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Coming to Japan with a PhD
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sifu_sensei



Joined: 25 Nov 2004
Posts: 25
PostPosted: Wed Apr 15, 2015 1:38 am    Post subject: Coming to Japan with a PhD Reply with quote
Hi everyone

I am new to the Japan forum and am in my mid-forties, with over 20 years of experience as an EFL teacher. I am just finishing my PhD in Applied Linguistics, which should be awarded next month, and am keen to find work in Japan. I also hold an MEd in English Language Teaching, a BA in Linguistics, the RSA CELTA, and the Trinity TESOL Diploma.

I have experience of working in Europe, South-east Asia and The Middle East, but have never worked in Japan, and I do not speak Japanese. Given my age and lack of Japanese language ability, would it be possible for me to find a reasonable job at a university in Japan?

Thanks in advance for any help or advice.
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kzjohn



Joined: 30 Apr 2014
Posts: 277
PostPosted: Wed Apr 15, 2015 2:19 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
If not already, you should be looking thru the listings at:

http://www.jacet.org/kobo/index.html

https://jrecin.jst.go.jp/seek/SeekTop?ln=1

The second is for many non-ESL things, too, and requires some search terms to narrow down the results.
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rtm



Joined: 13 Apr 2007
Posts: 1003
Location: US
PostPosted: Wed Apr 15, 2015 3:16 am    Post subject: Re: Coming to Japan with a PhD Reply with quote
sifu_sensei wrote:
Given my age and lack of Japanese language ability, would it be possible for me to find a reasonable job at a university in Japan?

Yes, but without Japanese language ability you will likely find that most options are fixed-term positions, limited to anywhere from 1-5 years (e.g., 1 year contract, renewable 2 times; 2 year contract, renewable once; etc.). These would at least get you an 'in' and some experience in Japan (and an opportunity to learn some Japanese), which would make you more competitive for more permanent positions after a few years. Your age is not likely to be a problem at most universities.

As kzjohn said, the JACET and JREC-IN sites are where most university positions are advertised online. The Japanese version of JREC-IN has many more listings than the English version (around 4-5x as many, at least).

You should be aware that the academic year in Japan runs April-March, so you have missed much of the hiring for this year. There is a smaller uptick in positions that start in the second semester (around Sept-Oct, with ads starting to come out now), but the majority of positions start April 1 (with hiring process happening anywhere from October-March).
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nicenicegaijin



Joined: 27 Feb 2015
Posts: 157
PostPosted: Wed Apr 15, 2015 8:32 am    Post subject: Re: Coming to Japan with a PhD Reply with quote
sifu_sensei wrote:
Hi everyone

I am new to the Japan forum and am in my mid-forties, with over 20 years of experience as an EFL teacher. I am just finishing my PhD in Applied Linguistics, which should be awarded next month, and am keen to find work in Japan. I also hold an MEd in English Language Teaching, a BA in Linguistics, the RSA CELTA, and the Trinity TESOL Diploma.

I have experience of working in Europe, South-east Asia and The Middle East, but have never worked in Japan, and I do not speak Japanese. Given my age and lack of Japanese language ability, would it be possible for me to find a reasonable job at a university in Japan?

Thanks in advance for any help or advice.


No problem, I would certainly select your resume as a candidate as one of the hiring committee. The only reason we may select another candidate over you when it came to final selection for interview is that
1. they were in Japan
2. they had Japanese university teaching experience
3. they had references from Japanese universities
4. they could speak Japanese

but there are universities that do like to recruit from abroad and prefer candidates from abroad as they are less jaded, so try to find those and apply. Unfortunately they do not pay as well.
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currentaffairs



Joined: 22 Aug 2012
Posts: 828
PostPosted: Wed Apr 15, 2015 12:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
I think it will take a few years to get a cushy permanent lecturer gig somewhere.. at least in Tokyo, anyway. You would have a better chance of a full-time permanent position in Nagoya or Sapporo, etc.

I know someone with a PhD in a language related field and his Japanese level is at least at level 2 of the Japanese proficiency scale... He is teaching part-time at various private universities in Tokyo and has been for around 10 years now.
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nicenicegaijin



Joined: 27 Feb 2015
Posts: 157
PostPosted: Wed Apr 15, 2015 1:25 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Well he must be choosing to be part-time then. There is no reason why a PhD would not get hired for a full-time position especially with that kind of experience. I am PhD and full time and have been for a long time. I am on 8.5 million as I got an increase this academic year plus a 300.000 research budget. My university isn't in Tokyo, but it is pretty close by. Your friend is selling himself short. Some of my colleagues are Ma and full-time.
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currentaffairs



Joined: 22 Aug 2012
Posts: 828
PostPosted: Wed Apr 15, 2015 1:56 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
nicenicegaijin wrote:
Well he must be choosing to be part-time then. There is no reason why a PhD would not get hired for a full-time position especially with that kind of experience. I am PhD and full time and have been for a long time. I am on 8.5 million as I got an increase this academic year plus a 300.000 research budget. My university isn't in Tokyo, but it is pretty close by. Your friend is selling himself short. Some of my colleagues are Ma and full-time.


He went for a number of interviews and nothing came up.

I know of some full-timers with just a MA but they are in the minority now. Mostly old timers who were employed 10 years ago. If you look at the university job listings they are now almost all asking for a PhD for full-time positions.

Also, it is one thing to be employed on a fixed contract full-time (3-5 years) and quite another to have tenure which seems very rare. A lot
of part-timers can make more than a lot of the full-time jobs advertised.

Are you a tenured lecturer or on a fixed, renewable contract?
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nicenicegaijin



Joined: 27 Feb 2015
Posts: 157
PostPosted: Wed Apr 15, 2015 2:13 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
He musn't be any good at interviewing then as he has the quals they want and then some due to the PhD.
I don't agree with you that the majority of candidates have a PhD. I am on the hiring committee so can tell you first hand the PhDs are the exception. Most of our applicants are MA +3-10 years experience and not all are TESOL. We even get some BA applications that we throw in the trash. Give it 10 years and there will be the new wave of PhD online people that will b