Japanese Language & Culture, B.A.

The Japanese Language & Culture program will prepare you to achieve an impressive level of language proficiency (intermediate-high level according to the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages), enabling you to communicate effectively with well-rounded cultural knowledge of Japanese history, literature, and social sciences.

Educational Objectives

Our dynamic classroom environment includes students coming to CSUMB from throughout California and beyond, which will expose you to a vibrant diversity of backgrounds and perspectives from fellow students.

Our partnerships with a dozen Japanese universities sets us apart from most other colleges and universities in California and will open exciting new doors of opportunity for you to take your studies overseas.

Our robust and comprehensive curriculum includes courses on Japanese and Asian history and culture, in addition to your language courses, providing you with a deeper understanding and valuable context of the mindset behind the language that other institutions don’t typically offer.

Our extracurricular partnerships with centers and programming including the Tyler Center for Global Studies, the Okinawa Memories Initiative, and the Monterey Bay World Languages Project will position you to engage in multidisciplinary research; field work on the social, political, and historical complexities of American military bases in Japan; seminars; and other learning activities.

For more information, please visit the Program Catalog

Proficiency equal or greater to successful completion of JAPN 201 is required prior to beginning major coursework in Japanese.

Complete all of the following courses:

• JAPN 300 - Introduction to Advanced Communication Units: 4
• JAPN 320S - Japanese for the Global Community Units: 4
• JAPN 403 - Pre-Capstone Units: 2
• WLC 400 - WLC Major Capstone Units: 4
• WLC 300 - WLC Major ProSeminar Units: 2
• JAPN 404 - Advanced Japanese for Presentational Communication Units: 2

Complete  JAPN 420 - Maximizing Study Abroad Experiences and then select one of the following options to satisfy the requirements of the major:

• Option 1 - Study Abroad (for a Summer, a Semester, or one Year)
• Option 2 - Community Project. See Department Chair for details.

Complete both of the following Culture courses:

• JAPN 311 - Social Issues In Japan Units: 3
• JAPN 410 - Quakes and Nukes: (Un)Natural Japanese Environments Units: 3

Complete four of the following Language and Linguistics courses:

• JAPN 301 - Advanced Japanese Culture, Language and Communication Units: 4
• JAPN 302 - History of Japan Units: 4
• JAPN 303 - Business Japanese Units: 4
• JAPN 304 - Introduction to Translation & Interpretation Units: 4
• JAPN 312 - Advanced Japanese for Careers Units: 4
• JAPN 380 - Japan: Land and People Units: 4
• JAPN 401 - Structure of Japanese Language Units: 4
• JAPN 402 - Japanese Literature Units: 4

Complete three of the following Culture courses:
Please note: only one course may be at the 200-level

• JAPN 211 - Modern Japanese History Units: 3
• JAPN 212 - Samurai Spirit Units: 3
• JAPN 213 - Manga, Anime & Modern Japan Units: 3
• JAPN 215 - Cool Japan Today Units: 3
• JAPN 305 - Introduction to Japanese Culture & Civilization Units: 3
• JAPN 306 - The Japanese Mind Units: 3
• JAPN 307 - Japan-American Experience Units: 3
• JAPN 308 - Japanese Pop-Culture Units: 3
• JAPN 309 - Masterpieces in Japanese Literature Units: 3
• JAPN 310 - Japanese Cinema Units: 3
• JAPN 314 - Japanese Visual Culture and Media Units: 3
• JAPN 317 - Pacific Food Empires Units: 3
• JAPN 407 - The Making of Modern East Asia Units: 3

As a student in the program you’ll learn about the history and impact of immigrants to the CSUMB region, including from Japan, who transformed the coastal environment and inform our region today. This history is often neglected in other fields, which has contributed to the erasure of this important history.

The program features service learning courses that will take you out into the local community to teach Japanese language and culture at local schools, while also reflecting on your own perspectives and evolving understanding of the importance of embracing diversity and social responsibility.