Job Discussion Forums

[Aesthete]

I suppose it could summed up that it really doesn't matter where you end up working, but whom you end up working with. You could work at one of the greatest companies in the world, but if you particular boss is mean, and your co-workers are mean, you won't enjoy it. Same can be said for NOVA. You could have a great boss, great co-workers and love it, while someone at another branch could be in the opposite situation.

People tend to complain more then compliment - keep that in mind... and keep your chin up!

[furiousmilksheikali]

[24601]

[Inflames]

During the day you talk to people you know. In all honesty, you don't know who is who (aside from people you know), especially with new people. You don't know what floor people will be on and what shift they'll have. Once I was on my floor, it took all of 2 days for me to go out drinking with people from the floor (and nobody I trained with works on my floor). You really talk to people with the same shift on the same floor.

And, if you don't work night shifts, you'll almost certainly have consecutive days off. In fact, everyone I know except night shift people started with consecutive days off.

[Margot]

Hey Nachosamurai,

I worked at the MM centre for 18 months until this summer, and, overall, had a great time- I wouldn't worry about those overly-negative comments. And I always had consecutive days off, even when I worked the night shift (which I did this summer, so probably I met a couple of you posters, unless you slept in the tatami room 2-5...). It's a bit of a bubble at MM, but if you want to make an effort- study Japanese, live with people other than Nova teachers, actually get into Japanese culture- it's perfectly possible. Then again, if you want to finish your shift at 22.50, head down to Spatz for a few, have an 800Y drink at Mojos, some tequila shots at Y's then spend 3 hours screaming Bonnie Tyler in a Big Echo karaoke booth before getting the first train home at 5.30... well, then, that's perfectly possible too.

I think what people get hung up on with Nova (on a day-to-day rather than Big Picture basis) is that it stringently applies some standards of 'professionalism' (e.g. must wear a suit/shave/turn up right on time) but then treats instructors like temps (with fairly good reason, I suppose); it's not interested in your personal development, or your teaching theories or ambitions, or even what your specific strengths and weaknesses are regarding the job (unless you generate any student complaints, at which point it'll become very interested). Once you're trained you'll have a few observed lessons to check you're not totally off the rails, and then for the vast majority of your time there you'll work independently; you check your schedule on the computer each day and then just go off and teach what's on there.

There are lots of decent supervisors (green-tags) at the moment- at least on the 14th floor, where they promoted a new group this summer- but there's always the chance you'll get someone with a total personality defect; a couple of the people I started with had fairly unpleasant supervisors, and it can be a downer because Nova tend to throw you in at the deep end at first (it's a very short training period) and it's nice to have someone supportive to help you out. But whatever they're like, it's best to keep a good relationship with your supervisor, as they'll have a lot of say in what extra things you're trained for (after probation) and can generally have an effect on your quality of experience at MM, even if you don't see them much.

I've worked in factories before, and Nova is absolutely not this bad- Yamanote, have you ever spent 8 hours putting the middle pasta layer in ready-made lasagne?- but it does get repetitive. For your first few weeks you'll be busy enough learning the ropes with the basic conversational lessons; after probation you'll start doing short courses; but after this there's the danger you'll get stuck in a comfort zone, bleating out the same old lessons day after day until you know them off by heart (I can still do most of the Intermediate Grammar lessons in my sleep, and some of the Comprehension tracks still haunt me... if I say 'abnormal manifestations' I'm sure a few Nova instructors will reach for a drink). Try to get trained for as many different things as possible so you have a varied schedule; you can teach Kids, Junior High, Business and various other types of lessons, but the one thing that stopped me losing it after 8 months or so were the CATs. These are tests you give to new Nova students to decide their ability levels; they really are more interesting than lessons. But even with the CATs, I wouldn't have liked to stay at Nova any longer than 18 months- all respect to people who do (and they're usually the people who help the constant stream of newbies out with nightmare lessons and crazy LS memos). You might want to start working on your Exit Strategy after the sixth month mark (I don't mean leave right then, but maybe think about whether you're going to sign on for another year and what the alternatives are), because if you feel secure about what you're moving onto next you can enjoy MM for what it is rather than getting too stressed about the negatives. Still, this is all far in the future for you... I hope you have a great time out there, and are welcomed by decent roomies, nice supervisors and a grateful handshake from the president of Nova for coming out to help with the busy MM centre. Or maybe just the first two.

[yamanote senbei]

[Rorschach]

We'll assume you haven't then. To put it in perspective, there is very little difference in terms of the work being done at the MM Centre and a regular Japanese company (i.e. computer work, talking to clients, clocking-in/out, occasional feedback/evaluation sessions) except MM instructors work less hours and aren't required to do overtime. Anyway, all of this is moot as Nachosamurai will make up his own mind once he has worked there for a while.

[nachosamurai]

Well, I've been busy packing but its been very interesting to come back and read all the replies. Thanks for all the feedback. So far as the poster(s) trying to warn me off or whatever, its a job. I've had good jobs and I've had bad jobs, and somehow I doubt that Nova's gonna be any worse than the worst of my bad jobs, so I'm not too concerned. I've made up my mind, I want to live and work in Japan, and I want to do so now... I'm not going to get too scared of a potentially bad job situation to cancel my acceptance of employment based on *anything* I read on the internet.

As far as boredom, seems like most jobs are pretty boring imo, at least the ones I've had. I did a lot of data entry as I worked through college, running on a proof machine is about as tearfully boring as I've ever experienced, and it wasn't *that* bad.

And I might not win any friends with my following thought, but I really couldn't care less about teaching methodology or any of that. Its a job to me, I don't have an overwhelming desire to teach "by my own methods" or anything, I'll play by Nova's rules. And although shaving will be a bitch, I figure I can manage that and have no problem with professional appearance otherwise.

Basically what I'm saying is, everything that I've heard, good and bad, leaves me with the impression that I'll like working at the MM better than a lot of my jobs, or at the very least, I'll like it as well as the others.

I have no burning desire to ensure that Japanese people can speak English better, this is a job that's a means to my very specific goal: live in a foreign country for a few years.

Given that, I feel extremely optimistic about the future.

And for the record, the "slave labor scam" comment was just a drastic exaggeration to assure people that their honesty wasn't going to scare me into breaking a contract or anything silly like that... be that as it may, I think we just might have a slumber party... lol no need to get all sensitive because people don't agree with you that Nova sucks, ya know?

[rebecca432]

I have also been hired by the MM and will leave for Osaka in January. I will admit that a lot of the bad stuff about Nova has me a little frightened but it can't be worse than some of the other jobs I've had. I figure I can work at Nova for the contract period and then jump ship to another company, go to China or Korea, or come home and get a 'real' job <shudder>. Hope to meet some of you when I come to Japan.

[Zzonkmiles]

I am the person who wrote that lengthy thread about the MM Center maybe a year or two ago. I am still in Japan and my time at NOVA seems like a blur because of how much has happened to me since I stopped working there.

Working at NOVA MM is not so bad. But this depends a lot on how you feel about teaching per se. Serious language teaching is different from being serious about your teaching responsibilities at NOVA. The serious professional teacher will probably not feel comfortable working at NOVA because of the constraints on creativity placed by the NOVA teaching system. The well-intentioned person who plays by the rules even if they don't particularly care much for NOVA will probably be better off there because they may not place so much personal emphasis on the quality of the actual teaching and learning that goes on there.

MM offers a variety of schedules. So it is possible to get off work at about 6pm. Or you could work overnights. Or you could get off work at almost 11pm. It's up to you. It takes a lot of waiting to get Saturdays and Sundays off, although the bonuses NOVA offers for working on Sundays makes those very popular days to work.

The biggest beef I have with NOVA is the lack of holidays. My experience in Japan has changed TREMENDOUSLY as a result of switching jobs. There's something about being able to check out a festival or travel a bit during Golden Week or simply being able to come home at 6 or 6:30 every night. NOVA teachers get no national holidays off and are more likely to work until 9pm or 11pm at the MM Center. That puts a serious cramp on your social life and is akin to forcing you to experience Japan from behind a glass cage.

If you are not going to live in Japan for more than a year or two, NOVA should be more than adequate. For those of you who are thinking longer term, it might be better for you to consider trading up and getting a job with better working hours. These jobs tend to require a bit more responsibility, however, as you have to plan the entire lessons and curriculum by yourself, instead of working with the preset materials NOVA provides. I'm talking about jobs in public or private schools, high schools, senmongakkos (vocational schools), businesses and universities. I am in my 4th year in Japan now, so making this transition was a very wise step for me, as it has allowed me to experience Japan in a whole new and more enriching way. If you plan on returning home after 10 or 14 months, then NOVA should suit you fine.

[prlester]