Job Discussion Forums

[misoji_blue]

Hello,

I taught English in Japan for about 4.5 years, went travelling for a few months, then returned to Canada nearly 5 years after leaving. I've been home for a year now and am wondering why I ever left Japan. Life here isn't quite what I was expecting. I have a degree in business and decent work experience -- I was a head teacher at my school -- but finding a job here has been difficult. I know quite a few former teachers who were in Korea that are having similar difficulties readjusting to life after Japan.

My question is, what did you do after you left Japan? Have you returned to Japan? Or did you find a successful career when you returned home?

I look forward to reading about your experiences.

[bluefrog]

I'm working for an international shipping company. We mostly ship broadcast equipment for companies like CNN, ESPN, BBC, NHK, etc... I did a lot of preparation before I moved back to the US. I sent out resumes and saved up money.

I miss my friends in Japan and some of the things about society there like good service and reliable public transportation. I'm happy living in the states though. My wife is Japanese and she has adjusted well here, making new friends. I love it when she meets new people and they ask her questions like "How was your weekend?" instead of "Can you use a fork?".

[markle]

Returning home is not a new thing for me. I returned to Oz from Thailand with a great deal of optimism and excitement. But no plan. Big mistake. After a couple years of poverty and boredom coming here was a godsend. Now we are heading back, with a plan, a bit more money, and a realistic take on what we are up against.
Good Luck.

[Glenski]

People living abroad tend to forget that people and events back home move on as usual. Friends and family forget that you are living in some foreign land, and they get tired of hearing you compare it to "home" upon your return. First few stories are cool, but not ALL THE TIME!

People should keep abreast of what's going on "back home", too. TV shows, slang expressions, fashions, etc. all change or come and go. Don't know them? You will be a fish out of water.

If you think you're going to return "home" and get work, PLAN! Plan AHEAD! Plan FAR ahead!
1. Are your new-found skills abroad applicable? What will you need in the job upon your return?

2. Will there actually be a gap in your work history that was related to the field you are entering/re-entering? How will you explain that in an interview, or how will you catch up/keep up?

3. Have you maintained contact with people in the field you left (if it's the one you want to return to)? Have you tried to MAKE contact with anyone else before you return?

I suggest the book The Art of Coming Home for anyone about to return. It's about reverse culture shock.

[JL]

I've done it twice. I returned home to Californian in Early 1991 after 5 and 1/2 years in Japan. And I returned again in August of '04 (After another 11 years). That time, was because we have kids, and it was time for them to be educated in English and to know their father's country. Actually, this year we'll be returning to Japan for one year, again for the kids, because the English/American acculturation part went swimmingly. But a good amount of their Japanese has slipped. But that's neither here nor there...

In my case, I've had to reinvent myself, career-wise, a number of times in order to fulfill this life-style. But because I'm familiar with Japan and can speak that language (as well as type and read it with the assistance /crutch of PC), I have always had something to fall back on.
I do wish I had a secondary skill set. And last year, I started apprenticing as an electrician. I need about 4 more years of that under my belt, and next year will be time away. But my general point is: in these times, going forward, accumulate skill sets. If you can speak Japanese, that is one. If you can acquire another, one that is in demand, you will be all the better.
You need to assess what skills you have, and be honest with yourself. In my own case, outside of Japan, I can find employment or self-employment where being bilingual in Japanese and English is an asset. (And so I do.) Outside of that, I am unskilled. But once I return from Japan in 2010, I'm going to pick right up with learning the electrical trade. I'm also pretty handy in home renovating. What can you do, that not everyone else can do, and that others would be willing to pay you to do?

If your answer to this is, "not much", do not be discouraged. Just know that this is your first task -figuring out what new skill set you need to acquire.
My grandfather used to tell my father, "you gotta have something you 'specialize in.'" Well in today's age, you have to have that, AND, you have to be able to retrain yourself in midstream. Only the flexible will survive. I'm 43 years old, by the way. And tomorrow is the first day of the rest of my life!

[Nabby Adams]

Great post above.

The fact is that the days of just needing a degree are long gone. You need skills and many a "teacher" in Japan goes back home, realizes they don't have any, can't get any decent work and finally come back to Japan. Of course even then they are worse off because they are starting back at the bottom again.

If your plan is to go back home and then decide what to do then you have a high chance of ending up back in Japan.

If you can say what it is that you are going home for, well then, now you're talking.

The irony is that I rekon there will be many a plumber with a degree in future years as social science graduates accept the limited value of their piece of paper.

[steki47]

This thread really plucked at my heartstrings. I spent 5 years straight in Japan without visiting home once. The first 4 years were awesome, but the 5th year was horrible for many reasons. That, plus a family emergency, brought me back.
After a month of seeing friends and family, I started to miss Japan. Bad. This return was not very well planned. Or timed. The jobmarket is generally awful in the States. Plus my social science degree and 5 years of eikaiwa don't mean too much to most American employers. And most of studies can be done online. So I am heading back to Japan.
I plan to jump back into teaching and Japanese life with all my heart and soul, but also plan to maintain better contact with people and stuff back home. I am speaking personally and professionally here. Then, if I ever decide to return to the US again, I can do so with a bit more planning. Like money in my savings and a few interviews lined up.
In short, there is life after Japan. But for me, I like life in Japan better.

[markle]

One strategy that people might overlook is using the internet. And for the most inane things. I know what shows are on TV, I can watch the local news, whatever. Then there are things like facebook, I never was interested but I put up my infant daughter's page as a joke a couple weeks ago and have re-established half a dozen friendships, which has given me some pointers on what job situation, or rental situation is like back home right now.

[misoji_blue]

Cheers for the responses. It was really good to read them. It sounds like a lot of people went through a transition that was more difficult than expected.

The truth is, I wasn't really prepared for my return home. I did keep an eye on the job market throughout 2007, but when I returned home in January 2008, I found it very difficult to even get interviews. Since I have a degree in finance, I thought I might like to pursue a career in the financial industry (that was before the economic crisis). But I quickly realised I had no interest in that field anymore. I supposed I changed a lot while I was away.

The fact is, I have very little experience and limited skills. I went to Japan about 8 months after I finished university, so my only real work experience is as a teacher.

It took me about 3 months -- and well over 100 job applications -- to finally find something here. So now I work in a call centre for a large US bank. I am now evaluating my options, and it seems like returning to Japan makes the most sense. I had a great life there and I liked teaching (most of the time). Also, my girlfriend is Japanese. She's here in Canada with me now and says she likes it. But I think deep down she'd like to return to Japan.

I have a big decision to make. If I do go back to Japan, I think it'll be a permanent move -- I never want to go though what I did in my first 3-4 months back "home" last year.

[steki47]

[JL]

"I have a degree in finance...The fact is, I have very little experience and limited skills."
Well, no one is in any position to tell you what to should do. I would, however, just like to emphasize one more time that a person needs specific, marketable skill sets, to expect anyone to pay them money, in this world. If you do return to Japan, to teach English, and you "think it'll be a permanent move", I hope you're prepared for the full implications of that. If you feel that teaching is your calling, then you're not off track. However, you say that you have a degree in finance. Have you considered making a sideways step into accounting? Whether in Japan, or down here in the States, it seems the classifieds are always full of openings for trained accountants (well, not in THIS economy -and not for the next 1-2years, probably. But in general...).
Even in Japan, many of the multi-nationals need American-trained accountants in their Tokyo offices. Are not Canadian accounting standards the same as in the U.S.? Finance may not be your cup of tea. But perhaps tracking a company's revenues and expenditures, working with a company's customers and vendors on payments, auditing a company's books, might be up your alley(? ) If you've already thought of this, sorry for the unsolicited advice.
Anyway, always be working on a "skill set." Whether in Japan, or back home.

[NorthofAmerica]

Wow. What a timely thread. I clicked on the title and haven't left my screen since. I am about halfway into just about everyone's situations here in one way or another. I can really relate to the OP.

Recently I finished about 2 and half years in Japan. During that time I travelled to Korea, Australia, and China but never back to Canada. In spite of booking my ticket home well in advance it really just never sunk in that I would be in Canada again soon. Maybe by trying my best to soak everything up in Japan before I left I didn't have a clear idea of what it would be like when I got home. Anyway, it's been a surprisingly tough go at things the past few months. And very lonely and alienating too unfortunately. Luckily for me I plan on it being temporary.

Before I left Japan I knew I was sold on travelling so I planned to go to China. But as I was preparing to leave I found out my sister had gotten engaged and will be married in the Dominican Republic this spring. So now I am here from October until at least April just freezing in Ottawa. This is giving me some time to think and gain perspective.

So far it has been an incredibly rough landing. I had a year of research work after school under my belt when I left but I was barely qualified then and teaching experience isn't really a direct foot in the door in too many places. So now I am living in the countryside in a cheaply rented room counting the days and praying on resumes to China. I have started delivering pizzas and landscaping and written off "real" work for now. I will DEFINITELY need a plan for some professional work when I get back.

An idea that has always been in the back of my mind was a one year post grad specialization with an internship to get me back in the game. I now see this as my best and most realistic option and am finally getting serious about schools and programs. I am still gonna try and live the fullest and most satisfying time overseas (and still "see where it takes me") but with a plan to land with my feet running when I come back again. I think going from working pro to bum over a 14 hour flight is part of what the problem was. Next time I land will be different.

Good luck to everybody at this tough junction in life

[natsume]

Great thread.

I am curently a fairly content ALT at a suburban high school, and think I may have a couple more years in me at my current gig. Post-Japan, I am already deep into the planning stages of going directly to grad school back in California for an MA/Credential program, having my eyes set long term on international schools. Life, of course, may (will!) throw its own curve balls, but reading through some of the posts here makes me kind of glad I have been so obsessed over the past year thinking quite seriously about what path I will take when I leave. It is likely I will be back a few years down the road.

[chinagirl]

This is a good thread. I'm also planning to "return" home to the US in the late spring, and it is a scary prospect, particularly in the current economy.

I'm not so worried about myself, as I am a teacher and plan to continue teaching in the public schools back home. I'm more concerned about my spouse, who will no doubt struggle a little bit upon reentry.

My advice for everyone is to keep your skills, whatever they are, current when in Japan - even if you think you're not ever going to leave. You just don't know what the future may hold. If you're a teacher, work on professional development and make sure you have the needed credentials for your home country, even if no one cares about those credentials here.

If you're in another profession, take online courses. Study. Attend conferences. Network online. Don't lose touch with old contacts. Facebook and Linked In are good for this.

[flyer]

interesting thread

yes the grass is always greener!
There is so much negative stuff written about Japan it was nice to read the above real life comments.
Japan is far from perfect but it is a good place to live, and yes job opportunities back home are a lot worse than a year or so ago