What is Intermediate Japanese?

[Keith]

I posted on another board that if you can pass the JLPT 2-kyuu, you are intermediate in Japanese.

A couple of people replied (who are not at that level yet) saying that they think 2-kyuu is advanced. But I think it is intermediate.

I think level 4 is beginner's level and level 3 is pre-intermediate. If you pass level 3 then you start studying for level 2 which is intermediate materials. So basically you enter the lower-intermediate level and once you pass the test you are in the middle of the intermediate level, in other words, a true intermediate. You start studying the level 1 material but you are not advanced until you have mastered those. When you pass level 1, then you can say you are lower advanced.

Of course, the test is only once a year so you could be intermediate before passing the test. But I wouldn't call myself even lower-advanced if I got only 65% on the 2-kyuu. On the other hand if you get 90% or above, then you probably already are lower-advanced.

I think to be truely advanced in Japanese would put you at the native-level where basically you don't have any problems with the language that a native would not have.

If you continue to study, you could know more about the correct usage of Japanese than a native and then you would be upper-advanced, in my opinion.

I would also rate conversational Japanese between levels 3 and 2. Because you definitely need to know all that is in level 3 but you could certainly be able to speak well without knowing all the grammar of level 2. Level 2 has a lot of grammar that is not used so much in the spoken language.

So here is how I would mark the stages of progression.

Level 4 - Beginner

Level 3 - Pre-Intermediate or High-Beginner

Conversational Level

Level 2 - Intermediate, J->E Translator Entrance Level

Level 1 - Lower Advanced, Professional Translator Level

Advanced or Native-Level

Upper-Advanced or Interpreter Level

[spurrymoses]

That's pretty much exactly how I see it - although I can imagine there might be some debate over terminology.

All I can add is this:
- The books I used to study for Levels 3 and 4 were labelled Elementary Japanese.
- The books I've bought recently, in order to start studying for Level 2, are labelled Intermediate Japanese.

So, all of what you've said sounds right to me. I mean, Level 2 could be considered 'Advanced' generally speaking - I might use this word if I'm talking to my mates who don't know anything... but if you are going to make strict comparisons, I think the way you've categorised them is the way most people see it.

I think it's probably just a bit depressing for some people to have been studying for 4-5 years and only being able to label themselves as Intermediate
The problem with the label, as you hinted at, is that you might be somewhere inbetween Level 1 and 2 and actually be advanced. So I don't blame some people for not wanting to stick to those labels.

[Keith]

[Tim]

I agree with Keith's thoughs on the levels. I have passed 2 kyuu 2 years ago, and have attempted 1 kyuu last year and although i didn't pass it last year, after looking at the level of difficulty of various things such as novels, and newspapers, I think that level 1 is still quite a basic level of Japanese.

Just passing level 1 doesn't mean you can suddenly read novels, newspapers, science journals and so on.. although it definately is a good step towards it and people who do pass it do have quite a good grasp of the language.

In my experience, studying for level 1 (and passing some mock tests) has made me competent to a level where i can read novels (teenage novels, and some adult level ones) with difficulty using a dictionary, be able to use a Japanese only dictionary to look up words, guess the readings of most kanji (and jukugo) i see and in general understand most of what is on NHK tv. I do however have trouble understanding every detail of a newspaper.

If your aim is to get to a level where you can read any common written form of Japanese, i would say that level 1 will do, but you will still have a long way to go afterwards.

[Tim]

I also agree with Keith's other comment about being good and bad at different areas. I fit into that category of being stronger at reading comprehension and listening and being weaker at writing and speaking Japanese.

I guess in my case it has to do more with not having much contact with Japanese speaking people but having a lot of Japanese books and various forms of listening comprehension.

Keith, what is it like to start working in a completely Japanese environment? It sounds like a good experience. Did you find it difficult when you were starting out?

[Keith]