Department of Japanese

Historical Development

The Department of Japanese has been enrolling students as one of the first departments since the founding of Tianjin University of Technology in 1979. In 2001, it was approved by the Ministry of Education to offer academic master’s program in Foreign Languages and Literature, and began to admit graduate students in Japanese Language and Literature. In 2019,withthe merger of the former School of Foreign Languages into School of Languages and Culture, it becomes a subordinate department of School of Languages and Culture. In 2021,the Japanese major is recognized as a municipal first-class undergraduate program in Tianjin.

Faculty Members

The department currently has a total of 18 full-time faculty members, including 1 professor, 5 associate professors, and 12 lecturers. There is a well-balanced faculty structure, with 11 members holding doctoral degrees, all of whom graduated from well-known universities in China and abroad. They possess diverse academic background and international perspectives. In recent years, the faculty has hosted nearly 20 research projects, includingkey projects and general projects of the National Social Science Fundof China (NSSFC),humanities and social sciences grants of Ministry of Education(MOE), and educational reform projects.They have made remarkable achievements inboth teaching and research,and published many high-level research findings incore domestic and international journals.

Student Enrollment

The department currently enrolls 390 undergraduate students and 16 graduate students for academic master’s degree.

Program Specializations

At the undergraduate level, the program offers two specialized directions and implements differentiated models of cultivation.

1)Inter-University Exchange Program: The department has established stable inter-university cooperation with many universities in Japan, such as Hiroshima University,Josai International University, and Kansai Gaidai University. Students who complete the domestic phase of studies and meet the qualifications can continue their studies at the partner universities in Japan. Those who meet the graduation and degree requirements of both institutions will receive bachelor’s degrees from both Tianjin University of Technology and the partner Japanese university.

2)Interdisciplinary Talents Training Program: The program aims to cultivate interdisciplinary talents who are equipped with a good command of Japanese and cross-disciplinary competence to meet the demands of artificial intelligence era. Outstanding students may be recommended to pursue academic master’s degrees in related fields at Tianjin University of Technology without the need for entrance exams.

Key Courses

Key courses offered at the undergraduate level include Basic Japanese, Advanced Japanese, Japanese Viewing, Listening and Speaking, Japanese Conversation, Japanese Reading, Japanese Writing, introduction to Japanese Linguistics, Japanese Speech and Debate, Translation Theory and Practice, Interpretation Theory and Practice, Introduction to Japanese Literature, Overview of Japan, Research Methods and Thesis Writing, Inter-cultural Communication.

The program admits students from both science and liberal arts background, with a four-year study duration, leading to a Bachelor of Arts degree.

There is no specific subject requirements for admission to this program.

Study Abroad Program

During the undergraduate studies, students can participate in“2+2”and“3+1”programs as well as exchange student programs with over 10 partner universities in Japan, including Josai International University,Hiroshima University, Nara University, and Kansai Gaidai University. Graduate students can also be selected to participate in over 20 different types of exchange programs with more than 10 partner universities.

Career Development

Graduates of the undergraduate program primarily pursue employment or continue academic studies. Some graduates take management, commerce,or education-related roles for organizations such as Huawei, ByteDance, Tencent, China’sfour major state-owned banks, Toyota Motor, New Oriental, and The University of Sydney(Australia). Others choose to pursue further academic studies in master’s programs at famous universities at home and abroad, including Waseda University(Japan), Kyoto University(Japan), Shanghai International Studies University(China), University of Science and Technology Beijing(China),The Australian National University(Australia), King's College London(UK), and University of Miami(US).The overall employment rate remains above 90%, and graduates receive high praise for their comprehensive qualities from employers.