Japanese
College of Arts & Sciences
The Department of Asian Languages and Literature offers an undergraduate major and minor in Japanese, through which students develop their ability to read, write and speak Japanese and gain an understanding and appreciation of the literature, linguistics and culture associated with the language. A popular option for many undergraduates at the UW is to combine a major in Japanese with a second major from another department, such as Computer Science, Business Administration or Global and Regional Studies. Graduates of the Department go on to a wide variety of career fields such as health care, technology, government, entertainment, education, marketing and business, reflecting the indispensability of knowledge of Asian languages and cultures in our increasingly interconnected world.
Major category:
Minor available
Curricular options: Linguistics, Literature
Area(s) of interest: Arts, Humanities and Design
websiteDegree requirements
Applicant type
First-year students can apply to the UW to begin autumn quarter or winter quarter (U.S. applicants only)
An application for general admission to the UW is required for all transfer students. UW accepts general applications for Autumn and Winter with some select majors allowing applications in Spring. Review your intended major’s website for information about which quarters it is open for admission.
Preparation for the major is a factor in transfer admission.
Use the information below to help you prepare for this major. Read more about applying to the UW as a transfer student.
- Visit MyPlan to run a degree audit.
- Use the UW Equivalency Guide to find out how courses taken at a Washington state community or technical college will transfer to the UW.
- UW college and school graduation requirements
Department admission information
This major has minimum admission requirements. Transfer students must be enrolled at the UW before applying to the major.
Minimum of 2.5 cumulative GPA is required.
A student entering the junior year without two years of the appropriate foreign language will not be able to complete the degree requirements in two years unless he or she takes accelerated courses at the UW during summer quarter.
Read more about applying to the UW as a transfer student.
Courses REQUIRED for admission:
- 20 credits in the language of primary concentration
- One writing (W-prefix) course in English, with minimum grade of 2.0
Entering transfer information:
Total undergraduates: 43
Total from Washington community colleges: 6
Entering transfer GPA (from WA community colleges):
3.75 – 4.00: <5
3.50 – 3.74: <5
3.25 – 3.49: <5
3.00 – 3.24: <5
2.75 – 2.99: <5
2.50 – 2.74: <5
2.49 and below: <5