program on an excursion.

Aims and focus:

•   This course will train students to be able to read early modern (_kinsei_) and modern (_kindai_) kanbun writings with the aid of dictionaries and without reference to transliterations/translations into Japanese (_yomikudashibun_) of the kanbun texts.

•   Students will learn old forms of kanji (_kyūjitai_), epistolary style Japanese (_sōrōbun_), and the Japanese way of reading Chinese writing (_kundokutai_).

•    As for kanbun texts from the medieval (_chūsei_) period and earlier, because specialized background knowledge is required, the course will train students to understand such texts while making reference to _yomikudashibun_.

Level of proficiency required for enrollment:

•   The class will be conducted entirely in Japanese. A high level of proficiency in reading and speaking Japanese is needed.

•   Knowledge of classical Japanese grammar (_bungo bunpō_).

Electronic dictionaries: Students will be expected to have their own electronic dictionaries. It is desirable that they have the editions of _Kanjigen_ and _Kōjien_ that feature stylus pen input capability.

Tuition: $2,800.00 (U.S. dollars)

How to Apply: By April 30, 2014, please submit

(1)  the IUC Summer Application form (available for download in PDF and Word formats at https://www.stanford.edu/dept/IUC/cgi-bin/programs/summer-kanbun.php);

(2)  the IUC Language Evaluation form (available for download in PDF and Word formats at https://www.stanford.edu/dept/IUC/cgi-bin/programs/summer-kanbun.php); this form must be filled out by someone (preferably a Japanese language teacher) qualified to judge your proficiency in Japanese;

(3)  a statement written in Japanese explaining why you need to learn kanbun and reporting what previous study of Japanese language you have had; use the IUC Summer Essay form (available for download in PDF and Word formats at https://www.stanford.edu/dept/IUC/cgi-bin/programs/summer-kanbun.php);

(4)  transcripts: one official transcript from each college, university, or post-secondary school attended;

(5)  application fee: $80.00 (U.S. dollars); please submit a check in this amount payable to Stanford University along with all other application materials.

Address the application and all supporting materials to

Summer Kanbun Course
Inter-University Center for Japanese Language Studies
Pacifico Yokohama, 5F
1-1-1 Minato Mirai, Nishi-ku
Yokohama, Japan 220-0012

Email: kanbun@iucjapan.org

Disclaimer: This course is being offered subject to a minimum enrollment of three students and a maximum enrollment of eight students. If fewer than three applicants meet the required proficiency level, the course will not be taught in 2014. If more than eight applicants meet the basic requirements for eligibility, admission of eight students will be based on consideration of applicants’ need to read kanbun, their stated objectives, and their proficiency in Japanese.

Admission decisions will be announced by email not later than May 9.

Tuition payments are due before the beginning of instruction on June 20. Checks should be made payable to Stanford University.

Any admitted applicant who decides not to enroll in the program should immediately notify IUC Yokohama.

All inquiries, including questions regarding attendance that arise after the application period, should be sent to the Center via email at kanbun@iucjapan.org. Please do not make inquiries by telephone.