Job Discussion Forums

[chirp]

I have my heart set on working in a school in the Tokyo area because I have friends and family that live there.

Does any one care to share their experience and advice regarding working in Tokyo specifically?

I just want to be as prepared as I can for the experience to come; good and bad!

[mrjohndub]

If you are going to work for one of these companies, don't 'plan' to work in any one particular area. They will place you wherever they have a vacancy that they need to fill. I'd advise you not to seem too determined to push for one city or area or they may not view that kindly when deciding whether or not to to offer you a position.

[PAULH]

[chirp]

I like the idea of the satellite cities. I was also considering Yokohama although it is a bit farther afield then I would like to be.

I was hoping to sell the idea of a placement in Tokyo in that I would be more likely to stay since I have a built in support group. I don't need to be right next door to family and friends I just don't want to be a 5 hour Shinkansen trip away.

But perhaps you are both right, and I am being naive. Any other suggestions? Should I not even mention the friends and family bit?

[PAULH]

[PAULH]

P.S. Although I can understand you wanting to be where all the action is and there are some who like Tokyo (personally i cant stand the place) but you also have to deal with noise, overcrowded trains, pollution smog, high prices, exorbitant rents? People who have a reputation for being distant and cold to foreigners?

Most people I hear of living there find that the traffic and trains and congestion simply wear them out after a while. Getting anywhere takes a long time and I hear often its hard to meet up with people as they often come from different directions have long train rides and you have to book meetings weeks in advance.

Im not saying that living in Tokyo is a bad place but it does have its downsides, IMO.

[Willy_In_Japan]

When I applied to GEOS, they asked me my preferences, and I told them that I had a friend in the Tokyo area, and that I would really appreciate being able to travel to Tokyo to meet up with my friend. A 'reasonable' commute would be desireable.

Well, they told me of course that they couldn't guarantee me anything, and that I had to accept the contract before I would be assigned a school, and that they would mark down my preferences.

When I finally got placed, the recruiter was happy for me, and remarked that she 'couldn't believe' that they placed me in Kanto. (Apparently rare for new hires to get their preference). Despite being in Kanto, I was still 'in the country' and had to commute a few hours to get to my friends place.

Many ALT companies fill schools in Tokyo, so that might be a better bet than going with one of the big conversation schools.

[mrjohndub]

PAULH, Sendai one hour from Ikebukuro? What?!

(If that was a joke you were playing on the OP, then props on the joke.)

[chirp]

Perhaps I should have mentioned that I have traveled a bit in Japan and was actually thinking of Hiroshima when I mentioned the 5 hours by Shinkansen!

I am not going to Japan to see my friends and family there. I am going because I want to experience the culture, try things that I didn't get to do when I was there on holiday, definitely teach English and see more Sumo matches! Of course, teaching English will always be the first thing on the list when I am applying!

I fully understand that I am there to work and not expecting it to be a working holiday. To be honest, if I didn't want the opportunity to catch up with my little cousins from time to time (not every week), then I would probably ask for the Takayama area or Nikko as I really enjoyed these two cities when I was touring about.

I once worked for a company in Canada that made you sign an employment contract first without telling you where you would be based. If you couldn't move to their chosen location for whatever reason, you forfeited your right to work for the company again in that role. I was always lucky but really dislike the power that kind of "sign first, we'll tell you your location later " clause gives the employer. Thanks for the heads up that I will be at their mercy though!

Another question: What if I sign a contract (and I know with Aeon there is a $50 fee to show that you are serious) but ultimately really won't go to where they propose. I understand they might just throw my application in the garbage at that point and that would end my desire of going to work in Japan (with that company anyway). My question is: Does anybody know of any other legal ramification that might pose or any other consequence that may arise?

Thanks for all the feedback!

[Willy_In_Japan]

Geos told us in recruiting that if we signed a contract, and they went to the trouble of getting us a visa, and arranging for a job...that if we DIDNT go after that, they would bill us for the cost of the visa and any lost revenue. They implied that they might even sue us if we didn't pay.

Now, this is just how I recall it, so it might not be totally accurate. Let's say, I didn't want to see if they were bluffing.

[stillnosheep]

If you are accepted by Aeon, you are asked to state your preferences re location and/or type of school and no contracts are exchanged until you agree on a particular school. Obviously the more tightly you circumscribe your acceptable locations the longer it may take until a suitable vacancy comes up but 'Tokyo' is a pretty big place with lots of schools...

[Glenski]

[johanne]

If you really have your heart set on Tokyo you could come here on a tourist visa and try and get the job once you get here. This is assuming your friends will put you up and that you have several thousand dollars to tide you over until your first paycheque. Of course it's riskier and more expensive than coming over with the big language schools, but you would get to control the location. If you are Australian or Canadian and under 30 you could also come on a working holiday visa. Good luck

[Willy_In_Japan]

Glenski,

They implied that they would pass on the cost of recruiting another replacement to you........plus if the school you were assigned to lost revenue because you didnt show up as promised.

They have offices in Toronto and Im sure that that if it wasn't an empty threat that they would do anything like that from their recruiting office and not from Japan.

Im not saying it is justified, but that is their thinking on it, and I didnt want to find out if they were bluffing.
They threw a 10,000 dollar figure around which they would 'recover'......I have my doubts too, but I didn't want to test my theory.

[Glenski]

Pass along the cost of recruiting? How are they ever going to do the math for it?
1. Cost of sending recruiters here, plus putting them up in a hotel.
2. Divide that by the hundreds of candidates they see.
3. Prove all of the records involved in 1 and 2.

Not likely. They are blowing smoke.

As for schools losing revenue, what a joke of a threat. Like I wrote earlier, GEOS has so many offices and teachers that it's a snap for them to reassign someone to take an empty slot. No loss of revenue at all. Besides, what are they going to do to calculate that loss of revenue? Figure how many classes you would've taught, divide by the theoretical number of students you would have had (VERY theoretical and constantly changing, by the way), and figure on their fees? Oh, and how about charging you for the electricity and other overhead for using that room? Blowing in the wind.

The amount of time and effort it would take to do all of that would be more than what's needed to warm your seat with Joe Teacher from Kansas, Toronto, Sydney, or Devonshire, who is currently at a post in the next city or prefecture. So, the real time and cost it would take to find your replacement is about 40 yen for the phone call, 5 minutes for the conversation, and that's it.

I can understand your fears at the time, but it's always a good move to take a step back and think realistically about things like this.