Course summary

Complex, unique, endlessly fascinating, Japan embraces modernity and technology while maintaining its rich traditional culture. To truly understand Japan, you have to experience it. You have to immerse yourself in it. We teach Japanese intensively, from scratch. You will study the phonetic scripts (kana) from the outset, picking up the 2000 Sino-Japanese characters (kanji) over the course of your degree. The history side of your course covers past societies from the Roman to the Modern period. Outside the seminar room, you'll work on projects that bring history to life, like our student-run New Histories blog and WikiAmerica. You will spend your third year studying at one of our partner universities in Japan. More than just a chance to put what you've learned into practice, this year is an experience you won't forget. Energised and inspired, you'll return to Sheffield for your final year. The language training continues, now at a more advanced level. Supervised by an academic, you'll research and write a dissertation on a topic of your choice.