INTRODUCTION

If you are looking for a different experience of Japan, you may wish to consider an internship program. These programs combine 6 or 8 weeks of intensive classes in Yamasa's SILAC program (concentrating on spoken Japanese, listening and communication skills) with a 4 week unpaid placement in a Japanese language speaking workplace.

The Internship programs consist of 2 stages - intensive language acquisition and work placement.

a) Intensive Language Acquisition:
Participants will study Japanese for 6 or 8 weeks in Yamasa's SILAC program.
b) Work Placement:
Each work placement is for 4 weeks. Only one intern is placed into each workplace. Each workplace is within the Okazaki city limits or accessible by public transport from Okazaki. All work placements are for unpaid positions. Key factors affecting your application will be your language proficiency and skills. The skills most in demand include multimedia, mechanical engineering and hotel management.

Interns are only placed into companies or organizations that have been thoroughly checked by officials from the Hattori Foundation. Internship program participants receive a small discount on their accommodation and their public transport fares are subsidized by Yamasa if the return fare per day exceeds 1000 yen. (ie Yamasa will reimburse interns for any expenditure on fares exceeding this amount). It is not possible to do the work placement only or combine the work placement component with a different program.

The minimum age at the time of commencement is 20. All applicants need to have a level of Japanese equivalent to or higher than Level 3 of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test. Testing is available from Yamasa on request. Applicants must also either have a bachelor's degree or have completed at least 2 years of college level studies.

Classes are taught in Japanese only. All students have the opportunity to use Japanese language software and send/receive email in Japanese. Internet access is free and unlimited. Yamasa's faculty members work as a team to provide considerable variety, although one faculty member will be designated as your academic advisor.

There are four key reasons to do your internship with Yamasa.

1. High Quality Teaching Component: Most internships do not offer intensive classes with professional faculty. Some internship programs offer part-time classes, or classes prior to departure, but most interns report that only a full-time intensive program prepares them for the placement stage thoroughly. Our program provides intensive language learning with professional faculty.
2. Flexibility: Most internships are only available during the summer. Our internship program is offered all year round with 26 start dates a year including multiple start dates in Spring and Autumn - the two best times to visit Japan.
3. Single placement: Unlike many programs, no more than 1 intern is placed into any one workplace. Usually you will also be the only foreigner in that particular workplace.
4. Accommodation: You will not need to re-locate after your study component. All work placement companies are located either in Okazaki or are accessible via either the JR Tokaido Line or Aichi Kanjo Line.

PROGRAM SCHEDULE

The program starts 26 times per year. Each study option is designed so that it can be completed using either a tourist visa - this provides more flexibility for a wider range of short term students.

The 6 or 8 week language learning component of the program is delivered in using the same format and program dates as Yamasa's SILAC Program. You can start the internship on any of the start dates for the SILAC program.

PROGRAM COSTS

Application Fee:

Program Fee:

**Note - this is a program fee only. For accommodation fees please refer to the housing section.

If you are worried about paying in advance, please read through the Refunds and Deferrals policy in the online catalog. You will not be disadvantaged at all if you need to shorten your period of study later.

NOTE 1: The cost of the text books used in your classes is included in the Internship program fees.
You will need to provide your own dictionaries and stationery.

NOTE 2: Students are required to arrive in Okazaki at least 1 day prior to commencement. If you will be travelling across 6 time zones or more (ie there is a time difference of 6 hours or more between your location and Japan) then we advise you to arrive 2 days early.

Students who need to arrive earlier than 3 days prior to the program commencement should also contact our offices as early as possible so that your accommodation can be confirmed. Students arriving at Nagoya International Airport can arrange to be met by our free pickup service. Students arriving by train can be met at Okazaki Station (also a free pickup).

Frequently Asked Questions regarding costs: