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GoGoHorrorshow · Joined: 20 Apr 2009 Posts: 16

Hello all,
I�ve been lurking around here for awhile trying to read up on everything as much as possible so I can make an informed (and less noobish) post. After a lot of hours spent poring through the posts and google searches, I still have a some major unanswered questions.

First off, I will be graduating this June 2009 and getting my B.S. in Psychology from UCSD. I am not certified for teaching anything, and I don�t really have teaching experience. I do currently have a part-time job (since oct 2008) going into preschools and doing psychological exams on the kids (which we masquerade as picture games). I�ve also worked as a speech therapist for toddlers with autism for about a year. That�s about all the substantial teaching/working with kids experience I�ve had.

I know that I eventually want to go to grad school for my PhD in psych. What I�m wondering now is, how do I coordinate my desire to teach English in Japan with my grad school plans?
I�m going to focus on eikaiwas here. The JET deadline is just not feasible for me, and I have not heard anything good about an ALT job that�s not JET. I have read many times here that the main hiring season is over. I�ve read that the summer months we�re approaching are �dead� hiring periods, and that basically, most of the jobs will be really bad because they�ll be from positions that are open because someone quit or got fired (ie the job environment won�t be good there). What I�ve gathered from this is that it�s a bad idea to apply any other time that�s NOT in Jan-March. However, psych grad school application deadlines are in December-February. Ideally, I would like to leave for Japan in Fall 2009 (Sept would be ideal) so that I can come back by Fall 2010 and have some time to work on my grad school applications before deadline. I know that eikaiwas supposedly hire year round, so I�m wondering, does this �dead� hiring period apply to eikaiwas? Are the positions open at the moment around the same quality one would find if one were applying during peak hiring times?

Because of this timeline hangup, I am seriously thinking about teaching in Korea now. I know that they operate on a more flexible hiring season, so I can basically apply and go as needed. But I would really prefer Japan, because from the sounds of it not many people are as happy with Korea as with Japan, and Korean kids seem a bit more hard to handle.

What do you guys think I should do? Should I try to make Japan work or, considering my timeline constraints, should I look for work in Korea? The most important factor for me is the cultural experience of teaching and living in another country � money/salary is really not a concern of mine, fortunately. Location, however, matters to me a great deal. I am a city girl and location is sort of make or break. I need to be in a major city � Tokyo, Seoul would be ideal, although I�m not ruling out Osaka, Kyoto, Yokohama, or Kobe. But I�m really only interested in the big cities, no suburbs or countryside for me. That being said, at which eikaiwa would I have the best chance of being in Tokyo? I�ve gathered that AEON and ECC seem to be at the top of the heap (although that�s not saying much) but I have heard very little of the other eikaiwas.

OK! Long post, I know. Apologies! I would really appreciate any and all feedback from you guys, as it seems the more I research, the more utterly, utterly confused I become. Please help me out! Or PM me if you�d like. Thank you!

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

GoGoHorrorshow · Joined: 20 Apr 2009 Posts: 16

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

seklarwia · Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 9:56 pm Post subject:

Some people here have recommended GABA but not as a source of full time employment as they pay per class taught, not a salary. So if no one turns up for your classes you don't get paid. So if you are looking for a guarenteed source of income, look elsewhere. If you are just looking for some extra work on the side, then they might someone to consider.

Apsara · Joined: 20 Sep 2005 Posts: 2142 Location: Tokyo, Japan

Glenski, I would say you need to update your thinking on Gaba. They no longer have a "horrible reputation", which admittedly they did have under old management about 7 years ago when they were cutting pay and changing conditions on their teachers constantly. I was there at the time and I can tell you that under new management things became quite different.

You would be hard-pressed to find a case of teachers complaining about their treatment by Gaba in the last 5 years or so- can you point me to a recent case like that to back up your claim that they have a horrible reputation? I spend a fair amount of time looking at forums frequented by eikaiwa teachers as well, and I don't think I have seen a negative comment about Gaba from a teacher who has actually worked there in quite a long time.

Nova has a horrible reputation. I really don't think you can honestly say that about Gaba any more, or if you do insist on saying it, please back up your statement.

As long as people go in there with their eyes open, knowing that they are basically going to be freelance and will not have a guaranteed income, as I have said before, there are cons but there are also considerable pros.

As for why the OP wants to teach English even with a PhD- some people want to come to Japan just for the experience, you know? To broaden their horizons and all that? Not everyone comes here as a career move. I can imagine that from a psychologist's point of view, Japan in general and also people you find at an eikaiwa could be quite fascinating.

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

Apsara,
Off the top of my head, no, I can't recall any recent specific claims against GABA. Perhaps a stroll through GaijinPot.com would dredge up something, but I'll trust you as someone who has (is now) worked there, but do you know if all branches operate with equal regard? Just a thought because some other large eikaiwa have their regional issues.

NOVA is horrible? Well, aside from having gone bankrupt, I don't know about that. Yes, it has had (and kept) crappy clauses in its contract. It folded, not because of those, but because of poor management of return policies to students. But, it paid on time, offered a format so teachers didn't have to create them, had comfortable offices conveniently located near train stations, etc. Was it perfect for teachers? No, but I wouldn't call it horrible. No firsthand experience here, but that's just my outsider's opinion.

Thanks for the update on GABA. I hope others will add, especially when it comes to the one-on-one lesson scheduling. Have recently heard from a trusted source who interviewed there, and he said the crowd of applicants was very spooky.

Apsara · Joined: 20 Sep 2005 Posts: 2142 Location: Tokyo, Japan

Well, a crowd of spooky applicants does not a bad company make, and every eikaiwa has its weirdos. Gaba doesn't take all comers, and if someone is hired but is too spooky, well, he or she just won't get students. I worked with mainly pleasant, ordinary people when I was there.

I am not working at Gaba now, but was early last year when I had a reduction in my other work and needed to fill in the gap for a couple of months. With Gaba things tend not to vary too much by branch (over the years I worked at 5 or 6)- the management is very hands off and you hardly see them as long as you don't get any complaints from the students.

As for Nova, because I used to work there I find it interesting to keep up with what is going on, and I lurk on another site where Nova situation updates are regularly posted. Recently they have been cutting salaries across the board, even for people who have been working there for years, bringing everybody down to about 270,000 yen- preety nasty for people with families to support who were on 350,000 plus before.

It was 3 students per class when I was there, it's now 5, in booths about the same size as they were before. The textbooks are pretty awful, and people are now banned from using their own materials. There have been numerous cases of "transfer to this faraway school or your contract won't be renewed", memos sent out blaming the teachers for the company's financial woes, and all kinds of other horrible-ness going on. Documentable horrible-ness.

Anyway, I won't hijack this thread any more, I just wanted to point out that Gaba perhaps no longer deserves the "horrible" reputation it once had, but if anyone has any Gaba horror stories to tell, fire away.

GoGoHorrorshow · Joined: 20 Apr 2009 Posts: 16

thanks for your replies guys. it has been pretty helpful, especially the info on GABA.

I've already applied to GEOS online. The website is pretty barebones; i couldn't find any info on how long it would take for them to contact me after i submit the application. I haven't received an email confirmation. Do they notify you at all if they reject your online application?

ECC was also one of my top choices but it looks like they're no longer taking applications at the moment.

Can anyone tell me more about the Berlitz union thing at the moment?

At this point I'm going to apply to AEON and then GABA. As I've mentioned in my previous post, the cultural experience is the most important thing for me and i'm not overly concerned about a high salary. I don't want to work grueling hours and I do want plenty of vacation days, and if I have to take a lower salary for that then so be it. i'd rather have a more laidback experience over there than work like a dog. I can do that here in the States. So GABA seems really good at this point.

The only concern I have with GABA is, and Apsara perhaps you can help me with this since you have worked with GABA before: I am Asian-American and I'm worried that because of this I won't be able to get very many students. I consider English to be my native language but I was born in Vietnam (my family immigrated to the States when I was 3). I became a naturalized citizen when I was 14 but I was raised as, and have always considered myself, an American. How should I approach this issue if it comes up in the hiring process, and will I have problems getting students if i sign up with GABA?

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

As explained many times before, you should not say that you are a hyphenated American. You are an American, period. Don't confuse the issue or employer.

Because you look Asian, there is always the chance that some people (employer or student) will naively suspect that less than perfect English will come out of your mouth. Ignore them. You can't change their opinions.

So, you want short hours and long vacations? Ahem. Don't we all? Take what you can get as a newbie; don't make demands that even the veterans don't get, no matter what the pay. GEOS' site is not "bare bones". It is pretty extensive, but I have yet to see any employer tell people when they will get back to them. Since GEOS hires year-round, they are constantly receiving applications and probably for that reason cannot give a specific (or even general) time frame. You get notified when they are good and ready (that is, when they have a possible opening in sight).

GoGoHorrorshow · Joined: 20 Apr 2009 Posts: 16

Apsara · Joined: 20 Sep 2005 Posts: 2142 Location: Tokyo, Japan

Learning Vietnamese first just makes you bilingual- there are plenty of bilingual people working as English teachers in Japan. Gaba actually hires quite a number of non-native speakers and is an extremely cosmopolitan company- you would be working with people from Africa, the Indian sub-continent, the Philippines and other Asian countries, various European countries, many of whom speak another language but also speak English at a native level, so it's not an issue at all that you speak Vietnamese, as long as you come across as articulate and personable in English- that goes for all English teaching jobs.

Gaba's students are used to the idea that English teachers are not all from Australia or America, as are most Japanese people these days I would say, particularly in the larger cities where Gaba has its branches there are a lot of foreigners nowadays so the stereotypes regarding what an English speaker should look like are fading. How many students you get would depend more on your personality and ability to make them feel that they are learning something than anything else.

guest of Japan · Joined: 28 Feb 2003 Posts: 1601 Location: Japan

If your future plan is really to get your PhD in psych, just go do it. A stint in Japan will not help that goal in anyway, and might actually make it more difficult. If you really want Japan and the career you're following, set yourself up for doctoral research in Japan. There is grant money for it and you'll not be deluding yourself.

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

Chris21 · Joined: 30 Apr 2006 Posts: 366 Location: Japan

Glenski,

How much time do you spend posting to this forum? Doesn't your uni expect more lesson-planning, research, committee work, etc.?