Growth takes time. Maplopers embrace the effort. Here’s what they sign up for:

Course duration: Depends entirely on your schedule. If you wish to ensure you finish, we recommend planning for 15-30 weeks (essentially, one or two college semesters). Some learners take much longer, and that is completely cool as well. Your call.

Your weekly commitment: If you study at least an hour a day, you will make good progress. If that is impossible, aim for at least that amount of time every other day, because one advantage to going slow with our self-paced program, is that spreading things out can actually give you more exposure to everything you get insie the program.

The 15-week program is designed to keep learners moving because they are beyond busy and want the benefit of us pushing them forward. The natural byproduct of this momentum is the inability to utilize all the tools available to them while on that moving train.

Diligent learners who can show up every day without the nudge can spend more time with the Anki decks, the pacing and structure worksheets, etc., while consistently moving forward in the course. In contrast, with our 15-week program, many students have to come back to that stuff just so they can keep moving.

It’s a matter of priorities—you get to decide which method is best for you. If you need the drive of a strictly-paced program and accountability, apply to our 15-week program.

We don’t want your tuition dollars, we want you to finish. So, do what’s best for you with that in mind. 

Your tasks in a nutshell:

1. Review the video modules (2-3 per week is a good goal), study the lesson worksheet, and complete the online quizzes. (Most video modules are between 5 and 8 minutes in length.)
2. Complete your workbook assignments and submit them for review. There are no deadlines for these whatsoever.
3. Receive feedback on your workbook assignments.
4. Draft and submit your writing assignment(s).
5. Receive feedback on your writing assignment(s). With the self-paced program, we will review 10 assignments over the course of your time with us.
6. Shadow with the audio immersion pack and practice with the Anki decks at your own leisure. Public transort is your best friend when it comes to this!
7. Participate to some degree on our private Discord server.

Additional information:

It’s important to know Maplopo programs are designed for professionals like you who are working full time. This means everyone has a busy schedule. Still, we make the time. Maplopo offers as intense a program as you would expect. But, commitments beget results that change lives. Make the commitment, show up, and win on all fronts.

Everyone submits their workbook assignments to their Maplopo course “reader.” In the closing weeks and months of your program, you will have five live sessions with an instructor that are held entirely in Japanese. These sessions are used to go over the supplemental reading and other writing assignments so you can get used to thinking and engaging in Japanese on the fly.

The day and time of these sessions will be determined based on what works best for the you, and live sessions can be held any day of the week.

Over the course of your time learning with us you will experience gains in confidence and knowledge that will set you forward for a lifetime.

Designed to capitalize on the best in education, Maplopo’s story-based curriculum is synchronous, asynchronous, immersive, guided, and tactical. It’s designed for the motivated self-learner who also recognizes being part of a team turns growth spurts into growth leaps.

In just a short time, you’ll find yourself breaking bad habits and cementing new ones that’ll set you further on your current course toward fluency and literacy. And, whether you live and work in Japan or rest beyond its shores, all of what you’ll learn and experience within the virtual walls of Maplopo is purpose-built to enrich your life and provide you with actionable Japanese language skills you can kick into motion on day one.

In addition to the curriculum, our Discord community experience will have you forming bonds with people traveling a path similar to yours—friends and colleagues who just may take you to places you cannot yet foresee. And, the best part? Your access to these communities never disappears. As long as you wish to remain part of our universe you’re welcome to participate.

Your story is written anew each and every day.
We look forward to being a part of it in 2025. 

For 2023 and 2024, individual tuition for Maplopo programs was capped at ¥120,000. On September 1, 2024 we reconverted our program pricing to USD. Currently, tuition is $1,200, and this price will rise in 2025.

It’s also worth noting that as one of our efforts to instill extrinsic motivation among learners, all self-funded learners who complete the course with an overall achievement score of 80% or higher receive a cash back rebate of $100 when reaching this milestone. Learners who are sponsored/reimbursed by a company receive the same cash back rebate under these same circumstances.

And, yep… if you’re thinking: “My company will pay for everything, so that means I can actually earn money taking this course…” you would be correct. Assuming your company would be okay with such an arrangement, given such a generous company sponsorship you could indeed finish the course and EARN $100.

Now, how will we know whether you paid for it out of your own pocket and we should send you 二万円 instead of 一万円? We won’t. But you’re cool, and you’ll tell us. Honor code and all.

What does tuition include? For one, lifetime access to all program material within Thinkific including all future updates to the course. Additionally, while enrolled in the course, tuition covers: email access to the Maplopo reader reviewing each of your ten writing assignments, five live group sessions (all in Japanese), access to our underwritten Maplopo perks program (our regular 人本語で会話, being just one!), and access to our alumni program when you finish. Try to get that sort of opportunity anywhere else. Not gonna happen.

You can view all of what ‘s contained in the course on the tuition page. You can also enroll for a course preview, here.

1. You will need some Japanese. How much? While we serve a mix of students here at Maplopo (and this self-paced program can accomodate even relative beginners), you should consider your skills prior to enrolling as existing somewhere within the “intermediate” zone. This will ensure you can participate fully in your live sessions, and get the most out of the program on the whole. Learners considered “intermediate” would likely be between B1 and B2 using the The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), or somewhere between Intermediate-High and Advance-Low levels using the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) measuring system. (ACTFL is the system used by Middlebury).
2. Language of instruction: Because our primary language for instruction is English, learners will need the ability to understand and communicate in English in order to participate. That said, English does not have to be your first language; some of our most determined and successful learners are, in fact, not native English speakers.
3. Tech: You will need either a laptop, desktop or iPad to participate in the course. A television could work, as well—essentially, you’ll need a device with a large screen. Reason being, PDF and video modules are a core component of the course in our flipped classroom and mobile phones just don’t cut it for visibility. Trying to view a conjugation module, for example, on a small screen is hardly an enjoyable experience! Additionally, you’ll likely want to have some reasonable access to a printer.

A Maplopo learners are unique.

Recent transplant to Japan, or been here forever? Work in tech, higher education, finance, the military…, recruiting? Married? Single? Kids?

Maplopers come from all walks of life, and we are quite proud of this diversity among those who learn with us. To join this exclusive bunch, our best bit of advice is to write from the heart, and apply early. Our rolling admissions schedule helps early birds get the worm, and helps us plan our support headcount so you’re never in a learning group with more people than makes sense for superior learning.

When one of our founders was in college, an art professor shared an important lesson: “If you see a piece of art you like, buy it because it’s unlikely you’ll ever get a second chance to do so.” Maplopers act on their goals. We suppose that’s why you’re here as well.

That said, aside from simply taking the time to fill out the application, here are a few things you might consider when typing yours out:

1. Tell us who you are, not just what you do. Sure, work “forms” us. But, we also want to know what life is like for you outside of work. What’s driving you to make this change in your life at this very moment… have you reached a certain inflection point? Are you building a family? Are you simply working on strengthening your Japanese to enjoy more of what life has to offer you when you get to where you want to be? Are you building something special? Let us know what’s motivating you to be here today—especially if you’ve been here before, and are now ready to move past your hesitation.
2. Be creative. Want to weave your application into a story? Go for it. Want to link to a video, or something else that shows a side of you not so easily captured on paper? Feel free. The point with the application is to show your spirit, your gumption. Tell us why you’re willing to start, and more importantly why you’re willing to finish.
3. Learning with Maplopo is an investment in your future. It will require sacrifice. It will require a weekly time commitment and a certain financial expenditure. Your returns, however, will be immediate as well as slow… and always compounding. You will absolutely get out of it what you put into it. And, you will not be the only person who benefits. Achievement spreads; your fellow Maplopers will benefit, your instructors will benefit, your loved ones will benefit… everyone wins when we all show up. So in your essays here, tell us about that. Tell us why and how you’re going to move around your already busy schedule to make this program work for you. What will you juggle? What will you put on pause? What will you have to do to zero in on this goal? If you need to get buy-in from someone else before applying, maybe, tell us how that went, or how it will go after clicking “submit.” Successful Maplopers clue others in on their journey… who will you tell first? Onward. And, good luck!

If you have a specific question we haven’t covered within the F.A.Q., or elsewhere on the site, please do reach out at: [email protected] You can also schedule a call with a member of our team.