Business Japanese Proficiency Test
| Acronym | BJT |
|---|---|
| Type | Computer-based language test |
| Administrator | Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Public Interest Foundation (since 2009) Japan External Trade Organization (formerly) |
| Skills tested | Japanese language proficiency for business communication |
| Year started | 1996 |
| Duration | 1 hour 45 minutes |
| Score range | 0 to 800 |
| Regions | Over 16 countries |
| Website | www |
The Business Japanese Proficiency Test (BJT) (ビジネス日本語能力テスト, Bijinesu Nihongo Nōryoku Tesuto) is a Japanese language proficiency test designed to objectively measure a person's practical communicative skills in communicating and responding to information in a Japanese-language business environment. Unlike its counterpart Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) which focuses more on general Japanese, BJT is not designed for measuring Japanese language knowledge nor business knowledge but instead, BJT is designed to measure a person's practical communicative ability to utilize and respond to given information, ability to express thoughts and opinions, and at the same time promote ideas or projects to people of different backgrounds and expertise.
The BJT is not only engineered to measure a person's verbal communicative skills, but also the ability to understand and use Japanese with the aid of text, diagrams, photographs and any other available information in emails or faxes, etc. and at the same time to appropriately perform tasks and workloads suited to a Japanese-language business environment.
The Business Japanese Proficiency Test covers the full range of events or situations that may arise on a Japanese-language business environment.
History
[edit]The test was first offered in 1996 and was revised in 2003. It was originally administered by the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO). In April 2009, however, oversight was transferred to the Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Public Interest Foundation: the same organization that administers the Kanji kentei.[1][2]
On August 18, 2010, it was announced that the test would "be discontinued at the end of the current fiscal year".[3] However, on November 25, 2010, it was announced that the test would be "relaunched".[4]
Examination and scoring
[edit]The Business Japanese Proficiency Test is split into three parts, Listening Comprehension, Listening and Reading Comprehension and Reading Comprehension.
| Exam Overview | Duration | Questions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Listening Comprehension Section | Approx. 45 minutes | Situational Understanding
5 questions |
Conversational Listening Comprehension
10 questions |
General Listening Comprehension
10 questions |
| Listening and Reading Comprehension Section | Approx. 30 minutes | Situational Understanding
5 questions |
Information Listening and Reading
10 questions |
General Listening and Reading
10 questions |
| Reading Comprehension Section | Approx. 30 minutes | Vocabulary / Grammar
10 questions |
Expression Reading and Comprehension
10 questions |
General Reading Comprehension
10 questions |
- Exam overview as stated on the official BJT website.[5]
The test is scored out of a possible 800. The score is then ranked on a scale of 6 levels: J5, J4, J3, J2, J1, J1+, with J1+ being the highest and J5 the lowest.
| Evaluation Level Guideline | Points | |
|---|---|---|
| J1+ | Has the ability to adequately communicate in a Japanese-language business environment in any situation | 600 - 800 |
| J1 | Has the ability to suitably communicate in a Japanese-language business environment in a wide range of situations | 530 - 600 |
| J2 | Has the ability to suitably communicate in a Japanese-language business environment in a limited range of situations | 420 - 530 |
| J3 | Is able to achieve a limited degree of communication in a Japanese-language business environment in a limited range of situations | 320 - 420 |
| J4 | Is able to achieve a nominal degree of communication in a Japanese-language business environment in a limited range of situations | 200 - 320 |
| J5 | Has no ability to communicate in a Japanese-language business environment | 0 - 200 |
*Level guideline as described on the BJT website[6]
Testing locations
[edit]Starting April 2017, the BJT is now being delivered as a computer based test via the Pearson Vue delivery system, a radical change from the industry standard paper based testing.
As of 2018, the BJT is now available in more than 16 countries via the Pearson Vue testing network.
| Test Center Locations | |
|---|---|
| Japan | Sapporo, Sendai, Koriyama, Tokyo, Chiba, Yokohama, Niigata, Hamamatsu, Nagoya, Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe, Okayama, Hiroshima, Matsuyama, Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, Oita, Naha |
| Brazil | São Paulo |
| China | Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Dalian, Qingdao, Tianjin, Shenyang, Nanjing, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Suzhou, Shenzhen, Xi'an, Wuhan |
| France | Paris |
| Germany | Düsseldorf |
| Hong Kong | Hong Kong |
| India | New Delhi, Chennai |
| Indonesia | Jakarta |
| Italy | Padova (temporarily closed as of 2021) |
| Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur |
| Mexico | Mexico City |
| Myanmar | Yangon |
| Singapore | Singapore |
| South Korea | Seoul, Busan |
| Taiwan | Taipei, Taichung, Kaohsiung |
| Thailand | Bangkok |
| United Kingdom | London |
| United States of America | Los Angeles, New York, Chicago |
| Vietnam | Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, Da Nang |
*Test center locations available on the Pearson Vue website[7]
Notes
[edit]- ^ "BJT Business Japanese Proficiency Test". JETRO. Archived from the original on 2011-07-09. Retrieved 2011-07-05.
- ^ "BJT: Contact Us". Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Public Interest Foundation. Retrieved 2014-02-04.
- ^ Mizuho Aoki and Reiji Yoshida (2010-08-19). "Business-Japanese proficiency test doomed by profit fall". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2011-07-05.
- ^ "Important Notice". 2010-11-25. Archived from the original on 2011-07-18. Retrieved 2011-07-05.
- ^ "Features of the BJT | What is the BJT? | BJT Business Japanese Proficiency Test". www.kanken.or.jp. Retrieved 2018-10-20.
- ^ "Level guideline | What is the BJT? | BJT Business Japanese Proficiency Test". www.kanken.or.jp. Retrieved 2018-10-23.
- ^ "BJT Business Japanese Proficiency Test Certification Testing". Retrieved 29 August 2021.
External links
[edit]- https://web.archive.org/web/20110709170430/http://www.jetro.go.jp/en/bjt/ The JETRO on the BJT (now points to the following link).
- https://web.archive.org/web/20081212115504/http://www.kentei.co.jp/bjt/ (Japanese)
- http://www.kanken.or.jp/bjt/english/index.html (English)