Take the first steps in learning Japanese. This beginner-friendly course will help you start speaking, reading and writing Japanese with confidence, while exploring the language and culture of Japan. See how much you can achieve in these enjoyable and interactive evening classes.
Early Bird Offer
Save 10% when you book before 31 August! Valid on full course bookings only.
12 starting dates
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Starting date: Full course
- Duration: 36 weeks
- Time: to
- Fees: £1,494
(£1,345 with discount)
(no VAT)
Save £149 - book by 31 Aug 2026
- Occurs: Wednesday
- Location: Online
- Booking deadline:
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Starting date: Module 1 of 6
- Duration: 6 weeks
- Time: to
- Fees: £249 (no VAT)
- Occurs: Wednesday
- Location: Online
- Booking deadline:
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Starting date: Module 2 of 6
- Duration: 6 weeks
- Time: to
- Fees: £249 (no VAT)
- Occurs: Wednesday
- Location: Online
- Booking deadline:
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Starting date: Full course
- Duration: 36 weeks
- Time: to
- Fees: £1,494
(£1,345 with discount)
(no VAT)
Save £149 - book by 31 Aug 2026
- Occurs: Monday
- Location: Online
- Booking deadline:
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Starting date: Module 1 of 6
- Duration: 6 weeks
- Time: to
- Fees: £249 (no VAT)
- Occurs: Monday
- Location: Online
- Booking deadline:
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Starting date: Module 3 of 6
- Duration: 6 weeks
- Time: to
- Fees: £249 (no VAT)
- Occurs: Wednesday
- Location: Online
- Booking deadline:
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Starting date: Module 2 of 6
- Duration: 6 weeks
- Time: to
- Fees: £249 (no VAT)
- Occurs: Monday
- Location: Online
- Booking deadline:
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Starting date: Module 4 of 6
- Duration: 6 weeks
- Time: to
- Fees: £249 (no VAT)
- Occurs: Wednesday
- Location: Online
- Booking deadline:
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Starting date:
- Duration: 6 weeks
- Time: to
- Fees: £249 (no VAT)
- Occurs: Wednesday
- Location: Online
- Booking deadline:
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Starting date: Module 3 of 6
- Duration: 6 weeks
- Time: to
- Fees: £249 (no VAT)
- Occurs: Monday
- Location: Online
- Booking deadline:
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Starting date: Module 4 of 6
- Duration: 6 weeks
- Time: to
- Fees: £249 (no VAT)
- Occurs: Monday
- Location: Online
- Booking deadline:
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Starting date: Module 6 of 6
- Duration: 6 weeks
- Time: to
- Fees: £249 (no VAT)
- Occurs: Wednesday
- Location: Online
- Booking deadline:
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Testimonials
Japanese Beginners - Level 1 Course overview
Learn Japanese and explore this fascinating language, rich in culture, history and traditions.
Across six beginners modules, you’ll develop a basic understanding of Japanese, you can use in simple everyday situations. You’ll learn essential greetings, along with numbers, dates and times. As you progress, build conversational skills to talk about daily activities and handle practical situations such as shopping, work and getting around a city.
You’ll be introduced to the Japanese writing systems – Hiragana and Katakana – and learn to read and write simple sentences in Kanji. You’ll also explore basic grammar, including present, past and future tenses, as well as common adjectives.
While studying Japanese at City St George’s, you’ll develop an understanding of Japanese cultural norms and how these are relevant to everyday interactions.
Who is it for?
This course is ideal if you have never studied Japanese before.
Find out more about our Japanese courses
Timetable
The full beginners syllabus includes 72 hours of online learning and is taught across six modules.
Benefits
- Delivered by a qualified Japanese speaker
- Interactive and varied learning techniques
- Awarded a City St George’s, University of London certificate.
What will I learn?
Topics covered
- presenting yourself and others
- communication in context: at work, shopping, travelling, eating out and getting about in a city
- daily routine and weekend activities, likes and dislikes, making plans
- numbers, dates and times
- Japanese culture in context: at a tempura restaurant, invitations and parties, festivals and museums
- reading and writing Hiragana, Katakana and very basic Kanji.
Grammatical structures
- various verb types
- negatives
- present continuous, future and past tenses
- te form + kudasai, + mo iidesu ka, + imasu
- to want + infinitive: Watashi wa verb -tai desu
- interrogative using nani, doko, itsu, dare
- word order
- adjectives.
Assessment and certificates
You will receive a Certificate of Completion from City St George’s, University of London, along with a digital badge for your LinkedIn profile.
To qualify, you must attend at least 70% of classes.
Teaching
Classes are highly interactive and include:
- Small group work and role-play
- Listening to audio materials (e.g. radio clips)
- Reading articles and texts
- Watching video content
- Digital learning tools to support your progress.
You’ll also explore Japanese culture, current affairs and traditions alongside language learning.
Eligibility
This course is aimed as those who are completely new to Japanese.
If you have a little experience, or you are willing to do some self study to catch up, you can join us on one of the later Japanese Beginners modules.
We offer various other levels of Japanese. Please do reach out to our team if you’re not sure which level is right for you.
Additional requirements
To enrol onto the Beginners Japanese course, you must:
- be age 18 or over
- have basic IT skills and a reliable internet connection to access lessons and course materials.
English requirements
You will need a good level of spoken and written English to enrol on this course.