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RM1983
Joined: 03 Jan 2007
Posts: 360
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 Posted: Thu Dec 18, 2014 9:26 am Post subject: |
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| nightsintodreams wrote: |
People have given some great advice but I still feel like you're selling Japan short.
It's far from easy, you can't come on over on a boat with a degree in hand and be sure to land a $40,000 job, but where can you do that these days?
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| Japan is the worst country one cold target as a viable TEFL destination now. |
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You've got that wrong. Japanese TEFL contracts are among the least lucrative in the Asian EFL industry, if you account for cost of living.
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| Not a lot of history here either. Outside of Kyoto and rural areas, everything is new. |
Comments like the above are clearly not grounded in any version of reality that I'm aware of.
I know people who have got direct hire contracts after one year in country. It's a little optimistic to expect that to definitely happen to everyone I admit, but there's no reason someone who's taught here a couple years and learnt a bit of Japanese can't get a direct hire position at a BOE or school. The average salary of these positions is about 3.5 Million yen a year with health insurance and pension paid but you can find better ones.
Whether or not a long term career is viable isn't really that relavent because the OP made clear that he only wishes to stay to gain a few years experience before going for a DELTA, sounds like a perfectly reasonable plan to me. I have no reason to believe that he won't be able to accomplish that, have a good time and save some money while he's doing it. |
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Perhaps in the way that other countries seem rose-tinted in comparison.
I would ask the OP to think really long and hard about it though, because if what he says about his experience is true (and why not?) then coming here is inviting a step back on yourself I think. You don't wanna go from teacher training and designing curricula to working as an ALT, if you are serious about a career.
But then again back to the original sentence. I do think people rose-tint other countries. I imagine the quality of life I have here is vastly higher than it would be in China, despite being a bit broke sometimes! |
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Shimokitazawa
Joined: 16 Aug 2009
Posts: 458
Location: Saigon, Vietnam
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| Posted: Thu Dec 18, 2014 9:58 am Post subject: |
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This is the reality: Japan is a has-been, as far as TEFL goes. Abenomics has been a complete disaster. The taxes have increased, inflation is increasing while wages have fallen for teaching jobs.
Other reasons to avoid Japan:
Japan is over the demand for English education.
Terrible students who are not outgoing or willing to learn EFL.
Weakening big time of the Yen against the US dollar
Aging and shrinking population.
Economic recession.
Xenophobic, right-wing government and culture.
Nuclear contamination.
Go to China. Go to Vietnam. Go to Korea. But my suggestion is to forget Japan. |
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kzjohn
Joined: 30 Apr 2014
Posts: 277
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| Posted: Thu Dec 18, 2014 11:46 am Post subject: |
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| Shimokitazawa wrote: |
This is the reality: Japan is a has-been, as far as TEFL goes. Abenomics has been a complete disaster. The taxes have increased, inflation is increasing while wages have fallen for teaching jobs.
Other reasons to avoid Japan:
Japan is over the demand for English education.
Terrible students who are not outgoing or willing to learn EFL.
Weakening big time of the Yen against the US dollar
Aging and shrinking population.
Economic recession.
Xenophobic, right-wing government and culture.
Nuclear contamination.
Go to China. Go to Vietnam. Go to Korea. But my suggestion is to forget Japan. |
Kind of down on Japan, huh? |
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nightsintodreams
Joined: 18 May 2010
Posts: 558
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Maitoshi
Joined: 04 May 2014
Posts: 718
Location: 何処でも
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| Posted: Fri Dec 19, 2014 10:24 am Post subject: |
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| Yes, even though the economy is in a tailspin right now, demand for English instruction is on the rise. Now they just need to figure out how to meet demand on the cheap. |
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Shimokitazawa
Joined: 16 Aug 2009
Posts: 458
Location: Saigon, Vietnam
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| Posted: Fri Dec 19, 2014 1:05 pm Post subject: |
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Also, as Japan becomes even more isolationist and xenophobic, and with the current right-wing, nationalistic government firmly in power, the typical Japanese classroom will now focus more on Japanese patriotism, culture, and cultivating the Japanese "spirit." Unfortunately, English language education will have even less long-term priority for Japan. And, as maitoshi comments above, there may be some opportunities. However, these jobs will be at the poverty or slightly above the poverty level.
TEFL in Japan is circling the drain. It's no longer a viable destination for a TEFL career and that's why I believe people should seriously be looking at China, Vietnam, or even Korea. In TEFL, one has to follow the demand. The demand for EFL no longer exists in Japan. Those days are long gone. |
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kzjohn
Joined: 30 Apr 2014
Posts: 277
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| Posted: Fri Dec 19, 2014 2:07 pm Post subject: |
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| nightsintodreams wrote: |
Take a look at the other forums on this site and you'll see that people everywhere are making the same negative statements about whatever country they're in.
Maybe it's the TEFL industry in general, maybe it's the people it attracts or maybe it's just the kind of thing you'll read on any internet forum. |
+1, yes.
My small uni has two if not three hundred chinese students here studying japanese (and english on the side). Word has it that, from the handful that I teach, due to the weaker yen those numbers will be increasing.
There was certainly a blip down after the quake/meltdowns, but that now seems like a distant memory.
And in spite of a couple down quarters (supposed recession), you'd never guess that from the level of new construction--houses and apartments going up.
Life in japan is easy. No hordes/crowds of people, clean air & good tap water (at least outside tokyo), great food, excellent veggies in the grocery stores, and you can walk around without people harassing you or trying to beg or sell you crap--you can actually walk or use a bicycle to go somewhere instead of needing a motorbike to go down the street. And if you're in the system, health care works pretty well here, too. (I know of two people with chronic conditions, who are staying here because they have those chronic conditions.) |
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Shimokitazawa
Joined: 16 Aug 2009
Posts: 458
Location: Saigon, Vietnam
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| Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2014 9:12 pm Post subject: |
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122円 to the dollar yesterday.
Eikaiwa or ALT work starts at about 220,000 ~ 230,000円 a month. That's about US $22,000 a year. Don't forget, unlike Korea and China, you will have to pay for your own rent in Japan. Even if you are forced to live in housing owned by the school - they will still charge you rent.
You'd have to be mad to want to come to Japan to TEFL at this point. |
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mitsui
Joined: 10 Jun 2007
Posts: 1562
Location: Kawasaki
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| Posted: Sun Dec 21, 2014 2:31 am Post subject: |
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I had an interview on Friday for a university job.
Pay starts at less than 240,000 a month.
Yes that doesn't include the housing allowance, but that is low.
Just three years too.
I used to get over 300,000 a month to start.
Sorry to piss on the campfire but wages have gone down.
A minority of people are doing fine.
No wonder these places hire younger teachers - teachers with experience
probably aren't interested. |
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Shimokitazawa
Joined: 16 Aug 2009
Posts: 458
Location: Saigon, Vietnam
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| Posted: Sun Dec 21, 2014 2:32 pm Post subject: |
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| mitsui wrote: |
I had an interview on Friday for a university job.
Pay starts at less than 240,000 a month.
Yes that doesn't include the housing allowance, but that is low.
Just three years too.
I used to get over 300,000 a month to start.
Sorry to piss on the campfire but wages have gone down.
A minority of people are doing fine.
No wonder these places hire younger teachers - teachers with experience
probably aren't interested. |
mitsui,
That's unreal. Is that dispatch opportunity like with Westgate or is this a direct hire at a university? I assume it's a contract and non-renewable position, right? Damn, that's low for a university teaching position. Well, should I say 'good luck' with the interview? Ha, aha! I know, in the end a job is better than no job. What are you going to do - stay or leave and look for something better somewhere else.
And I believe that you are an experienced university and high school teacher from reading your posts. That's just crazy that salaries for experienced teachers have fallen so low. So I guess that crazy guy in Fukuoka claiming to have 20 years experience will read this and get the point now - experience amounts to jack squat in Japan.
Yeah, I recall 350,000 yen a month in Tokyo being pretty standard for a lot of eikaiwa and BoE ALT (direct hire) teachers 15 years ago. Now people are starting the same jobs, many through dispatch, for 220,000 ~ 230,000 a month.
I talked to some Interac dispatch teachers a earlier this year and they said they were starting at 220,000 yen a month. But they were all young, single and right out of college. So the new era in Japanese TEFL definitely favors those who are young. |
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mitsui
Joined: 10 Jun 2007
Posts: 1562
Location: Kawasaki
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| Posted: Mon Dec 22, 2014 7:28 am Post subject: |
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Direct hire, 3 years, that is all.
It was nice that my experience was noticed.
I found work at a high school. Good pay but just for five years.
My wife applied for a visa at the American embassy.
I think I have to put 20,000 dollars in a US bank.
Otherwise I can't get a visa for her since I do not work in the US. |
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Shimokitazawa
Joined: 16 Aug 2009
Posts: 458
Location: Saigon, Vietnam
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| Posted: Tue Dec 23, 2014 5:35 pm Post subject: |
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| mitsui wrote: |
Direct hire, 3 years, that is all.
It was nice that my experience was noticed.
I found work at a high school. Good pay but just for five years.
My wife applied for a visa at the American embassy.
I think I have to put 20,000 dollars in a US bank.
Otherwise I can't get a visa for her since I do not work in the US. |
Interesting. It's hard to believe that that's actually a direct hire university teaching position.
So is 240,000 after deductions for insurance, pension and taxes? I sure hope so! |
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mitsui
Joined: 10 Jun 2007
Posts: 1562
Location: Kawasaki
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| Posted: Tue Dec 23, 2014 11:44 pm Post subject: |
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| I did not add the housing allowance, but yes, before taxes. |
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torentosan
Joined: 02 Sep 2009
Posts: 54
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| Posted: Sun Jan 04, 2015 5:13 am Post subject: Not so great |
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The fact is, wages are going down. English teachers are being offered 50-70,000 yen less for contracts. Also, prices and taxes are going up. Japan is by far not the worst choice you can make, but don't expect to save much. Japanese seem nice at first, but thy don't give a rat's @$$ about foreigners. At least you get good service and you don't have to endure grown men taking dumps on the train. |
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nomad soul
Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world
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| Posted: Sun Jan 04, 2015 6:57 am Post subject: |
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However, that particular linked article, "Tokyo to boost teachers’ ESL for 2020 Olympics," is about sending Japanese English teachers to Anglophone countries for several months in order to strengthen their English skills. It mentions zip about foreign EFL teachers. |
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