Japanese Sword Arts FAQ Version 2.7
4. How do I find a school?
The operative word here is "a". Unless you're lucky enough to be living in Japan or an area with a large Japanese community, there may only be one choice in your area, and it may be iaido rather than kendo, kendo rather than kenjutsu, and so forth. In North America, prime areas include: San Francisco, southern California, Seattle, New York City, Vancouver and Toronto.
Lists of dojos can be found on the web as follows:
USA dojo list - maintained by AUSKF:
http://www.rain.org/~galvan/auskf/usdojos.html
Canadian dojo list - maintained by Saskatoon Kendo Club:
http://www.sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca/sports/kendo/candojo.html
UK dojo list - maintained by BKF:
http://www.users.dircon.co.uk/~bka/standard/dojolist.htm
Other lists of dojos can be found on the iaido-l FTP site - check section 5 for details. If you don't have FTP access, send mail to gendzwil@sedsystems.ca and I'll rummage the lists for you.
Bear in mind that the lists may not be complete or may be out of date. If there is nothing in your area or if the contact for your area is a dead end, contact the next closest dojo and ask for help.
4a. How do I evaluate a school?
If you are looking at a kendo dojo, they should be affiliated with the International Kendo Federation through the local federation. For example, dojos in Canada belong to a local federation such as the Ontario Kendo Federation, which is in turn a member of the Canadian Kendo Federation, which is a member organization of the I.K.F. Dojos in the U.S. are likewise linked through a regional federation such as the Pacific Northwest Kendo Federation to the All U.S. Kendo Federation and then to the I.K.F.
If you are looking at a iaido dojo, then a similar association through the I.K.F. would be one sign of legitimacy, or else a link to the Zen Nippon Iaido Renmei. Not all iaido dojos belong to one of the two federations, though. In that case, you should ask what ryu (tradition or school) the dojo belongs to and what the instructor's qualifications are.
For federation-affiliated kendo and iaido, ideally the instructor should be at least yondan (4th degree). But in some isolated areas that is not possible and you may find a junior person doing the best they can.
If you have your heart set on kenjutsu or iaijutsu you are probably out of luck. Instructors are few and far between. If you find a school, be cautious - there are frauds about. Be especially wary if a lot of money is being charged. Kendo and iaido instructors are always volunteer and most legitimate kenjutsu instructors work the same way. Another warning sign is if the kenjutsu classes are offered as one of many styles taught by the same school - "we teach karate, jujutsu, tai chi and kenjutsu at Bubba's Black Belts". Similar to unaffiliated iaido dojos, find out what the ryu is, what the instructor's qualifications are and who his teacher is. If you get unsatisfactory answers or the questions are being dodged, don't join.
Ask if you can observe a class - there should be no problem. When visiting a class, arrive early and stay for the entire class. If you have questions, ask them before class or save them for after class. Be polite.
At the rec.martial-arts FTP site, you can locate the Newbie Guide to the martial arts, which has some good generic advice on locating a dojo.