Sorry, I wasn't meaning to shit on it, if that's how it came off! I actually saw those stats when doing some research. Just making the point like you said, that anything below N2 doesn't really seem to have much job currency. I'm definitely not thinking I'd be able to breeze through the N5 test. I'd definitely fail it if I had to take it right now with my current state of knowledge.
Ah, I see. Yeah, N2 and N1 are where they actually start to matter to employers and universities. That being said, I don't even care really -- I just use JLPT as a way to make sure I don't get lazy. 笑
If you fail one part of the JLPT, you fail the whole test regardless. So if you're weak in one area it may hinder your chance of success.
This. This so fucking much.
I passed the N5 in 2013. I failed the N4 in 2014 by one point. One fucking point. Had around 85% in every category, but was under the mark in grammar. That single point cost me the entire exam >.<
2015 has been an inconsistent year for me, with not much studying in the first half of the year, and now a lot in the later half. So I think I'll try the N3 in Japan in December 2016. Even then though, I put my shot at 50/50. もっと漢字を勉強しなければなりません！
I need to take the JLPT one day.
Problem is where I'm at it would be a several hour drive/hotel nights stay/time off work/etc and I have no real reason to do it other than for personal satisfaction.
My listening is quite shit and waaaaay behind my reading though.
If it's any consolation, the listening section isn't as hard as you're probably imagining. Get some of the newer JLPT practice books. Most of them come with a CD that follows the exact format of the test. Learn how they approach the questions and you'll improve your chances drastically.
What also helped me with listening was learning to listen through Japanese ears rather than English ones. In English we tend to put all the vital information at the front of the sentence, but Japanese often does the exact opposite -- especially since vital verb conjugation comes towards the end and can change the entire meaning of the sentence.
Also, they will try and fuck with you. Sometimes you'll get a 30 second dialog of two people shopping, and then at the end the question will be something like "What did x want to buy?". So you have to pay attention, but don't get bogged down on all the little minutiae.
I'd say:
That said, N5 Listening will be much easier than N4 listening, so if you don't have much listening/speaking practice, consider starting now.
I generally agree with this too. They pick up the pace of speaking considerably, although I didn't find the construction of sentences much more advanced than the N5.
As for what I actually know in terms of grammar. I would say I have a reasonable understanding of basic particles and their use like: は、に、が、で、の、も、を etc. I understand the use of です、いる、ある in their polite forms. I can conjugate verbs into the ます、ません、ました、ませんでした、ましょう stems. I also know the usual object counters, days, months, time, the use of い adjectives. Other simple things like これ、だれ、ここ,その and so on.
If you haven't already, I recommend giving some attention to て form conjugations, as they feature quite heavily both in daily Japanese, and on the exams. Also, casual forms start becoming a necessity N4 and up, not only for the listening sections, but also just knowing the conjugations of them, because lots of grammar builds off of casual and dictionary forms.
Casual form won't be vital for the N5, but て form definitely plays a bit of a role.
