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PAULH
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 4672
Location: Western Japan
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 Posted: Mon Dec 20, 2004 1:39 pm Post subject: |
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| Zzonkmiles wrote: |
| Anyway, so that my post is not entirely off topic, with the ever tightening requirements and credentials needed to get a job as a uni prof in Japan, does anyone think that perhaps Japan will soon start to see a DECREASE in the amount of foreigners looking for work here because so many of us are discouraged and simply don't think Japan is worth it anymore? I mean, seriously, I know many people who are wondering why they even came here to begin with because the small amount of coin they're making just doesn't offset the language barrier, cultural isolation, and overall package of being so far away from home and your own comfort zone... |
Zzonk are you referring to foreign university teachers or English teachers in general? I have one friend who left Japan a couple of years ago is teaching at a uni in Australia yet wants to come back to Japan. Taikibansei is now teaching in the US. I am making plans to move in a year or two (been saying that the last 5 years) as i complete my studies.
Despite the falling salaries once you get locked in with wife and kids its pretty hard to leave and salaries back home are not always enough unless you have decent qualifications and experience. How manay uni teachers have enough to get a decent teaching job back home? The last two years i jumped through the job-hunting hoops (30-40 interviews, finally got one through connections) but its not something I want to do on a regular basis. Single guys it may be easier but i do know there is a great deal of anxiety among part timers about falling koma, increased competition and even the Japanese teachers are beginning to feel it too.
People will still come here for culture, language, J-girlfriend, whatever. Money is not always the driving issue. At least its not really with me. You have to like being here, like the people, like the culture enough to want to stay. There will always be people of course who are driven by the bottom line, and go home when it becomes 'unprofitable' exchange rate wise. I cant speak for other people, but if you learn the language here, develop some skills, learn to network and find your way around you develop a 'comfort zone' of your own where Japan after a while feels less like a foreign country, but 'home'. Go back home after a few years and you feel like a fish out of water soon enough, with reverse culture shock kicking in.
You also have the worry of what you will do when you go back home at 30, re-train for a new career etc, catching up with your peers etc. |
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Rice Paddy Daddy
Joined: 11 Jul 2004
Posts: 425
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Mon Dec 20, 2004 2:24 pm Post subject: |
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| PAULH wrote: |
I cant speak for other people, but if you learn the language here, develop some skills, learn to network and find your way around you develop a 'comfort zone' of your own where Japan after a while feels less like a foreign country, but 'home'. Go back home after a few years and you feel like a fish out of water soon enough, with reverse culture shock kicking in.
You also have the worry of what you will do when you go back home at 30, re-train for a new career etc, catching up with your peers etc. |
I agree with these comments. I have felt the same way.
Don't expect anything from any of these countries that we teach in.
Japan is not an attractive country to teach in for a variety of reasons. Teachin universities in Japan is VERY different than other countries in that more and more schools are now only offering limited term contracts.
Moreover, I find the Japanese a lot more difficult to work with than say the Chinese, who are a lot more laid back.
Overall, I would not be looking for a university teaching position in Japan unless I had to be there for family reasons, etc. |
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