I came from England to live in Japan with my husband 9 years ago. Everyone around me seemed to be able to use English, so I didn’t have any trouble in my daily life. But then I became ill. I couldn’t understand what the doctors and nurses were trying to tell me. It was terrible. So I contacted NIC. I didn’t really know what my level was because during my 9 years here I had picked up various Japanese words and phrases, but had never studied formally for any length of time. Anyway, I underwent a level check with NIC. It turned out I was a mixture of levels, so they designed a course to suit my needs exactly! And the lessons are great. My teacher tries so hard. I learn so much everytime. I REALLY RECOMMEND NIC FOR STUDENTS WHO ARE HAVING TROUBLE FINDING CLASSES TO FILL IN THE GAPS OF WHAT THEY DON’T KNOW.

I had lived in Japan previously, but when I returned after a couple of years away I found that I had forgotten much more Japanese that I had first realized. The grammar and vocabulary that I was able to use was very patchy and I knew that I would need to revise much of what I had previously studied before I was able to confidently move forward. What I really needed was a program of study flexible enough for me to have a say in the speed and content, as well as being able to fit into my work schedule. I searched around on the Internet and after checking some other schools, decided that NIC was clearly the best option. The best part about the NIC way of studying is that it is 100% flexible and can be tailored to suit each individual’s needs. My teacher has been fantastic, she is always well prepared, can quickly pick up on the things I need to cover in more detail and often helps me out with handy hints that you won’t find in the textbooks. I would recommend NIC to anyone, it is a great way to study and the lessons are always fun.

I moved to Japan as a business expatriate accompanied by my wife, who is Japanese. I brought with me a strong desire to learn Japan’s culture and language. I discovered there are hundreds of “recognized” Japanese language schools and sadly attended 3 different schools before finally discovering NIC. The other schools, all well-known, kept changing teachers on me, could not provide adequate English explanations and simply made learning Japanese feel like a second job. When I found NIC I could not believe know much cheaper their private classes were and how much fun I was having each lesson! My teacher is fantastic and my Japanese has dramatically improved. I’ve been with NIC for a year and a half now and THANKS TO NIC, THERE IS NO NEED TO EVER LOOK ELSEWHERE!

I’m a ballet teacher living in Japan for one year and a half. As a teacher I needed to communicate with my students, so I needed to learn Japanese, but it was difficult to find a school to fit my schedule. Then I tried to find private lessons but all the schools I found on the internet were in central Tokyo which is a bit too far for me. Finally I found NIC. Well I must say now after 14 classes I can read hiragana almost without any problem. My friends and my students were shocked how fast I improved. I’m starting to understand quite a lot of Japanese, which helps my life here. I hope to learn more and more! I never thought that Japanese was so much fun. Arigatou gozaimashita!

I have lived in Japan for the past 11 years, and have always spoken Japanese with passing fluency. However, because of the long working hours in my previous profession, I never had the time to commit to bring my reading and writing abilities up to the standard I wanted. After retiring from the business one year ago, I made the decision to work hard on my Japanese reading comprehension and kanji writing abilities through intensive Japanese private lessons. My main goal was to pass the Japanese Language Proficiency Exam Level 1 within a 1.5yr period. I wanted to craft a curriculum which focused on analyzing contemporary Japanese business topics found in financial newspapers, periodicals, and contemporary essays. I heard about NIC from a friend of mine and rang them up. The Head of the Organization, Ms. Noriko Awazu, visited me in my home for an interview to hear what my needs were. She was very professional, and came up with several tutorial candidates with differing teaching backgrounds. I selected a teacher with 20 years of teaching experience, Ms. Michiko Takemura, and arranged a trial lesson. In the meantime, I called two other language schools for trial lessons, however, in the end, I selected NIC because they came up with the best tailor made solution for my needs. I have continued with them to this current day, and in hindsight, am very pleased with my selection of NIC. Thanks to NIC and being able to consistently study, I am now able to read Japanese newspapers and business magazines. I will be taking the Japanese Language Proficiency Exam Level 1 this December. I recommend NIC to those who have similar needs to myself.

A little more then three years ago I requested my company in the United States to transfer me to the Japan Office for a period of three years, those three years have come and gone after which time I decided to live in Japan permanently, so of course speaking Japanese is a must for me. When I first began to study Japanese I tried to do so on my own. I was not successful learning Japanese in that way. Therefore, I began to look for a formal school to learn Japanese. Most schools that I investigated were both expensive as well as only taught in Japanese with no English. I worried that I would spend a lot of money and not make a lot of progress. NIC was the most reasonably priced school that I found, they also teach with English so I can understand much easier. Additionally the NIC instructor comes to my company to give lessons, this is very convenient for me. My company in the United States paid for my lessons until May 1, 2004 when I transferred to the Japan office permanently. Although my company no longer pays for my lessons, I will continue to take them, because they have been very beneficial for me. I enjoy each lesson with my NIC instructor 4he always makes the lessons enjoyable and tailors the classes to my needs. My experience with NIC has been very good and I would not hesitate to recommend NIC to anyone that is seeking a good school.

My company in America sent me to work in Japan. I wanted to learn Japanese as fast as I could and sit the Japanese Proficiency Test. My company had a contract with a company that provides Japanese teachers, so I started studying with them. But the teachers taught totally in Japanese, without using any English, and I couldn’t understand at all. And every time I had a different teacher. Each time the teacher seemed to open up the textbook with a “What shall we study today” attitude, and we would study whatever was on that page. After about ten classes I couldn’t stand it anymore, and I contacted NIC. I met with a NIC representative, who spent an hour with me explaining how NIC works. I also had a demonstration lesson using the NIC Method. I signed a contract with NIC and was assigned a teacher. I have been very happy with all my NIC lessons. Even after the contract my company has for me to study Japanese expires, I still intend to keep studying Japanese with the same teacher. I was surprised at how cheap NIC fees were compared to the previous company I was studying with. The textbooks NIC uses are much cheaper too. I only had to pay 3,000 yen for my current textbook. When I was with the previous company, I had to pay over 50,000 yen!! The preparation my NIC teacher puts into her lessons is incredible. She makes kanji cards and uses various pictures to help me understand. I am sure she must spend more time in preparation than she does in teaching me. MY TWO HOUR LESSON IS ALWAYS SO MUCH FUN!