JLPT N2 Passing Grammar, General Goals

Japanese
#1

So I have lived and worked in Japan for 3 years, and have used Bunpro paired with Wanikani for my daily study routine for most of that time. I decided to take the N3 last year, but made no special effort to study for it. In fact, when I took (and passed) the test, I was only about 10% of the way through the N3 bunpro deck!

I plan to register for the next N2, which is July IIRC (too late for December now). I am currently a little over halfway through the N3 deck, and I am roughly on track now to finish the N2 deck a month or so before the exam. I undertsand there is a larger difficulty gap between N3 and N2 than other test, but I haven’t taken any other test.

All this is to ask, should I be concerned about this rate of progress if I plan to pass the N2? I am currently at around ~1100 Kanji, which is 72% of the N2 test bank as per WKStats. I plan to be into the N1 bank by then, as I have started incorporating reading into my studies and I’m currently lacking on vocabulary for novels.

I do have the long-term goal of working in Japan indefinitely, and I will be eligible for a marriage visa by the end of my current job contract. Naturally, I think having the N2 will be useful for that, though I’m not sure whether there’s any practical benefit for me to pass N2 besides getting into more advanced literature or university studies.

Any advice is much appreciated!

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#2

I think the best predictor of how well you are on the way to your goal is taking an N2 mock test. You can buy an official one online. They say workbook but they are essentially just tests.
https://www.jlpt.jp/e/samples/sampleindex.html

I am taking N2 this December being only level 25 on WK and having pretty low statistics on bunpro. I do not think I will pass, but I think you could be fine.
I would advise to start and keep doing mock tests though. There is only one break in N2 as opposed to the two breaks in lower levels, so fatigue is more of an issue. Also, JLPT questions are a specific format that get trickier not just in terms of knowledge but in terms of style. I would recommend that you borrow a copy of shinkanzen master/sou matome/some other series reading and listening off a friend for test specific prep.

If we are only talking in terms of your vocab and kanji progress I think you will likely be okay. But I do think it’s a good idea to supplement that with the other test prep I’ve mentioned.

ETA: also depending on your industry, N2 is the bare minimum to get a job here, so it is of very high practical use!

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#3

By your own admission you passed N3 without really studying specifically for it, therefore it’s entirely possible you can pass N2 without studying it. You might do the same thing and fail. You might also study for it and fail. In the end, it’s just a multiple choice exam with a pass determined by an unknown algorithm. Someone who has never even studied could, however unlikely, pass the N1 exam by randomly picking the correct answers.

I would say focus on your goals in Japan and use Japanese and studying for JLPT as a way to assimilate into the culture more deeply since you are already here and planning to get married to a Japanese person, I assume. Attempt to read some famous novels, learn the names of the tarento on TV, head out to the cinema and watch the latest J-drama movie etc etc. I have had far more surprised reactions and conversation starters because I knew about the works of a Japanese writer, than I have ever had by telling people I passed the JLPT.

If you pass the N2 or N1 then great but it doesn’t make a big difference overall. It’s certainly not worth thinking too deeply and getting stressed about in terms of numbers and percentages.

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#4

How well did you do on N3? A pass is a pass, but scraping past with 91 or passing it with almost full marks is obviously quite far apart.

I managed 135 on N3 and then tried N2 6 months later, failing by a few marks. I think with a lower N3 mark even trying in 6 months would have been impossible (unless you were prepared to dedicate a silly amount of time to studying).

Alternatively, I think someone who got close to full marks on N3 could probably have a fighting chance of passing N2 without much further work.

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#5

My score was a 100/180 overall, with an A on vocabulary and B on grammar. I would say that’s an honest score, and I wouldn’t attribute it to any lucky guessing. I have been studying continuously since then, but at a much slower pace. I have no problem dedicating at least 2 hours a day to it, if that’s what it’ll take.

By my math, 3 new points per day 6 days a week should have me fully caught up by July, which will be well ahead of where I was when I took the N3 relative to the size of the test bank. The same goes for Wanikani.

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#6

If it’s between now and next July you’ve got a good shot at it.

Definitely try do past tests to find your weaknesses. The biggest difference at N2 is the amount of reading in the allotted time period, so both practicing reading from past tests and reading outside of it to get your speed up is really crucial. I got 20 on the reading in N2 which ultimately failed me as the rest wasn’t too bad.

If you’ve lived in Japan a while, I think the listening is pretty easy. I did barely any focussed study for either test on listening, but just from guessing what people are getting at when you half-understand them in daily life seemed to be enough to fumble my way through the Qs.

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#7

Why don’t you try Bunpro n2 模擬試験？

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#8

Yes please! The more people critique our tests, the more we’ll polish them and the less you’ll need to pay for other practice tests!

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