Job Discussion Forums

[timothypfox]

Ok, my situation is like some others I've read here.

I worked in Japan for GEOS from 1997-1999 and then moved back to Canada, and now teach at a high school in New York City. I am disallusioned with public education, and in fact left the eikawa world in Japan because I had to take care of some family issues back home, and eikawa's in Canada/US did not pay enough to have a family.

I have an MS TESOL and experience as a teacher (but now 38 years old) - what are my chances of getting hired as an ALT or back into an eikawa? (at least this route to get my foot back in Japan) I have a Japanese wife I met in New York, and she is from Kagoshima - but we would also consider Fukuoka as a place to live. Kagoshima would be preferable because the lower rent would actually give me close to the same salary as a public school teacher makes in New York after rent. (If you are in NY, do the math and see).

[Glenski]

Why on earth would you want to return to eikaiwa or an ALT life here? Make better use of your MS and experience. If you have a license to teach, apply at international schools.

If you have publications, look into universities or junior colleges.

Kyushu doesn't have the best hiring situation in Japan. You won't see a heckuva lot of positions being advertised, so if they are there, they are probably advertised a lot more by word of mouth.

What are your odds? Fair because of your experience, but you must also realize how poor the economy is here right now. Are you going to limit yourself to Kyushu and further limit your chances?

[timothypfox]

Glenski, thanks for your two cents worth.

I may very well try the international teaching route. Also, thanks for the tip on Kyushu employment. I did look into some international schools. They may be even more competitive than other employment - because of fewer jobs - and staff retention being higher with better wage and benefits. Guess that is my concern. But, I can always try.

[icehockey23]

My two cents: I agree with Glenski - I think you are selling yourself short. If you have are a certified teacher from an Eng speaking country and have a masters in TEFL - i think you should broaden your horizons.

I did corporate teaching in Japan for 10 years in Tokyo and made what i considered OK money - didnt have your qualifications - got out last year before things imploded. now is not a good time in Japan but you are better positioned I would say than most. I think international schools are a good option and you could also work part-time to supplement your income easily if you worked in Tokyo with one of the business Eng. teacher suppliers - also you dont need to worry about a visa because of your J. wife.

If you forget about Japan and you and your wife could tolerate it, you could easily be hired in the Middle East.

Cheers

[fat_chris]

timothypfox,

There are a few parallels between your situation and mine. Before I accepted my current position as a JET ALT at a rural high school in Shizuoka prefecture, I was also working in New York City. I served as an elementary ESL teacher in the NYCDOE and also completed an MA in TESOL. Working as a public school teacher in NYC was NOT for me, and I decided to come to Japan via the JET Programme in July 2007.

I applied to the JET Programme because I felt it was the best and easiest way for me to come to Japan and possibly springboard into other work. In the meantime, I wanted to check the "TESOL landscape" in Japan to see if it would suit me long-term. I also wanted to have the time and space that JET would afford me to study the language at a "more-than-just-a-casual-pace".

I am acquainted with 3 other current JET ALTs who are experienced teachers with MAs in TESOL. Furthermore, it seems to be more and more common these days for older, experienced teachers to join the JET Programme as ALTs.

Nevertheless, I agree with the advice of the other posters here; it is perhaps most advantageous that you consider full-time, head teacher positions in private high schools, international schools, and colleges and universities rather than ALT and eikaiwa work. Colleges and universities are beginning their hiring processes now in time for the beginning of the 2010-2011 academic year, commencing in April.

Here are a couple of websites that could help you begin to gather ideas. Naturally, you will discover other websites and information sources as you continue your research.

http://jalt.org/
http://www.eltnews.com/

Best of luck!

Regards,
fat_chris

[Glenski]

[guest of Japan]

I think if you are going the international school route, the question becomes what can you teach besides ESL. Certainly some international schools have a large amount of new Japanese students who enter their programs, but the idea of international schools is to provide education to people who are already strong English speakers.

[Glenski]

guest,
That's a valid point, but even for returnees or children of native English speakers, they still need to learn grammar, spelling, pronunciation, etc. as well as skills in reading and writing.

[timothypfox]

Thanks for the responses and overall encouragement to aim up towards international / private schools, or even colleges and universities. If I can share any advice or opinions later with any of you in the forums at some point I will try to help you back!

JET looks like it might be geered for first-timers to Japan, and they may not like the fact I have Japanese family etc. Also the cut off age is 40 and I am already 38 - so I think other avenues might work better for me.

I forgot to mention in my earlier posts that I also have an MA in International Relations, and two BA degrees (BA in Dance, and BA in Anthropology)! But, I have only 1 publication (1 paper in a journal) in International Relations, but nothing recent and no publications in the ESL field.

Would an international school consider me for Social Studies teaching? Would an international school consider me for English teaching? - I could do extracurricular activities such as drama or creative dance or tai chi (note in a previous post - my teaching credential is experience in Japan and North America at eikawas, a few years teaching experience as an ESL/ELA teacher at a special ed school in NYC, and an MS in TESOL with a NY State teacher license). My current teaching work frequently covers social studies incorporated into studies of biographical texts or theme-related texts.

Anymore thoughts and suggestions? Thanks again in advance for humoring me. Glad to see some others are in the same boat!

[Glenski]

[Miyazaki]

TimothyFox,

Ageism is a serious problem here in Japan. If you're lucky, at 38, you have only a couple of more years before you see a lot of doors closed.

You're too old for eikaiwa. You're probably also too old for the JET program as you mentioned above.

Go for colleges or universities if you want to come back to Japan. However, that being said, a lot of universities only offer 1 year - 5 year contracts and then boot you out the door. Are you and your wife prepared for revolving door type employment?

The economic situation is not good, as you are likely aware. Overall, not a great time to come to Japan to teach.

Have you considered American university campuses the M.E.?

American universities in China?

If you can't find a full-time position in Tokyo, you would probably be able to find a string of part-time university positions. Lots of big schools in Tokyo hire a lot of part-time teachers every year. If you don't have any visa concerns, then you might want to start down that road and work on 1) writing papers, and 2) networking with other university teachers. Many jobs are found through word of mouth.

Good luck.

[Glenski]

[iverin]