Can we use 学生 to represent a person who learns martial arts?


Can we use 学生 to represent a person who learns martial arts such as 合気道?




If you're thinking of relatively casual karate/aikido classes mainly for
children and hobbyists, the most common word for their students is **生徒**. 生徒
is the most natural choice for private classrooms for cooking, Yoga, abacus,
piano, swimming, baseball, and almost everything.

  * **弟子** (="disciple") is a more serious and bigger word. Some schools may unconditionally call their students 弟子, but this word can often imply a strong relationship with their master, almost like that of a family member. One master can have one hundred 生徒, but typically takes on only a few true 弟子. Think of Goku and Master Roshi (Kame-sennin) in _Dragon Ball_.
  * **徒弟** is another uncommon synonym for 弟子.
  * **門下生** is another good word for those who belong to a certain faction and train martial arts or other skills seriously (professionally or semi-professionally). Here 門 means faction.
  * **門人** and **門弟** are synonym for 門下生, but are much rarer.
  * **学生** is, as others pointed out, an academic-sounding word. This usually refers to students who belong to universities, colleges and sometimes high schools.
  * **研修生** (lit. "trainee") doesn't have a strict definition, but it tends to mean someone who wants to be a professional but is still below professional level. Eight-year-old karate kids and hobbyists are usually not called 研修生.




If you're thinking of relatively casual karate/aikido classes mainly for
children and hobbyists, the most common word for their students is **生徒**. 生徒
is the most natural choice for private classrooms for cooking, Yoga, abacus,
piano, swimming, baseball, and almost everything.

  * **弟子** (="disciple") is a more serious and bigger word. Some schools may unconditionally call their students 弟子, but this word can often imply a strong relationship with their master, almost like that of a family member. One master can have one hundred 生徒, but typically takes on only a few true 弟子. Think of Goku and Master Roshi (Kame-sennin) in _Dragon Ball_.
  * **徒弟** is another uncommon synonym for 弟子.
  * **門下生** is another good word for those who belong to a certain faction and train martial arts or other skills seriously (professionally or semi-professionally). Here 門 means faction.
  * **門人** and **門弟** are synonym for 門下生, but are much rarer.
  * **学生** is, as others pointed out, an academic-sounding word. This usually refers to students who belong to universities, colleges and sometimes high schools.
  * **研修生** (lit. "trainee") doesn't have a strict definition, but it tends to mean someone who wants to be a professional but is still below professional level. Eight-year-old karate kids and hobbyists are usually not called 研修生.

