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Technical Japanese Program

The University of Washington's department of Technical Communications (later called Human Centered Design & Engineering) offered three courses of study through its Technical Japanese Program (TJP): The Technical Japanese Master's Program, the Technical Japanese Minor, and the Technical Japanese for Business Professionals Program

The Technical Japanese Program was established by Professor Michio Tsutsui, who directed it from 1990 until its closure in 2015.

Technical Japanese Master's Program (TJMP):
This two-year Master's degree program combined the study of Engineering or Technical Communication and Japanese. Students entered TJMP with three years of college-level Japanese or the equivalent. All students took an internship in Japan at a Japanese company or research organization. Through TJMP, students learned to read Japanese technical journals, to give presentations on their field of research in Japanese, and to communicate effectively in a Japanese work environment.

Technical Japanese Minor:
UW undergraduates earned an academic minor in Technical Japanese. To register for classes, students must have completed three years of college-level Japanese study or the equivalent and passed the language placement test. To fulfill the requirements, students could combine Technical Japanese courses with an internship in Japan, and/or Asian Language's advanced Japanese courses.

Technical Japanese for Business Professionals (TJBP):

The Technical Japanese for Business Professionals program (TJBP) was a certificate program for non-UW students that trains business people in advanced Japanese. Classes were held in a high-tech learning environment that integrates classroom study with computer-aided learning. Upon completion of the program, students were able to give presentations in their area of expertise in Japanese, work effectively with Japanese customers, read Japanese technical journals, and act appropriately in a Japanese work environment.