• Code JPNS3005
  • Unit Value 6 to 24 units
  • Offered by School of Culture History and Language
  • ANU College ANU College of Asia and the Pacific
  • Course subject Japanese
  • Areas of interest Asian Languages, Asian Studies, Asia Pacific Studies, Language Studies
  • Academic career UGRD
  • Course convener
    • Dr Mark Gibeau
  • Mode of delivery In Person
  • Offered in Second Semester 2026
    See Future Offerings

This advanced Japanese course develops high-level language competence through engagement with authentic materials drawn from diverse sources including media, literature, academic texts, and real-world content spanning the 20th and 21st centuries. Students develop and demonstrate advanced proficiency by working with genuine Japanese materials that address contemporary societal issues, cultural themes, and literary works from multiple disciplinary perspectives including linguistic, anthropological, sociological, and psychological viewpoints. The course emphasises developing advanced literacy skills, critical reading abilities, listening comprehension, and presentation skills while students learn to navigate complex texts independently. Through careful reading, discussion, and analysis of these authentic materials, students gain deeper insights into modern Japanese society, culture, and literature while mastering the language skills necessary to engage with sophisticated, real-world Japanese content across various genres and formats.

Students can take this course up to four times, where the class topic is different. Individual class topics will focus on the following broad themes as decided by the relevant staff in the Japanese language program. These include

  • Issues in contemporary Japan
  • Japanese language in context
  • Readings in society and culture
  • Readings in literature 


Each class topic will have different delivery formats and assessment selected to best suit the content and support and assess your learning. The indicative assessment given elsewhere on this page should be understood as indicative only, and represents the commonalities between the different topics. Please consult the relevant class summary for specific information or contact the relevant staff member.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

  1. Demonstrate advanced Japanese language proficiency through mastery of complex vocabulary, grammatical constructions, and literary analysis skills 
  2. Critically analyse and interpret authentic Japanese texts and materials from multiple disciplinary perspectives 
  3. Communicate effectively in both written and spoken Japanese through collaborative group work and academic discussions
  4. Present academic arguments fluently and with confidence on complex topics related to Japanese society, culture, history, and literature, contextualising issues within broader cultural and historical frameworks.
  5. Compose sophisticated academic work across written and oral formats, demonstrating advanced information gathering skills, persuasive writing abilities, and the capacity to integrate multiple sources and perspectives in original academic discourse.

Other Information

Proficiency level: Students who successfully complete this course will typically achieve a level of proficiency roughly equivalent to JLPT N2 to N3, depending on their performance and degree of engagement.

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On successful completion of this course, students will have the knowledge and skills to engage at an Advanced level of Japanese.


Students with native speaker proficiency (may include cognate languages and dialects) must review the language proficiency assessment site and contact the CAP Student Centre for appropriate enrolment advice. Students with previous “language experience or exposure” are required to undertake a language proficiency assessment to ensure enrolment at the most appropriate level.

 

Relevant past experience includes:

-       Previous study of the language (both formal and informal, for example but not limited to, at school, or, home, or through online activities, etc.)

-       Being exposed to the language in childhood via a family member or friend

-       Travel or living in a country where the language is spoken

-       The language being spoken in your home (even if you do not speak it yourself)

 

Students who are not sure if they need to undertake a language proficiency assessment should seek advice from the course or language convenor. Students who intentionally misrepresent their language proficiency level may be investigated under the Academic Integrity Rule 2021 as having failed to comply with assessment directions and having sought unfair advantage. This may results in a penalty such as reduced grades or failure of the course.

 

Students are not permitted to enrol in a language course below one that they have already successfully completed, except with permission of the language and/or course convenor.

Indicative Assessment

  1. In class activities (20) [LO 1,2,3,4]
  2. Preparatory written work - character (word count) varies according to topic (20) [LO 1,2,3,5]
  3. Project Development - character (word count) varies according to topic (30) [LO 1,2,3,4,5]
  4. Presentations (10) [LO 1,2,3,4,5]
  5. Summative written work - character (word count) varies according to topic (20) [LO 1,2,3,4,5]

The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.

Workload

This course requires a total of 130 hours of work on the following activities: three hours per week in class-activities, online activities and independent study.

Requisite and Incompatibility

To enrol in this course, you must have - Completed JPNS3002 with a grade of 60 (CR) or above; OR - Completed JPNS3204 with a grade of 60 (CR) or above; OR - Undertake a language proficiency assessment; OR - Completed a different topic of JPNS3005; OR - been given permission by the course convener. You must not have previously completed, or be concurrently enrolled in JPNS3013, JPNS3023, or JPNS3102 or have undertaken the same topic of JPNS3005 twice.

Prescribed Texts

Will be made available on Canvas.

Fees

Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.  

Commonwealth Support (CSP) Students
If you have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). More information about your student contribution amount for each course at Fees

Student Contribution Band:
1
Unit value:
6 to 24 units

If you are a domestic graduate coursework student with a Domestic Tuition Fee (DTF) place or international student you will be required to pay course tuition fees (see below). Course tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.

Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.

Units EFTSL
6.00 0.12500
7.00 0.14583
8.00 0.16667
9.00 0.18750
10.00 0.20833
11.00 0.22917
12.00 0.25000
13.00 0.27083
14.00 0.29167
15.00 0.31250
16.00 0.33333
17.00 0.35417
18.00 0.37500
19.00 0.39583
20.00 0.41667
21.00 0.43750
22.00 0.45833
23.00 0.47917
24.00 0.50000
Domestic fee paying students
Year Fee
2026 $750 per unit
International fee paying students
Year Fee
2026 $970 per unit
Note: Please note that fee information is for current year only.

Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links

ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.

The list of offerings for future years is indicative only.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.

Second Semester

Class number Class start date Last day to enrol Census date Class end date Mode Of Delivery Class Summary
Advanced Japanese: Readings in Literature
9059 27 Jul 2026 03 Aug 2026 31 Aug 2026 30 Oct 2026 In Person N/A

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