I just took those practice tests! What a wonderful resource.
I passed both, each with a suspiciously similar score, so I’m cautiously optimistic. Knock on 木.
Thanks to WaniKani and the BunPro vocab decks, I am an absolute fiend when it comes to kanji and vocabulary (close to perfect in those sections). They will have to carry me through the reading sections, which I definitely struggle more with (because I don’t read anything! But now that I’ve elevated my Japanese skills for the JLPT, I feel more confident about cracking open the Frieren manga I recently bought on a trip to Japan (knowing that there is a WK bookclub going on…)).
Kanji/Vocab > Listening > Grammar > Reading would probably be strongest to weakest for me.
Wanted to wish all you other N4 takers the best! Hope you all slay the test on December 1st!
I feel I did better than last years JLPT (N4). I failed by 10 points so definitely feeling more confident with everything but I didn’t study that great for it. I feel being 38 years old works against me. Jealous of the young crowd on here making it to N1 in 3 or so years.
Hoping to find buddies taking the N4 this December ! I took my first mock test today (2018 archive) and although the grading is a bit opaque I estimate I would have gotten ~105/180.
HOWEVER I did get a bunch of correct answers through sheer luck
So if there’s a discord or just someone willing to exchange here, let’s help each other out to pass the N4
I’ll need to remember that when I am ready to start mock testing, but I’ve got a while to go to get to that point. But I’ve got all year a few more months so…
I totally understand ! Personally I really need to be in control, and doing mock exams is basically one of the main way of studying for me. It also makes it less scary.
And I have found (by going over multiple mock tests) that a LOT of vocab / kanji / questions are reused from one exam to another…
I mean, I guess that might work out in my favor, but I can’t understand why they’d do that (I noticed the same with Microsoft certifications though, so if it’s good enough for a multi-trillion dollar company it’s good enough for the JLPT I guess).
Honestly same with exams like TOEFL or language test for when you apply to a citizenship. When the level is like equivalent to A1/A2 of the CEFR you eventually end up covering most of the language in the span of 30+ years of holding it!
I guess of course it’s much different with N２ and N1 but even then, understanding and nailing the exam structure is a big part of the process I would say.
For example, last time I took the TOEFL there was lots of complicated scientific terms (it was about geology in space or something like that) but of course the aim was not for us to know those technical terms that even native speakers might not know but rather judge our capacity to understand meaning out of context and be able to follow uni level classes on pretty much any subject - anyways I’m ruminating but you get the gist
That does raise the question though of what to prioritise: actually be able to speak Japanese or preparing for the exam structure that is the JLPT? Personally im focusing on JLPT but I do feel like in missing out on actual usage of the language. It’s all about priorities I guess!
Yeah, the prioritization is going to depend on what your goals are. I’m taking N4 and planning on doing my best to pass it but it’s just a nice benchmark rather than something that’s an actual goal for me.
Does the Dublin Ireland test site fill up quickly ?
It’s my backup plan in case I don’t get a spot in Paris (I sent my application by post and paid, but the spot is only secured when they say so…) so i’m wondering if I should play it safe and try for Dublin too?
Dublin opens on the 8th and for sure I won’t have an answer from Paris by then on whether I got a spot or not…
Would love feedbacks from anyone who took it in Dublin or just advice from everybody’s personal experience please
Hello! I’ve taken the test in Dublin for the last two years and planning to do it again this year. I would say it’s one of the less competitive centres in Europe, N4 is a popular level but as long as you are on the site on the 8th I don’t think you should have problems getting a slot.
One tip, even though the site always says that registrations will open in the afternoon, last year I noticed that they actually opened in the morning. So from when you wake up, I’d just have the page open in a tab somewhere and keep an eye on it, and you should be all good. Hopefully you’re able to take it in Paris but if not I think Dublin is a nice centre, I’ve never had any issues with the exam conditions. Good luck!
Edit: sorry it only just occurred to me that you might want to wait until you hear back from Paris to book your spot in Dublin, I’m having an airhead day today (well, most days). For N4 that might be a little risky - there’s a chance they might not fill up for a few days but no guarantees.
Ahhh you’re the best thank you so much for such detailed answer !
In a way I am willing to risk having two spots and don’t mind paying twice, but i would feel bad about taking someone’s else spot if I do end up getting Paris…
I will reach out to them and will see how likely it is that I get a spot. Otherwise…. Dublin here I come (and i’ve always wanted to visit!)
One month to go! How’s everyone’s final cramming going? Where are you feeling weakest and strongest?
I feel like I’m in a much worse place than I was for the N5 last year, but part of that comes from the fact that I was recently unemployed and was able to spend the three months before the test just studying, on top of having already finished Genki I in my class in the summer.
I’m only going to be wrapping up Genki II in class right before the test, but I am also taking a Genki II review class and an N4 class. November is going to be a crazy busy month for me so I’m locking myself in the library for the full day today to try and get a handle on some things. I fell behind where I wanted to be in Nihongo So-Matome so hoping to catch up on that today.
I started Bunpro a week or two back (had tried it in the past and the fact that the vocab used in the questions was all new to me made it feel impossible, but it’s feeling a little more helpful this time around) so I’m hoping to keep up with that to the point where I can finish the N4 grammar in time. Trying to get in at least 10 minutes of listening question practice every day now too as those absolutely kill me (very glad you only need 30% to pass that section).
Thanks to WK I always feel like I absolutely kill it at the kanji. Any time I do timed work I finish that in a flash and have time to go back and recheck it all, but I’m still much weaker and the reading and grammar.
There’s nothing like complete confidence and my current feeling is… nothing like complete confidence. Which is fine, whether I pass by a wide margin or fail tremendously, I’m just looking at it as a measuring stick. But I’m definitely further behind than I had planned to be. But if we learn from our failures, then it’s true that “if at first you succeed, you didn’t really learn anything” so I imagine I’ll treat it as an opportunity to learn and adjust my learning plan as necessary.
Also feeling under-prepared! I ended up with a slightly complicated September/October for various life/health reasons, so I haven’t done any N4-specific practice. I think I have a couple of quiet weekends coming up so hopefully I’ll get a better sense of where I am soon - the bunpro practice exam is next on my list to see what I need to do more work on.
I worked through the most of a past paper earlier today and found it educational. 2 things stood out for me:
in the kanji / vocab section, the kanji bits felt very manageable but the hiragana bits blew my brain a little. Just so much more used to having the aid of kanji when reading. Need a bit more practice on these for sure.
in the longer reading passages there were a fair amount of kanji I didn’t know. This felt a little intimidating at first glance but then working through it you could mostly ignore / work out what it was saying anyway. Looking them up after a number either rated as N3 on Jisho (not perfect I know) or quite a few levels above me on WK. Good thing to get used to rather than be surprised by on the exam I think.
Does anyone else find it so much more annoying to read something where you can’t actually say the word in your head? Makes my brain stutter somehow
Will try some listening tomorrow. For N5 I found listening the hardest at the time but somehow scored higher than the other sections. Who knows.
Overall I’m actually feeling slightly less apprehensive after today. I will be a loooong way from perfect in the exam but with a couple of weeks of slightly more JLPT focused effort it feels plausible that it won’t be awful.
Sounds good! I’m still working through the N4 region in MaruMori (was supposed to be done and in review mode by now, but it didn’t happen). I really think the grammar is probably going to be even harder for me than the listening, just because so much of it I haven’t reviewed well or at all yet. I’ve done just enough work on reading and figuring out stuff from context that I might do okay with that. I think at this point, I’m just going in with the assumption that I’ll fail, and if I end up being wrong that’ll be nice but it’ll be because I’m a good test taker more than actually being at an N4 level.
Which, of course, is fine. Passing or failing the test itself won’t change where I’m at, where I’m going, or when I’ll get there. I’m probably going to take N3 next year either way, again not really caring if I pass it.
Yeah makes a lot of sense. They’re useful benchmarks but I never want to feel like I’m learning the language in order to pass a test - the test is there to help the learning process.
I’m tired. 
I would say it’s one of the less competitive centres in Europe, N4 is a popular level but as long as you are on the site on the 8th I don’t think you should have problems getting a slot.
Who knows.