Japanese (B.A.)

Additional Notes:

• Scheduling patterns for courses may vary according to the semester they are taught. Additionally, general education courses are interchangeable. Students may choose the course(s) they wish to take in any given semester based on preference, availability, and academic goals.
• At least one Natural Science course must be a laboratory course.
• All freshmen must take a First Year Seminar (FYS) during the fall or spring of their first year. Most FYSs in the College of the Liberal Arts are 3 credits and count as a General Humanities (GH) or General Social and Behavioral Sciences (GS) course.

Course Codes:

• GWS, GQ, GA, GH, GS, GN and GHA are codes used to identify General Education requirements.
• US and IL are used to designate courses that satisfy University United States and International Cultures requirements, which can overlap with General Education requirements.  All students are required to take one IL and one US course before graduation. The same course cannot be used to satisfy both US and IL.
• OC is used to designate courses that satisfy the Bachelor of Arts Other Cultures requirement, which can overlap with General Education requirements.  This course cannot overlap with other BA requirements or the US/IL requirements.
• W and Y are used to designate courses that satisfy the University Writing Across the Curriculum requirement.

Program Notes:

• Students pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Japanese must complete at least 124 credits
• Students who begin the Japanese language sequence at a level higher than JAPNS 001 need to replace the bypassed credits with additional Japanese courses (or elective courses) in consultation with Japanese adviser.
• Students pursuing a Japanese major are strongly encouraged to meet with the departmental advisor early to discuss an educational plan and education abroad in a Japan. A full year or fall/spring semester abroad is highly recommended.  For curricular sequencing, the program encourages students to pursue this Education Abroad experience in their junior year, typically following JAPNS 401. When preparing an application to study abroad, consult with the Japanese program’s study abroad adviser regarding acceptable courses at the foreign program or institution.
• Students starting out at a Penn State Commonwealth campus are strongly encouraged to complete JAPNS 001 and 002 at University Park in the summer before their first fall semester at University Park.
• Several of the courses required for the Japanese major fulfill the IL and OC requirements.
•  All students must complete at least one 3 credit WRITING INTENSIVE course.  JAPNS 403Y, required of all Japanese majors, will satisfy this requirement. Students who complete the equivalent of JAPNS 403Y abroad should take a W/Y designated course towards the General Education, Bachelor of Arts, or elective course requirements. 
• All freshmen must take a First Year Seminar (FYS) during the fall or spring of their first year. Most FYSs in the College of the Liberal Arts are 3 credits and count as a General Humanities (GH) or General Social and Behavioral Sciences (GS) course.
• At least one Natural Science course must be a laboratory course.
• For a list of related area courses applicable to the Japanese major, visit: http://asian.la.psu.edu/under-jpns.shtml
• In some cases the two related area courses required for the Japanese major may count towards the GH and/or GA requirement as well.  Please see the departmental advisor for details.