[NTREEG]

You could come over on a pre-college student visa and enroll at a Japanese Language School. That's what I'm doing now. Don't be confused by the "pre-college" title. I've long since finished university...it's just a name they give to the visa status. The biggest hurdle to getting the pre-college student visa is having enough money in the bank. Immigration wants to see you have about $20,000 USD in the bank to grant you a Certificate of Eligibility for obtaining your visa. They want to make sure you have enough money in the bank to cover your living expenses for a year without working. Whatever language school you apply to will handle the visa application and details for you. But keep in mind, you need to apply 6 months before you plan to attend language school. It takes a few months (3 or 4) for the Certificate of Eligibility to process and about a month for the actual visa application to process. Also, there are certain deadlines by which schools must submit their applications to the government.

Other than money and bank statements, all you really need is your high school diploma and transcripts (originals, they don't like copies), passport, and some 3 X 4 cm ID photos for your visa application. When you get to Japan, they'll give you an interview at your language school to assess your current language ability and put you in the appropriate level class.

If I may make a suggestion, learn to read and write hiragana and katakana before you start language school. It'll help you progress a lot faster.