Job Discussion Forums

[ncrebel1]

Hi everyone.

I'm currently teaching in a bilingual school in Central America. I graduated from university in the fall of 2009 and spent about a year and a half trying to find a job in my field of study (Political Science), but the market outside of Washington D.C. was pretty weak (and even if I were in D.C., I would need a Master's degree to find decent paying work). So I decided to work in Central America after a friend told me of a school he is working for there. I do not have a TEFL certification of any kind, but the classroom experience I've gained here (I teach 150 middle school, or 7th -9th grade, kids six classes a day) is going to be meaningful I'm assuming. I don't know if Japaneses employers will consider it relevant or not, but to me, the experience being in front of a classroom will help more than anything in whatever teaching job I have next.

On the point of the post. I'd like to work in Japan next year. My contract ends here in June of 2012 and I would be going back to the states after that for a month or two. I'm obviously not qualified to work in International Schools in Japan since I'm not state certified to teach in the United States. So it seems my options are the eikaiwa schools or the dispatch ALT companies. I'd rather not go the ALT route, and I want to live in either Tokyo (or a surrounding city) or Osaka...as does everyone else I know.

I'm not into anime. I'm not looking to simply chase Asian women. I simply want to teach in Japan and live in Tokyo or another major city. Japanese culture does interest me and the reason I want to live in Tokyo or a major city is because I've been in the sticks for a year and want a change. I can easily foot the bill for the plane ticket to Japan from the U.S. and the only money I need to send home every month is about $150 for student loans. After living on a $600 monthly salary and not great accommodation in Central America (with random and frequent power and water outages), I've learned to be very frugal and deal with a lot of minor annoyances and I'm sure I'm fairly certain I could make do with the relatively small eikaiwa salary and basic accommodation.

If I were to apply to ECC, or a similar eikaiwa, how do you think I would fare in the interview process? I'm a professional acting guy and am at ease interviewing for jobs/etc. I have no doubt that I would do well on the grammar test that is provided, and I have experience teaching children in a classroom setting (in another culture than my own). Keep in mind that I'd like to apply from the U.S. if at all possible. I understand that only the "big" eikaiwas recruit from abroad. I've also heard of a couple smaller ones that do as well (James English School - but, I'd rather be in Tokyo or Osaka).

What do you think? I'll be happy to provide any further information if it would help. Thank you in advance for any insight.

[Glenski]

Not to sound overly negative, but you are minimally qualified for teaching jobs in Japan, just like most newcomers. Your teaching experience may or may not be considered as important by employers here. Case by case, and in my opinion since it was not in an Asian country, it is more likely not to be counted.

So, you will come around August or early September? Yes, there will be some openings, mostly in eikaiwa, so plan ahead and see what's open before you come, contact people and tell them when you plan to arrive, to minimize down time. Not much else you can do.

Don't expect that you will automatically get a job in the heart of a big city, though. The bigger schools put you where they have the openings. Since you want to apply from the States, you are very limited in the number of places that will recruit (like ECC), and on their time, not yours usually.

The "relatively small eikaiwa salary" is what you make of it. On average, half of it is still yours to do with as you please; the other half goes to basic necessities.

[ncrebel1]

You're not being negative, Glenski, but I wanted to hear about the hiring process at these large eikaiwas. I appreciate your reply, though.

I figured the teaching experience I have wouldn't count for much in Japanese employers' eyes, but I thought being able to tell an your interviewer in an interview for a job that involves teaching children that you have just finished a year teaching children 6 classes a day for 5 days a week would presumably count for something. Maybe I'm wrong...it certainly wouldn't be the first time. I mean, would ECC interviewers not look at that and consider it something worth noting when deciding between me, and someone with no experience teaching at all?

I said I was looking for eikaiwa work, and I was under the impression that eikaiwas primarily hire entry level teachers. I just wanted to know whether or not I'd have a good shot at being offered a job with ECC or one of the larger eikaiwas, since (as I said) I'll be ideally applying from the states and those are my only options it seems.

So anyone with experience interviewing with or working with ECC or the like, recently, would be appreciated for their insight.

Thank you again.

[ncrebel1]

Anyone?

If anyone has applied and been accepted to any of the large eikaiwas that hire from abroad recently your insight would be appreciated.

On a related note, if anyone has experience applying to Peppy Kids Club recently I'd be interested in hearing from you also. I'm not averse to teaching children, since I've been doing it here for awhile now.

[nimaime]

I interviewed with ECC once. I was told sometimes people with zero experience are selected over people with years of experience and vice versa.

I think the most important experience you have going for you is experience living abroad. I'm sure people freaking out from culture shock is a concern for them.

Anyway, your odds of being placed in Tokyo or Osaka are slim. Like Glenski said, even if you are hired, they're going to put you where they need you, not where you want to be.

[dynastar]

Hey Rebel, I think my input will be a little better than what you've gotten so far.

You're not minimally experienced or qualified overall, so don't let them discourage you. It depends what you're shooting for. Had you been looking for a university job, then yes. Since you mentioned PKC and ECC I can tell some useful information.

I have friends who are in the recruiting and HR department. I work at PKC. When I decided to come teach in Japan, I came with a friend. He ended up with ECC, because he preferred an older audience.

In terms of qualifications. We both have a college degree and a TEFL but no experience living or working abroad, yet we both were accepted by PKC and ECC. (We just chose based on our preferences, after that). I've met fellow teachers, at BOTH, who made it in WITHOUT a degree, and the reason why was that they did, in fact, have experience teaching in another country (SO TRUST ME, I've heard it from the recruiters themselves...that's a huge plus).

If under-qualified people were selected over qualified people, it's because common sense is not so common. I've met teachers who got fired after two weeks; they were accepted because of years of experience teaching (in Japan, no less) and meeting all the other qualifications, yet they were completely clueless and seemed to have no common sense. That can be just one of MANY possible reasons people who are not as qualified get selected. You can tell a lot about person from one simple interview.

To wrap it up: Yes, you have a VERY good shot at getting into either ECC or PKC (IF you at least act/sound professional when conversing with them, are open minded, show that you're experienced and reliable, and just follow what I would consider common sense). Unfortunately, the odds of you being placed in a big city, as most said...IS, in fact, SLIM... BUT My friend for ECC requested Tokyo, and he got placed in Saitama (45 minute subway ride away...not too bad) and I made no request and was placed in Hikone (45 minute train ride to Kyoto and a bit longer to Nagoya, hour and 15 minutes or so to Osaka) (HALF THOSE TIMES IF I TAKE THE BULLET TRAIN , but more expensive.)

Hope that info helps...apply away...I bet you'd hear back from either rather quickly.

[Glenski]

[ncrebel1]

Thanks to everyone. I'll apply and see what happens.

I feel like my chances are good at getting a position at ECC after talking to people that have applied and worked there, and at PKC. Although being in Tokyo or Osaka would be great, I think simply not being in the sticks is my main concern. I'm in the middle of nowhere basically in Honduras right now and I just want a modern and convenient city, the bigger the better. So hopefully there may be something available with ECC in a metropolitan area or at least close to the bigger cities. My only concern is that I don't know whether these companies give you the job, you accept, then you find out where you're going immediately before you depart and after you've gotten your visa. If that's the case, then I won't know where I'm going to end up. Is that the way it works for ECC and the like?

On a completely different note, I think the problem with this forum and many in particular are some of the verbatim responses that are given by some posters to anyone who asks a question, that may not be relevant to the question that was asked. I appreciate their effort and their desire to be of some help, though. That's all I'll say on that issue.

Thanks again.

[Glenski]

It is very common for ALT dispatch agencies and big eikaiwa to not tell their teachers about the exact location where they will be posted until about 2 weeks before they arrive. For ALTs, the situation is governed by what the boards of education need from the dispatch agencies. You have little or no choice in the matter.

[ncrebel1]

I'm looking specifically at ECC and PKC and probably plan to fly to the states for an interview sometime in early Spring. The salary package seems fine with both and I'm not averse to living outside the big cities. The only thing is, I'm having trouble actually finding out what cities these companies actually place teachers in. The only luck I've had is doing a Google search and finding blogs of teachers currently or formerly working for PKC and ECC talking about where they are/were placed. While that's nice, it would be helpful if I could find out more locations where teachers live with these two companies. It just gives 3 general areas on ECC's website, and PKC doesn't give you anything really on their's. If anyone that has worked or currently works for either of these two companies, I'd be interested in where your placement was. Just to get an idea of where they might be sending me if I were to receive a position.

On a separate note, does anyone have any experience or information on James English School (in Northern Japan)? Their head office is in Sendai, with several offices around that area. They interview via Skype, which is extremely helpful for me since I don't live in the states right now. It's been tough finding forum posts or blog posts about peoples' experiences with JES (although the ones I have found all seem to be positive), not to mention a reliable account of how safe it is to live in Northern Japan right now following the earthquake.

Thank you.

[Glenski]

Re: ECC and PKC
No offense, but you are being to picky about locations. PKC clearly states they have schools from Hokkaido to Kagoshima, and their FAQ states "While we do take into account location requests from applcants, we cannot guarantee that you will be assigned to the location that you have requested. Therefore, we ask candidates for their understanding and flexibility in this matter. "

ECC is no different. If you are thinking that life in a tiny rural town is not for you, then all you can do is state such a thing and let the chips fall where they may. If they give you a location in such an area, you always have the right to say no thanks to the job.

As far as concerns about the Fukushima area goes, I would also be as hesitant as you, but at least JES shows precisely which ones have their schools. http://www.jesjapan.com/schools.html

[ncrebel1]

I'm sorry, I missed the part of my post where I said I would not live in rural areas. Since when is asking where you might be placed being too picky about your location?

This is what I meant in my earlier post about members of this and other forums responding to threads with well intentioned, but unhelpful or unrelated information. Let's take your last post for example. I said "I am not averse to living outside of big cities." You said I'm being too picky about my locations. I said I was looking for information about where current and former employees of these two companies live/lived. You didn't give me any information on that, except read me what their website says. Yes, the company clearly states that they have offices throughout the whole of Japan...case closed. Then you gave me a link to James English School's website. I mean, why even take the time to respond, man? I'm not trying to be a jerk, but I just don't get some people here.

I said I was not against living outside of big cities and I simply wanted to know if anyone who has worked or is working for these two companies can share where they are living. It's out of curiosity. Obviously I don't have much choice about where I'd be placed if I got the job, but I want to have some kind of idea of the places where people have been placed recently, just to get an idea. That's not being picky, it's being curious. I don't know anything about cities/towns in Japan other than what I've read about Tokyo and Osaka, so why can't I ask people who work for these outfits where they live and work, so I can at least see what they are like?

If you've worked/currently work for PKC or ECC and would care to reply with where you worked/work, then I'd appreciate your response, unless of course you feel I'm being too picky...

[Glenski]

[ncrebel1]

I don't want apartment pictures. I just want to get in touch with people who work at ECC or PKC. You don't, so just let those who do answer or PM me. Look, I'm not getting into a pissing match with you. This thread has veered away from where it was intended to go enough already.

I replied but then deleted because I'm tired of going back and forth with you. Suffice it to say that you were not the target audience of the original post since you don't work for and have not worked for (I guess) these companies. Regardless, I'm done talking about this.

Again, anyone who's been with ECC or PKC recently or currently shoot me a PM; I have a couple of quick questions for you if you'd like to help. Thanks in advance.

This thread can be locked if the MODS want to.

[OneJoelFifty]

Rebel, I think Glenski was being nice rather than trying to argue. Quoting everything is just his style!