JLPT N3 study plan

Build a 500-card N3 vocabulary deck, tagging every card by part of speech and by kanji-vs-kana so later review sessions can be filtered by weak category.

Learn 150 new N3 nouns, verbs, and adjectives across seven days, reviewing each card at least three times in spaced repetition and saying each word aloud once.

Drill the 60 most frequent N3 kanji compounds by writing each from memory on blank paper, then checking stroke order against a dictionary.

Compile a 40-pair comparison table of easily confused items (transitive/intransitive verb pairs, similar-looking kanji, near-synonyms) with one self-written example sentence per pair.

Add 120 new vocabulary items to the deck while keeping daily review of all week-1 cards under 20 minutes.

Master 25 core N3 grammar patterns covering cause, reason, condition, and concession by writing three original sentences for each pattern.

Rewrite 40 week-1 vocabulary cards as full sentences that each contain one target grammar pattern, checking particle choice in every sentence.

Identify and log the 15 grammar mistakes you make most often, noting the correct form beside each.

Learn 25 further N3 grammar patterns, prioritising those used in formal written Japanese (passive, causative, and nominalising forms).

Read 10 short N3 passages of 200-300 characters each, marking every unknown word and every grammar pattern you recognise.

Convert all marked unknown words from the reading into deck cards, capping the week's new vocabulary at 80 items.

Practise scanning for the topic sentence by summarising each of the 10 passages in one written sentence.

Complete the remaining N3 grammar patterns so that the full pattern list is covered at least once.

Review the entire grammar list and mark each pattern as mastered, shaky, or unknown, then re-drill only the shaky and unknown items.

Read 6 medium-length passages of 400-600 characters, answering the accompanying questions without a dictionary.

Audit the vocabulary deck by deleting cards answered correctly five times in a row and re-tagging the rest.

Begin daily listening: play 15 minutes of N3-level audio each day and shadow the last 30 seconds of each track aloud.

Work through 20 listening task types (point comprehension, summary comprehension, and utterance expressions), noting the exact phrase that signalled each answer.

Read 8 passages combining two information sources (notices, schedules, charts described in text) and practise locating the single decisive detail.

Transcribe 5 short audio clips word for word, then compare against the script to catch misheard particles and contractions.

Listen to 30 short N3 dialogues and answer the question before reading any script, tracking accuracy per task type.

Memorise 60 conversational expressions, fillers, and sentence-final particles by writing each into a short dialogue of your own.

Practise taking notes on numbers, times, and directions while listening, using a personal shorthand of at most five symbols.

Speed up playback of already-transcribed clips by 1.25x to train tolerance for fast natural speech.

Sustain daily 20-minute listening sessions, alternating task types so no single format is practised for more than two days in a row.

Re-test the vocabulary deck and push any card missed twice into a daily high-priority review set.

Read 5 long passages of 600-800 characters under a 10-minute limit per passage and answer all questions.

Review the week-2 grammar error log and rewrite each of the 15 problem sentences correctly from memory.

Sit two full mock exams on separate days under strict timing, with no dictionary and no pauses.

Analyse every incorrect answer by cause: unknown word, misread grammar, rushed reading, or misheard audio.

Re-drill only the items tagged as weak from both mocks, limiting new material to zero this week.

Rehearse exam logistics once: section order, time allocation per section, and the routine for guessing when time runs short.