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What do students normally do after exams? 2012/1/19 12:50
Hello, I was wondering if someone could answer my question that is pretty much summed up in the title?

I have a japanese friend who is undergoing College Entrance Exams this month, and I haven't been able to really talk to them much since September/October. Before then we used to email, skype, exchange letters, etc.

I know she is busy studying, and from what I can tell the exams happen this week according to certain wiki sites.

I just want to know what usually happens after students like my friend finish their exams?

I just want to know because I miss our conversations since I enjoyed her company a lot.
by Brio  

Re: What do students normally do after exams? 2012/1/19 17:34
Brio,

Exam schedules vary depending on the university, department and the type of exam, but most people take a series of exams during the whole winter, some continuing up to March. Results are announced a few days after each exam, and either way, by mid March everyone knows which university they were granted entrance (or knows that they failed to be accepted to any uni).

After all the exams are over, most applicants live quite freely, a lot of them departing for graduation trips with friends from high school or shopping for their new school-life. Otherwise, some get ready to challenge again next year if they didn't do well this year.

Why not send your friend a very short message simply asking when her last exam ends? Wish her luck at the same time. Make it like within 20 words or so.
by Uco (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: What do students normally do after exams? 2012/1/20 05:40
Are you sure?

I was pretty sure sites like Wiki made it sound like a Universal National test where students take it at the same time over two days, unless you're saying the wikipedia article was mis-written/informed?

by Brio rate this post as useful

Re: What do students normally do after exams? 2012/1/20 09:40
Some universities accept the national center test alone, but most schools require that you sit their own entrance tests. This appears on wiki pages referring to Japanese university entrance exams:

From the Higher Education in Japan page:

Students applying to national or other public universities take two entrance examinations, first a nationally administered uniform achievement test (senta shiken (ƒZƒ“ƒ^[ŽŽŒ±?)) and then an examination administered by the university that the student hopes to enter (niji shiken (“ñŽŸŽŽŒ±?)). Applicants to private universities need to take only the university's examination.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higher_education_in_Japan#University_entr...

And the National Center Test Page:

Some universities decide successful candidates using only the National Center Test, but most prestigious universities require the candidate to take another, institution-specific exam, which is often more difficult than the National Center Test.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Center_Test_for_University_Admis...
by yllwsmrf rate this post as useful

Re: What do students normally do after exams? 2012/1/20 11:26
After digging up an old email, she said that her exams end at the end of this month (January), so maybe she is taking only the National test?
by Brio rate this post as useful

Re: What do students normally do after exams? 2012/1/20 12:14
Maybe, or perhaps she just hadn't decided what schools she was interested in or didn't know their testing schedules yet. No way for us to know for sure. Why not do as Uco suggests and send her a short catching up email?
by yllwsmrf rate this post as useful

Re: What do students normally do after exams? 2012/1/20 13:01
Uco knows best!

Some of my students did entrance exams last year, while some are doing them in January and February.

Some did a couple, others are doing five or so....I heard of one who is doing 20!!

Many students do the exams and then go back to school to finish off their last year (usually the final year students finish high school at the end of January).

Then they have free time until uni starts.
by M (guest) rate this post as useful

Examples of schedules 2012/1/20 17:55
Brio,

Take it easy. You can see the schedules for yourself, and once the exams are over you can ask her directly about all the details.

See the following list of exam schedules for major private universities (most unis are private)
http://daigaku.yomiuri.co.jp/

Scroll down and you'll see a list of uni names in blue letters. Click any name.

Asia Daigaku for example.
http://daigaku.yomiuri.co.jp/daigaku.cfm?sf=&daigaku_no=001

From the left: Department, exam application opening date, deadline of application when sent by mail, blank, blank, subjects of exam, date of exam, date of acceptance announcement, deadline of school entrance application.

So as you can see, this uni has exams in January and February depending on the department. And a lot of people apply for more than one department or university.

Either way, if she said they will end at the end of January, at this moment give her a quick message wishing her luck. And then once it's February, send her another message asking how it went.
by Uco (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: What do students normally do after exams? 2012/1/21 08:35
I will keep this in mind, she hasn't responded in quite awhile to any emails so I'm guessing she is hard at work doing multiple exams/tests. Probably the only time I will know she is fully done is when she starts being on skype again (we used to talk all the time with video calls).
by Brio rate this post as useful

Re: What do students normally do after exams? 2012/1/26 12:21
Update: According to the dates today is the second to last test date before February from what I can see...the last date being the 31st itself, I hope it won't be too much longer til we can talk again, unless she is going to do some stuff before she will start talking on skype and email again.
by Brio rate this post as useful

Re: What do students normally do after exams? 2012/1/26 18:41
Don't want to be the pessimistic one but people often come on here saying they lost contact with someone in Japan who they used to Skype and email regularly with...it is possible she just wanted to slip away and lose contact with you. It seems to be quite common in Japan... rather than confront each other with why a certain friendship might not continue people prefer to just go incognito hoping the relationship will just fizzle out naturally.
Sorry if that seems harsh, it is quite a common topic especially on these forums but of course there is the possibility she IS just busy and has not had time to contact you. I hope so.
by gilesdesign (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: What do students normally do after exams? 2012/1/27 00:09
@gilesdesign

I find it very unlikely that would be the case, since she has made no indication whatsoever that she wanted to do that, even during christmas she replied about two or three times that she wanted to continue the relationship after she was finish with her last year.

Sure, she might not go back to what we did fully, but to fully phase me out...I think her behavior would be at least slightly more suscipious and obvious...almost as if she reversed her entire nature of the relationship altogether.
by Brio rate this post as useful

Re: What do students normally do after exams? 2012/1/27 10:22
OK I hope you are right...but as I say suddenly losing contact without and previous indication why seems to be a common thing.
by gilesdesign (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: What do students normally do after exams? 2012/1/27 11:46
She did indicate that she wouldn't be able to talk and mail during her entrance exam period and specifically noted November-January would be a time she wouldn't be able to communicate normally, and that she would be busy until February.

I was just making sure that was standard procedure for japanese, as she is probably still busy finishing up school and/or any remaining entrance exams.

If I have made the implication that she hasn't spoken to me at all or not specified why she can't talk, my apologies.
by Brio rate this post as useful

Re: What do students normally do after exams? 2012/1/31 10:09
Well it is the last day of school for her and the end of January from what I can tell. Not too much longer 'til she will be available again. Unless she catches up on her sleep for the next few days...

I heard college exams and the final month of high school can pretty much turn students into zombies.
by Brio rate this post as useful

Re: What do students normally do after exams? 2012/2/13 07:21
I guess she has exams til the end of march but she is now back to being active on Skype. We had a very nice chat yesterday, so I guess she didn't forget about me.

Thanks for all the advice, and I hope she can do well on her other exams.

Thanks!
by Brio rate this post as useful

Thanks for feedback 2012/2/13 18:32
Good to know you guys are doing well!
by Uco (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: What do students normally do after exams? 2012/2/21 20:41
I am an exchange student in Yokohama Japan for a year. I've been here since August.

What always seems to happen whenever big tests are done, throngs of students go out to eat okonomiyaki or go karaoke. I think those sound really fun and I recommend both! Okonomiyaki and Karaoke are good for getting people to communicate and have fun!
by ChiikaBoom rate this post as useful

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