Job Discussion Forums

[Kankidan]

Hey guys, this is my first time posting and most apologies if this is placed in the wrong spot! I did use the search function to look up resume help, but I couldn't locate anything.

Anyway, enough with the disclaimer..

Would anyone mind taking a look at my resume? It is brief, and to the point. I recently graduated from my university and do not have a lot of experience writing resumes.

Sorry again for the bother, I will post my resume or email it to whom ever is interested. I will wait for responses to the thread before I slap it in here! Thanks guys!

[Calico]

I've recently gotten interviews with AEON and PKC with my resume (didn't send it to ECC so can't help there) so I'd be willing to look at it since I'm pretty sure I know where my strengths were in mine.

Basically just focus on any experience you've had with children, in foreign settings, leadership positions, etc. Objections are big these days too and I think that really helped my resume.

[Kankidan]

Thanks Calico! I'm just going to paste it below. Its a draft, and my biggest concern is where do I slip in my Japanese ability? I placed it under "other" and I am also uncertain how to word it exactly. Thanks!



Education
August, 2010 Bachelor of Science Graduated from Portland State University with a Bachelor in Psychology.
2007-2008 Ryukoku University. Studied intercultural communications and Japanese.
2005-2006 Mt. Hood Community College. Studied Japanese for two years.

Teaching Experience
Informal English tutor for groups of 5 at Ryukoku University.
Grammar lessons to Japanese friends over Skype.

Employment Experience
2003 - 2007 Safeway Damascus, Oregon
Fuel Attendant
Created Schedules
Kept Inventory
Customer Service

Volunteer Experience
2009-Present Oregon Partnership Portland, Oregon
Volunteer Operator
Volunteer operator for the Crisis/Suicide Prevention hotline.
Work with those who have suicidal intent.
Access resources for Alcoholics Anonymous/Narcotics Anonymous.
Volunteer 4-8 hours a week

Other
Lived in Ōtsu, Shiga Japan from 2007-2008.
Studied Japanese at university level for three years.
Conversationally fluent Japanese ability.





-The formatting is a bit weird since its a post in the forum, but I am more concerned with the content aspect. Thanks again!

[Calico]

For education, what I learned and implemented was segregating it into "Schools" and "Selected Courses". (Of course I only had one school to put in) under the header "Education". (Hope that makes sense.) This gives you the chance to get the information in there without necessarily looking like you just crammed it in there.

Also, I would encourage you to include an objective and a summary at the front, because that appears to be the best way today to just promote your attributes - plus it's the first thing they're going to look at. For mine I emphasized "Proven ability to adapt quickly in foreign situations, including language barriers", "Experience in interacting with and supervising children in the classroom setting, particularly in Japan" as I've had experiences in those and wanted to make sure the companies see that first. Mostly I just narked an online resume template with those prompts and filled it in.

[Kankidan]

Thanks for taking a look at my resume ! Do you think this objective is worded correctly?

"To obtain a teaching position that utilizes flexibility, and unique experiences with Japanese culture."

I am trying to express that I am a flexible person who has knowledge and an understanding of Japan.

Sorry for the bother! Just really nervous about landing this position!

[Calico]

I think it's definitely a good start, because you can tailor your objective for every job you apply to. (I did) For mine I remembered what I read about these companies wanting most from employees...adaptability and energy. The objective should more or less describe the job you're looking for.

Just for an example, here's mine:

"An English-foreign-language teaching position in an organization seeking adaptable and energetic individuals." This covered both AEON and PKC for me. (I sent them the same resume, except for PKC I added more child-related items.) I think you're definitely going in the right direction though.

[Kankidan]

Thanks again Calico! I truly wish you have a successful career! Keep us posted eh?

O and how many people were in your group interviews by the way? I picture out 10 or so, is that accurate?

[Calico]

My AEON interview? there were 7 of us. I don't know if that's average or not, but 10 is what I had in mind as well. I actually got along with all of my fellow interviewees, which was unexpected but nice.

[LadyK]

Wow, I had about 30 at my Aeon interview, and about 18 at ECC. (Though 7 were kicked out after the test.)

So how did it go?

[Kankidan]

I sent in my application to AEON on the 25th of August I have not heard back from them yet. So I am guessing that I am not of interest to them currently. That being said, I am very nervous about my resume, and perhaps my essay was terrible? I do have one more week left. Their email said they typically reply to successful applications within two weeks.

I'm just crossing my fingers right now. I still have to apply to ECC, AMITY and PKC. I might even apply for James English School as well.

[Calico]

I had just about given up hope when they emailed me a confirmation about 12 days in. That seems to be pretty normal from what I hear, so I would still give it a few days before writing them off.

[Kankidan]

Hey guys!

I just got invited to the AEON information/interview session in Seattle, Washington! I am extremely excited and will start making my lesson plan for the demonstration. Would anyone mind taking a look at the lesson plan I post? Thanks again to everyone !

WOOOO~!

[pip.carter]

Hi - thanks everyone for the useful info in this thread. I'm writing my essay for the upcoming AEON recruitment in the UK. I've just done the first draft of my essay and it's about 900 words long. They ask for a minimum of 500 words. Should I stick to around 500 words? Is 900 too long? As well as talking about why I want to live and working in Japan I mention my previous experiences of travelling, teaching etc. Does this seem okay? Also any advice on what's in the test at interview (if I make it that far!).

Thanks

[NoExit]

I think my essay for Aeon was 1500+ words or something crazy. I think I eventually tried to narrow it down to 1000, but 900 is fine. I don't think they care too much about going over 500, just make sure it meets the minimum.

The Aeon test is very straight-forward. 2-sided piece of paper. One side is a basic grammar/spelling test and the opposite side is a number of short-answer questions about your own personality/preferences. I think you have 20-30 mins. to complete it all.

If you do a search for "Aeon" on Dave's- you will find a number of threads with very detailed/helpful explanations about the interview session and how to prepare.

Goodluck!

[Kankidan]

My essay was only 527 words. Pretty short, but I tried to be concise, and avoided being over anecdotal.

Well, for my 5 minute demonstration I am going to be going to work with the topic of "My favorite ____". This will most likely be the main part of the overall lesson plan as well.

For the 5 minute section, I will focus purely on "what is your favorite color?" and "My favorite color is____". During this time I will have a SMALL word bank of colors that I can introduce, most likely 4 simple colors.

I am going to rehearse this to find the best way to introduce this conversation task in an effective manner that doe not eat my 5 minutes up. Im hoping for 1- 1 1/2 minutes of explanation, and 3 1/2 - 4 minutes of them practicing. I really want to work with the 20% me, 80% them formula.

Does this seem reasonable guys?

p.s I am also looking at other forum posts. I am just trying to think out loud!