

You understand specific texts written using everyday language and can understand the main idea of short pieces of information by reading things such as newspaper headlines. You can understand everyday conversation, but with business conversation, there may be cases where you do not understand information or where the speech is too fast for you to understand. You understand everyday Japanese to a degree.

You understand the flow of the conversation, detailed information, and the relationships between speakers, and grasp the main point of the conversation. You understand exchanges at an almost natural speed, in a wider variety of scenarios than just everyday topics, by listening to conversations and news bulletins. You can read texts using everyday language, following the structure of the piece and understanding the main intentions of the writer. You can read and understand the contents of texts with a clearly written argument, including newspaper and magazine articles and commentaries and simple critiques.

You should also be able to carry out a discussion in Japanese at this level. You can communicate clearly on everyday topics and will be fairly proficient in business communication.

In addition to understanding everyday scenarios in Japanese, you show some degree of understanding of Japanese in a wider range of contexts. You understand the narrative of the conversation, the information contained, the relationship between speakers, and the structure of the conversation in detail and will be able to grasp the main points of what is being said. You can listen to a broad range of scenarios, including conversations carried out at a natural speed, news bulletins, and lectures. You can read texts that delve deeply into a range of topics, both following the narrative of the text and having a detailed understanding of the writer’s purpose/intention. You can understand the contents of complex texts, and a high level of abstract language such as newspaper editorials and critiques. You can communicate fluently with Japanese native speakers. You can understand Japanese used in a broad range of scenarios, from everyday conversation to business discussions and technical language. Your Japanese ability is at a very high level. The standards for each level are as follows. Each level is split into a reading section and a listening section. The Japanese Language Proficiency Test is divided into 5 levels-N1, N2, N3, N4, and N5-with N1 being the most difficult and N5 being the easiest. Anyone who wants to study or work in Japan should consider taking the exam, as it is an achievement recognized and regarded by many establishments and has multiple uses, including gaining entrance into universities and vocational training schools, finding employment, or securing a pay raise or promotion. First held in 1984, it is the most widely taken Japanese exam in the world, with around 1 million candidates worldwide sitting the exam in 2018. The Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) is an exam set to measure the Japanese language ability of non-native speakers.
