Tue 2008/09/23 10:06
Ken Lee writes about graduations in Japan.Recently I've had the opportunity to attend a graduation ceremony. A couple of my friends were graduating and I was there for the pics. ^^. Not to be in them, but to be the one behind the camera taking photos. So. About graduation ceremonies in Japan. Graduations are held twice a year (at least for my university). In April during Spring and in September during Autumn. Always during the school holidays. I've been to 3 so far, 1 of them my own; all at the same university. There's no real dress code. No academic dress, no graduation cap. You don't get your degree in a roll, but rather in a booklet. It starts off with a big ceremony. The president of the university will hand degrees out to representatives from each batch; he's a busy person, can't individually give out degrees to everyone. Once the main ceremony is over, graduates separate into different groups and head off to different halls to receive their respective degrees from the head of their respective schools. *phew*. Photos here are from the smaller ceremony which includes everyone... except that representative.More details and photos at Ken Lee. As soon as I saw these pics it reminded me of when I graduated from university. Graduated with first class honors which only another 1 or 2 others in my class out of 30 or 40 (cant remember exact number) managed to get ^^; My mum was extremely disappointed that I didn't want to attend the ceremony - she said that she wanted to see me in a black cloak and one of those square hats and kept going on at me for weeks! I was over the moon that I got the top marks and enjoyed learning Japanese at university but to me personally it wasn't anything to celebrate - because I still hadn't made it to Japan yet. Graduating was just a small goal which I needed to complete to get to my bigger goal which drove me every day - to live and work in Japan. After graduation I joined Japan Airlines as a Computer Engineer and made it to Japan just over a year after - more of my story in the Japan Work Benefits article. Did you/will you attend a graduation ceremony?
Posted on Tue 2008/09/23 10:06 by
So far only my high school one I've been to. Yet to graduate college though. Over here we actually hand them out one by one, and it's not surprising to see a ceremony lasts hours.
(ID #310525) Posted on 2008/09/23 10:27
Director/代表取締役
How many times does one graduate in the US? In the UK its only once from Uni AFAIK.
(ID #310528) Posted on 2008/09/23 10:29
Well, it depends on the area. Some places you could graduate pre-school, kindergarden, Elementary, Middle and High School. There is also College/University. However, the only ones that are really paid attention to by people are High School and College/University graduation, as those tend to have big parties for them.
(ID #310542) Posted on 2008/09/23 10:36
Director/代表取締役
In the UK I dont think one graduated from kindergarten or primary school - they just "left" for the next one ^^;
(ID #310546) Posted on 2008/09/23 10:37
It was in my childhood I noticed the change. I remember there was no graduation for preschool or kindergarten when I went. Then, I moved to a different elementary school, and we had a freakin' 5th grade graduation. I was totally confused. I mean, graduation's supposed to be about accomplishing something. What are you accomplishing by getting out of elementary school? But yes, for both my middle school and high school graduations, they took forever! Seriously. You march in to the middle of the field or whatever in alphabetical order, then you sit there through student, principal, vice principal, and at least one guest speaker worth of speeches. Very BORING speeches. Then, they have you all line up again, file past the principal, who hands you your diploma/certificate/whatever your school uses, you sit back down, and wait for the signal to throw your cap in the air. It's supposed to celebrate your achievement, but I personally was just overjoyed the ceremonies were over.
(ID #310604) Posted on 2008/09/23 11:39
Geek Liaison
Well the whole ceremony thing I feel is less for the person graduating then for their families. Thou the whole pre-school, kindergarten, grade school graduation thing is a joke it's not like your going to get held back in Kindergarten. It all part of the 'we have to make everyone feel special' thing that rewards mediocrity.
(ID #310632) Posted on 2008/09/23 12:04
Its definitely a bit over the top now...I only had high-school & college graduations. Now I have young children & they also have ceremonies for pre-school, kindergarten, elementary school, and middle-school. Seriously, pre-school.
(ID #311342) Posted on 2008/09/24 04:51
It is definitely a regional thing (or maybe even by school district), we did not have graduations for kindergarten, elementary school, or middle school.
(ID #310728) Posted on 2008/09/23 14:14
Engineer-wannabe
well,for me graduation ceremony is the last chance u gt to hang out with ur buddy,so i dont want to miss it^^ i still hv 'bout 2 years b4 graduate from college though
(ID #310544) Posted on 2008/09/23 10:37
Director/代表取締役
you no hang out after?
(ID #310547) Posted on 2008/09/23 10:38
Engineer-wannabe
hmm,guess everyone will get busy with their new jobs,n some will go to different cities. most of my buddies wont be stayin here,in aomori after graduate,may be tokyo or sumthin(so do i)so,yeah,most likely it will be the last time T_T
(ID #310621) Posted on 2008/09/23 11:50
In my case also, its hard to hang out after graduation. People get busy with their own lives.
(ID #310924) Posted on 2008/09/23 19:09
I'm graduating soon. Still considering should I attend or not... I still get my degree no matter what.
(ID #310548) Posted on 2008/09/23 10:38
Find out how long the ceremony is and then decide. ;)
(ID #310605) Posted on 2008/09/23 11:40
I remember attending my mum's masters convocation.... It took more than 2 hours for the a few guys to make a speech! Me and my siblings were sleeping due to boredom...
(ID #310619) Posted on 2008/09/23 11:49
You have your high school graduation, your college graduation, and then graduate school. Some school districts even make a big deal about middle school graduation. I've been through high school and college, and am currently in grad school part-time while working. My college was huge, and the whole class had to fit into our football stadium for the general ceremony, and then split off into our respective disciplines for the individual recognitions and degree conferrals.
(ID #310553) Posted on 2008/09/23 10:41
Im a senior in high school right now..i plan to find a college what offers Japanese language majors or something like that and study Japanese until my Eyes bleed.....I'm also planning to take the JLPT (a 4 level test) (once i get good enough at Japanese) and become a translator and move up from there...Does anyone know if they hold JLPT in America or Japan?...
(ID #310555) Posted on 2008/09/23 10:43
They hold JLPT both in American and Japan. It's a once a year test last I recall. Level 4 and 3 shouldn't be TOO hard, but the difficulty really ramps up for level 2 and 1.
(ID #310557) Posted on 2008/09/23 10:45
I hear that Writing isnt required for the test and that its multiple choice. Its that true?
(ID #310560) Posted on 2008/09/23 10:51
I don't recall, quite a bit of it is reading a sentence and figuring out what character is incorrect. The hardest part of the test that many say is the listening portion of it. I recommend you check out this page > http://www.jlptstudy.com/ and the forum link found on it as well. You should find heaps of information. Good luck!
(ID #310564) Posted on 2008/09/23 10:55
Thanks
(ID #310566) Posted on 2008/09/23 10:56
Yeah, the JLPT generally gets held at colleges/universities here in the States, most big cities should have one. Lvl 4 is very easy, 3 not much harder. For whatever reason, those are like the beginner's versions, but the Lvl 2 and Lvl 1 tests are a huge leap forward in difficulty. The listening test probably is the hardest single part of the test, but overall the main hurdle is not the difficulty of the questions, but rather the time limit given. I would think it near impossible to finish the test within the allotted time period. No writing at all, so you need to only be able to read written Japanese. I've taken the Lvl 2 once, years ago. Read below my comment on what I just found out last week ^_^;
(ID #310578) Posted on 2008/09/23 11:09
Ecchi Goshujin-sama (Registered on 2008/08/09 08:13)
Ecchi Otaku / Fraud Analyst
I dont recall my early childhood during Elementary and middle school so i wont cover that too much. But High School and College/University are the important ones. I attended to all my graduations to make my mother happy. Specially the College graduation since I'm the first and currently the only one that has graduated from college. And by family i mean Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, etc. So to me I wanted to make my mother proud and at the same time achive my own personal goals.
(ID #310567) Posted on 2008/09/23 10:56
Ecchi Goshujin-sama (Registered on 2008/08/09 08:13)
Ecchi Otaku / Fraud Analyst
I forgot to add the word family on the fourth sentence. "...the only one in my family that has graduated..."
(ID #310568) Posted on 2008/09/23 10:59
Extremely Poor College Student
i been to 3 graduations ceremonies so far and they were all my own.parents made me go to ceremonies for elementary/jr high and high school.i kept telling them i can still get my diploma the next day but they never listen to me and keep taking pictures all the time
(ID #310570) Posted on 2008/09/23 11:02
Didn't attend either HS or College graduations, no interest at all in that sort of thing. Speaking about the JLPT...I took the Lvl 2 (2nd hardest) a few years back, and failed by a small margin. I thought the required level for Lvl2 was the same as Lvl1, but since I'm thinking about taking the test again this year I logged back on my JLPT account at the Official site. Turns out I actually failed my first JLPT 2 by ONE PERCENT (!!!), not the 11% or so I originally thought. Ouch!
(ID #310576) Posted on 2008/09/23 11:04
suneo (Registered on 2007/12/17 20:30)
lol that totally burns doesn't it. That's happened all too often for me in a few tests I've taken before. Never taken the JLPT, but I'm thinking I'd like to someday. By now though I've probably forgotten pretty much all of the basics in grammar and kanji (I get confused a lot lol), so I need to really study those again... Though I keep telling myself that, I haven't gotten started one bit -_- Maybe if I study now I can make it for next year's level 4 and work my way up lol.
(ID #310599) Posted on 2008/09/23 11:35
studying hard for my lvl 3 now
(ID #310717) Posted on 2008/09/23 13:52
Coincidently, I did not attend my own university graduation ceremony neither, but I did go to my sister's to take pics
(ID #310596) Posted on 2008/09/23 11:32
suneo (Registered on 2007/12/17 20:30)
I've been to four grads myself. My own high scool, my brother's undergrad, and two grads for one of my friends' university graduation (one for undergrad, another for Master's). I didn't attend my own uni grad though.
(ID #310602) Posted on 2008/09/23 11:38
suneo (Registered on 2007/12/17 20:30)
hmm make that five grads. I went back to a high school grad one year after my own to congratulate a friend.
(ID #310603) Posted on 2008/09/23 11:39
I've had two graduation ceremonies: from Kindergarten (don't know why, kind of pointless) and from high school. I was bored out of my mind during it, not to mention all they handed out was covers for the diploma and NOT the actual diploma. We had to go back to the school to pick it up, something I have yet to do since I was suppose to 3 months ago.
(ID #310612) Posted on 2008/09/23 11:43
Me? I attended my Graduation Ceremony. Thank God, it was glorious and all my family members are so happy especially my mother saying that I was the first on her side of the family to graduated! Sigh......Glorious. But after that, it's good-bye to my country and hello to United states. Unemployed but still searching and helping around the house the best way I can do. I can't find a job yet. T_T
(ID #310613) Posted on 2008/09/23 11:44
Engineer-wannabe
is it hard to find a job in phil for a fresh graduate?
(ID #310625) Posted on 2008/09/23 11:56
Yup in the phil it's hard plus the current situation and low-economy status. But since I'm here at the US and a citizen up to now, same answer except the situation and economy.
(ID #310640) Posted on 2008/09/23 12:13
university film student
...Graduations here are pretty much the same as those in the States - High School, University, Graduate. Some middle schools (like mine) also hold graduation ceremonies, and my elementary school did as well. Personally, I don't mind long graduation ceremonies all that much - I use the time to reflect, to look at my fellow graduates and reminscience.
(ID #310637) Posted on 2008/09/23 12:08
university film student
Oh, and Danny - was quite amused to find that you graduated with top honours. You've mentioned that you did pretty well in university, but since you always mention university as a time when you were looking for a passion/working towards Japan I got the impression that you'd just done enough to stay in the middle of the pack.
(ID #310639) Posted on 2008/09/23 12:12
student
I didn't really cared about my HS graduation and didn't want to go but went just to make my mom happy. To me, it's nothing special or memorable at all since if you can't get pass HS, you pretty much fail at life. Graduating from college might be something to be proud of and worth sitting through though ^^;
(ID #310648) Posted on 2008/09/23 12:28
the US has graduations for everything... or at least, here in NY they do...
(ID #310668) Posted on 2008/09/23 12:53
IT engineer
For my case, I couldnt attend the graduation which was this year April as I have aleady move over to Tokyo. My batch graduated last year but the university only has 1 convocation per year and we missed out on the last year one :(
(ID #310678) Posted on 2008/09/23 13:12
In the UK, you only ever graduate once. So unless you finish your post-graduate course then you never graduated XD I graduate in June this year~ The ceremony takes place during July though~ Cap and gown, rolled up diploma~ etc~ Danny, why didn't you go to the ceremony? It's one of this things you just don't miss >.<
(ID #310682) Posted on 2008/09/23 13:17
Gah, still sleep. Undergraduate! Post-graduate would be asking to much. And by this year, I mean this semester year, so I graduate next year XD *goes off for some coffee~*
(ID #310686) Posted on 2008/09/23 13:21
I'll be going in 2 week to my cegep graduation and then I'll probably be going again to my University graduation in 4 years. ^^;
(ID #310687) Posted on 2008/09/23 13:22
Here in Canada we had a sort of celebration after elementary school (might have got a certificate, can't remember), after junior high (got a certificate saying I got honors blah blah blah), and definitely after high school (it's a really big deal). I suppose from uni too, but I'm not quite to that stage yet ^_^
(ID #310688) Posted on 2008/09/23 13:26
In Singapore's NTU, we have a total of 15 ceremonies, held in a week every year in July. I have attended 30 of the ceremonies as I was working as an usherer there and let's just say each ceremony is damn long. In each ceremony except for the first, there will be like 500+ graduates and everyone receive their booklets one by one from the highest ranking person in school on the stage. The first ceremony graduates get to get theirs from the President of Singapore though. Best thing I ever witness is a marriage proposal right after one of the ceremony ^^
(ID #310719) Posted on 2008/09/23 13:55
Daigakusei
ill be graduating March next year hopefully. and im planning to take a master's degree right away so next year's grad isnt much of grad for me.
(ID #310744) Posted on 2008/09/23 14:27
Humanitarian worker slash undergraduate student
i am yet to graduate too, yet AFAIK the graduation ceremony is twice a year here.. i would most likely to attend, as i wont pursue a higher degree, it'll be my last mark of education ^^ -> me wants to get straight into workforce.. hehehe
(ID #310790) Posted on 2008/09/23 15:15
Hopefully I will graduate in a year, and then try to get into a masters or doctorate program... which I also hope to graduate from someday down the line. Not sure what you meant by number of times graduated in above responses... my niece (cousin's daughter) graduated from Harvard a few years ago, though she also graduated there in the undergraduate program and also once from Oxford when she was there on scholarship.
(ID #310798) Posted on 2008/09/23 15:22
Yes, I have, last year when I got my bachelors degree. It was a small ceremony, ended pretty quickly. And it didn't differ very much from the one Ken Lee described.
(ID #310811) Posted on 2008/09/23 15:41
I had two ceremonies for my university graduation, one for the entire class and then the department ones where which are held on two separate days...
(ID #310812) Posted on 2008/09/23 15:41
I didn't want to attend my high school ceremony. To me it didn't seem worth the time since I still needed to go to a university and get a degree. In the end I attended because my family really wanted to see me walk down the aisle. I still think its a waste of time, there were nearly 600 graduates in my class and several students gave boring, pointless and long speeches. I just wanted to get my diploma and get on with my life, I had work the next day. I'm probably going to attend the ceremony when I'm done here at CSUF, but only because my family will like it.
(ID #310838) Posted on 2008/09/23 16:17
If I get my thesis completed, I'll be able to walk during my grad ceremony in March. Now, I just need to write 60 pages on Japan's Counterterrorism Policy... ^^;
(ID #310876) Posted on 2008/09/23 17:40
I graduated middle school and high school. Middle school graduation was pretty pointless.
(ID #310887) Posted on 2008/09/23 18:02
Online Shop
I sorta understand how your mom felt back then. I think maybe she wanted to put on the cap and gown, all mothers do ^^;
(ID #310890) Posted on 2008/09/23 18:04
well haven't actually been to one myself... my previous schools didn't even bother to hold any graduation ceremony... looking forward to my graduation in four years' time though!
(ID #310901) Posted on 2008/09/23 18:22
Games addicted
I got graduate at university in 2002, in Italy every family try to make it much big as possible. Photos and videos, i don't get why but for most people is like a wedding ceremony... lol. My was quite calm, only some best friends and my gf. The most important thing was the party i had in the evening, that's a nice moment.... 5 years worth for it LOL!
(ID #310907) Posted on 2008/09/23 18:41
JR. College Student
I graduated High school last June... I'll be lucky if I can graduate from Jr College... I'm such a lazy student. There was a ceremony for high school and I was quite nervous...
(ID #310913) Posted on 2008/09/23 18:55
I've been to 9 graduations. I believe that graduations sometimes are much more for the parents/guardians than the graduating students themselves. I've spoke to several parents and found out that graduations are like milestones and are one of the things they have to see in order to say that they did their part in raising their children.
(ID #310916) Posted on 2008/09/23 18:57
Mechanical Engineering student
Of course I'll attend my graduation ceremony. It's the day that all my academic problems will be over! XD Good for you Danny, graduating with top honors. I can't achieve the same when I graduate though because I already have a couple of failing subjects -_-
(ID #310969) Posted on 2008/09/23 21:04
Graduated High School last July.. Very happy moments back then , esp the last dinner with my classmates T_T Entering college now overseas.. Hopefully i will be in Japan for my Master grade (not MG gunpla lol) :D
(ID #310980) Posted on 2008/09/23 21:16
I graduated in a Diploma and a Degree from University, but only attended one of the ceremonies. They're a bit over-rated and an un-necessary waste of time and money (for gown and cap hire etc).
(ID #311016) Posted on 2008/09/23 22:33
Receptionist/ Accountant/ Junior Designer/ Illustrator
My highest level of education is high school at the moment. Once I complete my studies, I do hope that will change...
(ID #311029) Posted on 2008/09/23 23:10
Writer.
This is possibly the least related post here... But is his name really KEN LEE? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RgL2MKfWTo
(ID #311038) Posted on 2008/09/23 23:26
radical anime fan in Singapore; starting to freeze up. Mmm, end-of-year weather. (Registered on 2007/01/25 22:08)
Polytechnic Freshman. Mmm... fresh.
*falls off chair*
(ID #311117) Posted on 2008/09/24 01:23
Full-time student へへ
yes it is! ^^.
(ID #312534) Posted on 2008/09/25 03:51
In a couple of days I will attend my last (I hope) graduation ceremony and get mu Ph.D diploma. No official dress code, no silly hats, but every one of us will get his/her diploma personally at the ceremony. After all there aren't that many Ph.D's as lower degree graduates...
(ID #311124) Posted on 2008/09/24 01:31
Software Developer
I will be attending my graduation ceremony in one month's time, after having just completed a four year degree in CS. The ceremony will be in the Royal Albert Hall, which should be really cool. Few pics of the RAH, if you aren't from the UK: http://flickr.com/photos/8773698@N03/543907731/ http://flickr.com/photos/jasonscheltus/1464497014/ http://flickr.com/photos/timothycochranephotography/2563965205/
(ID #311138) Posted on 2008/09/24 01:42
I did not have a graduation ceremony for high school, since I enrolled in college early, and I left college to pursue my career when I discovered how irrelevant my degree path was and ran out of money. I wouldn't have gone to any graduation ceremony if I'd had one, though. However, when I later graduated from a brief seminary program which had a small cap-and-gown graduation despite only being one year of night classes, my mother insisted on driving several hours to finally see me "graduate". She was so insistent on that, so I had to go. ^^;
(ID #311151) Posted on 2008/09/24 02:01
IT, Programmer, ...
We had a graduation in middle school and college. (well it's not actually college, these terms are difficult to compare... I didn't graduate form university but, higher education outside university ;p)
(ID #311207) Posted on 2008/09/24 02:43
Part human, part student, 100% loser
Still in secondary school... I still have along way to go when compared to you guys...
(ID #311254) Posted on 2008/09/24 03:30
I graduated with a 2nd class [first division] but I still need to sign up for a ceremony. I was lazy at mt final year... very lazy... lol
(ID #311368) Posted on 2008/09/24 05:18
Handyman atm.
Been there, done that, and i bl**dy hate the gown and the board thing they make you wear. Tis silly.
(ID #311465) Posted on 2008/09/24 07:39
I looking forward to my graduation day from high school next year so that I can get the heck out of here. From there I plan to go into media arts and major in animation/game design. I also want to major in Japanese culture and language for important reasons. *sigh* Tuiton fees are going to be a b%#@h, but it'll be worth the trouble.
(ID #311589) Posted on 2008/09/24 10:58
Student/ANBU
Here in New Zealand it`s not common to have a graduation ceremony for anything besides University. It`s similar to the UK in that you just leave for the next stage. The closest thing to a grad ceremony we had was an end-of-year prize giving at high school (2500 students) Anyways, I`m entering my second year as a student at Auckland Uni doing a bachelor of education (primary teaching). I`m intending to take a TESSOL cert. and aim for an honours so I can experience teaching in Japan. Still a long time a way but I`m getting there ^^
(ID #311658) Posted on 2008/09/24 12:23