Job Discussion Forums

[nccknight]

Recently I've been considering teaching abroad and was hoping I can get some guidance from those that are currently teaching in Japan and from those that have been there before. I know with the NOVA situation this isn't the most opportune time to go abroad but hopefully by the time I finalize my decision whether or not I will go the market in Japan would have stabilized.

I've skimmed a few months worth of posts on this forum as well as the newbie forum and have gotten some idea but still have plenty of questions.

I would have to get some sort of teaching certification. I'm wondering what kind of certification is sought after in Japan? A friend of mine is also planning on going abroad and has signed up to take a TESOL course through www.globaltesol.com (she would be going to class here in New York City). Is Global Tesol (or something similar) something I should consider going through also? I've seen mention of other advanced certifications on these boards but I'm not at those steps yet in my life.

My friend is also going through www.globaltesol.com because they will help her in placement as well (she's planning on going to Shanghai). Ideally it would be convenient to go through an organization like this that I can get a cert. as well as help in placement. I've heard of the JET program and I'm currently weighing the pros and cons. Can anyone recommend an organization I can go through?

I'm sure I'll have more questions as I continue my research. Any help and advice that anyone can provide me will be much appreciated.

Some background info:

Soon to be 26 years old. American citizen, Filipino ethnicity. Born and raised in the United States, spending all my years in New York the past 8 years being in New York City. I have a BA in Economics from New York University. I've taken Japanese and French since High School and through College but by now it's degraded down to a basic level. The past 2 years I've been working as an Assistant Accounts Manager at a law firm. No teaching experience. Any other information that would help please let me know.

[maya.the.bee]

if you're considering JET, do the application right now. today. they only take applications once a year and the deadline is the first week of December. if you're accepted you wouldn't come to Japan until late July/early August.

as for the training certs....the consensus seems to be that they're pretty useless here.

[Glenski]

Start with reading all four of the FAQ stickies at the top of this page.

[nccknight]

maya.the.bee and Glenski, thank you for the replies.

One of my main concerns with JET is that the applications are due rather soon and I'm still undecided if I'm even going to go. Also the drawn out process is a slight problem for me. The flexibility is something I am looking for.

I know the NOVA situation is still fresh but has the market begun to adjust to the situation? Have salaries begun to drop (that anyone knows of)? If the economics don't add up then this path isn't something I can take.

I can ask all these questions to people like Global Tesol but they're just going to sugar coat everything just to make me sign up for classes. As for the guarantee I would write that off as a sunk cost anyway. It's as if I went back to school. There was no guarantee for a job waiting for me after I graduated NYU.

[AgentMulderUK]

My advice to you is simple; get a job elsewhere unless you have a special interest in Japan.

You have good qualifications , you can earn much more in another industry. Job security here is almost non-existent, with almost no prospects for any sort of promotion (and that is nothing to do with Nova).
You are just a number, essentially, Gaijin 23 or whatever, always　replaceable. Don't let the smiles fool you. The teaching industry here is mostly(note mostly) a farce.

Of course if you have a special interest in some aspect of Japan then it is always going to be worth a try ,as then you will have something to enjoy in your own time.

Unless you are going to go the whole hog and do MA's and get really good at Japanese and work at a real company or Uni, the jobs here are just pretend jobs really. The long termers that may post here have done just that and have really good jobs and lives , at least those I have met in real life anyways.

By the way, TEFL qualifications here are almost irrelevant for most positions, almost never actually checked by any employer and understood by even less. I did one but it was pretty much unnecessary as most of the techniques you probably learned just don't apply here due to the mindless techniques used for teaching kids here at their schools. But it might give you confidence and some teaching practice if you need it.

Sadly, as Glenski noted, your DNA won't do you any favours here. Japanese is a pretty racist country, although you won't feel it directly, you may feel it indirectly. And yes I am telling it straight , unlike a lot of the Japan-lovers here who excuse any Japanese shortfall as "It's their culture". There is good and bad here,as any place, and I am in favour of pointing out both sides.

Also note that Japan is a backward country as regards individual rights, particularly employment rights. If you think English teachers get a raw deal, just speak to the locals. The company owns their soul.

mmm overall a negative post there. Oh well,thats how it is. Sorry 'bout that.

Yes I am cynical, but I am also realistic.

[Glenski]

[nccknight]

Let me explain what I meant by flexibility. The JET application is due soon and I am still unsure whether or not I set my sites on teaching abroad. The flexibility is the ability to apply when I do decide.

I don't expect someone to just walk up to me and hand me a job (though that would be nice). My reasoning for not just applying and making my decision later is that if I were to decline for any reason it can cause an employer to look negatively at it and would make re-applying at a later point even harder. I've experienced this from being on the employer side of hiring.

I don't understand the bit about me being impatient. Markets can adjust gradually, or they can adjust overnight. You're right in that the employers have the negotiating power on their side at the moment which is why I asked about the salaries. If I were an employer I would have dropped the salaries even more.

I have been doing research, and the numbers I've seen are still inconsistent. The FAQs on this forum (updated January 2007) has the baseline at 250,000 yen per month with some lows 30-40k below that. I've seen numbers saying 200-230k.

The members of this board are the ultimate source for research. The information provided here directly from teachers is the freshest and usually more accurate than any other source. The help is greatly appreciated by me and I'm sure by many others.

[southofreality]

[kita]

I'm going to suggest that you apply for the JET program regardless of your fears. If pay is important to you, JET is pretty much going to be the best salary you can get in Japan with no teaching experience/credentials. And that 250,000 baseline is dropping fast. Most first time ALTs would be lucky to get that as a starting wage right now. I'm a JET and what I take home each month, with taxes and insurance taken out, is more than the starting salary of all the dispatch and eikaiwa companies that seem to be hiring at the moment. Plus I had my airfare paid for and I get a rent subsidy.

Also, JET isn't really an employer. It's more like a placement program. They don't blacklist people who pull out of the application process unless they pull out after they're given a placement (which essentially is the point at which a JET is officially 'employed' by a BOE). So don't worry about applying and then changing your mind.