Job Discussion Forums

[sutekigaijin]

Sutekigaijin- what kind of commuting are you doing every day? When i was teaching part time I was commuting to 5 different schools every week, spending up to an hour and a half each way to get to work, the furthest being over 2 hours, one way. Im not saying this is the case with you, but you have to consider each persons personal circumstances into account,

Paul,
I teach at my high school only from Mon. to Fri. and never on weekends. I start at 9am in the classroom each day. Twice a week I finish at 3pm and twice a week I finish at 1:30pm. I am not required to be at the school at any special time before classes or remain at the school after finish teaching. It is definitely a difficult load (as I teach a lot of classes in a condensed period of time, however, the hours are excellent!). I live in a city outside of Tokyo. I have a car. I live in the same city as my high school and it takes me 5-7 minutes to get to work from home. On Monday evenings I have a couple of private students that come to my apt. for lessons. On Tuesdays, after I go for a solid hour or 90-min. workout at my local gym, I go home, grab a shower, change back into work clothes, and make the 7-min. walk to my station for the approximate 65-min. trip into Tokyo. Door-to-door take about 70-80 min. total (not to bad). I teach a 2-hour class and get back home by 10:30pm. Wednesdays, since I finish at 1:30pm at the HS, I can g to the gym for a much longer time and/or have some free time. I Leave for Tokyo at about the same time 5:15 or 5:30 and return by 10:30pm. Thursdays, I have the identical schedule at Wed. However, I teach a 2.5 hour class and return home around 11pm. I keep my Friday evenings open - thus I have free time from 1:30pm until 2pm the next day when I teach in Tokyo (a 3-hour class). Then I have all of Saturday evening free. Right now I am only teaching from 1-3pm on Sundays.

My high school job, with some extra monies I receive for a special program we do, as well as a small bonus, gives me about 380,000 per month. Remember, I teach and prepare all of my own classes. I make and grade all the exams. I have 17 classes per week and they are longer than the norm for high school classes. Also, I have a 6-week paid vacation in the summer (just finished that) and numerous other ones (ie) winter spring and school holidays (ie) 7 full working days of later this month only for my school!

Right now I teach a base of 11.50 hours per week at another school in the evenings and on Sat. and Sun. On occasion, I get extra classes to teach (usually every month I get 3 or 4) such as Sat. morning or Sun. morning, Fri. evening, or Wed. or Thurs. before my regular classes.

Havng said all that... My high school job brings in 380,000/mo., my evening/weekend job brings in 210,000/mo. at the very least, my privates earn me another 30,000 to 40,000/mo. Do the math and it is well over 600,000.

Yes, I am very busy. Yes, I am single. Yes, I have an MA degree (not in TESOL though). But I have only been in Japan for less than 2 years total. I cannot speak much Japanese at all. If I choose to go on vacation, I will lose a lot of income usually. However, my high school job never stops paying me. If I found a similar combo of jobs all in Tokyo or all in one city, it would really give me so much more free time instead of riding the train so much. But I also pay very low rent living outside of Tokyo, have the luxury of a car, and I don't mind taking a half empty train to Tokyo in the evening so I can read, study Japanese and relax before teaching in the evenings. Since my girlfriend lives in central Tokyo, staying at her place anytime -- especially on weekends is great. Gives us the chance to spend a lot of time together and also really cuts down on the travel.

As I said before, I have a potential p/t job I may take in the near future that would put me over 700,000/mo. "easily." It is not in teaching but it would work well along with my high school job now and potentially with future jobs in Tokyo (thus cutting down on travel tremendously). This potential job would probably require me to drop a majority of my extra teaching on weekends and evenings. But it would equate to more $$$.

Now Paul, if you have further questions, please don't hesitate. Like I said, yes, I am busy, but quite honestly, I have ample free time. If I really wanted to keep my entire weekends free, I could very easily clear my Sat. and Sun. and keep going the way I go. That wouldn't be so bad would it?

SG

[sutekigaijin]

In reference to my high school job... I mentioned that twice a week I finish at 3pm and twice a week I finish at 1:30pm. Correction. I finish at 1:30pm THREE TIMES per week. Sorry for the confusion.

Since I don't have t be a work until about 8:40am and I only have a 6 or 7-min. drive, I don't have to get up until 7:45am. I'm one who's not much for the 6am or earlier wakeup calls!

SG

[PAULH]

Sutekigaijin

As I said, everyone is different and Im not knocking your efforts- just putting things in perspective. I myself have a wife and two school age kids, school fees cost me 150,000 yen a month and I have just finished paying off a brand new car with insurance etc. Tuition fees for distance university cost me 1/2 a million yen a year. That is my choice, but now Im in the unenviable position of pricing myself out of lower paying jobs and even teaching at high school as i have fixed monthly cost to take care of. i cant just throttle back like you can.

What I question is whether that is something you can maintain on a long term basis (if you quit Japan your income becomes zero so in a sense you become shackled to your standard of living and lifestyle- it becomes too good to pass up, and you end up not taking a vacation as you worry about how much you are not earning. You also have to watch your health as well if you eat a lot of bentos and junk food. My wife thinks my weight problem is due to fizzy drinks and too much sugar in coke etc than bad diet.

I have similar well-paying weekend jobs to you ( and your potential job is just that- POTENTIAL, you havent got it yet) and sometimes make 200-300,000 yen a month from it. There are also times when i just want to take a break, go camping, spend time with my kids rather than dancing to the tune of other people all the time.

[sutekigaijin]

What I question is whether that is something you can maintain on a long term basis (if you quit Japan your income becomes zero so in a sense you become shackled to your standard of living and lifestyle- it becomes too good to pass up, and you end up not taking a vacation as you worry about how much you are not earning. You also have to watch your health as well if you eat a lot of bentos and junk food. My wife thinks my weight problem is due to fizzy drinks and too much sugar in coke etc than bad diet.

Paul,
This "potential" p/t job has been offered and will happen. It is just a matter of working out the details and a starting date. I wouldn't have mentioned it if it was only a remote possiblity. Should I take it and continue my teaching in Tokyo, I will likely re-locate right into Tokyo in the coming months. This would be something I would be happy to do for convenience.

My health isn't an issue as I am very fit and go to the gym 3-4 times a week at the least. In my mind, Japan has to be the healthiest country as far as diet goes. Even when "eating on the run," one can do very well as far as healthy choices go. Unlike living in the U.S. or Canada where convenience stores and gas stations only litter peoples bodies with junk.

I could definitely maintain this on the long-term basis -- if I choose to e-locate -- it would be quite simple. However, a handful of years, along with some other monies in the bank in N. America would certainly put me in a good financial position should I choose to return to N. America. It could serve as investment money for several different avenues business-wise and also a nice home.

I don't worry much about taking time off. I took 3 full weeks this summer when my dad came to visit and when I went away on vacation. Sure, my income dropped but it's not the end of the world! I figure all that into my yearly plan of earning. Since I have 7 full days of holidays from my high school job later this month, I may book off my extra classes and go away for 4 or 5 nights and enjoy myself.

Don't forget, while I lose my income when taking time off, unless you do it TOO MUCH, your p/t employer really can't stop you from taking a break now and again. Unlike a f/t job where your vacations are dictated to you. It's called flexibility...

Regards,
SG

[PAULH]

SG
just off the topic- Im not qualified to give financial or investment advice but one of my hobbies/interests is real estate and achieving financial independence etc- I have investment property back home in New Zealand and have some info that may be of interest to you. Send me a mail if you are interested

Paul

[Glenski]

sutekigaijin,

I applaud your resourcefulness in getting the salary and schedule you have and seem to enjoy. Kudos to you.

Do you mind if I ask what kind of FT position you have at that HS? That is, is it an ALT position, or "full-blown" teacher? I ask because I am the latter at a private HS, and I can't leave anywhere near as early as you. In fact, it is the norm for all FT teachers to stay until 5:30 at the very earliest, and leaving at 7 or 8 pm is what most people do. Many still stay later. Plus, since this is a private school, we work every other Saturday.

Even though sutekigaijin has been in Japan only 2 years, I still think it is important for newbies to realize that it might actually take that long to land such a schedule. If it took sutekigaijin less time, this is what I meant by having a lot of initiative (or being lucky enough to fall into certain opportunities).

Moreover, sutekigaijin is working 7 days a week, which is precisely what I guessed in my earlier post. I can't speak for anyone else but me, but I am not willing to do that, whether single or married, whether I have a couple hours to teach every day or not. And, I think most newbies will think that way, too. The way I see it, newbies are more fascinated with the country and want to experience it instead of teaching every day.

Living so close to your school is pretty rare. Everyone I know has to travel 30-45 minutes at least (and I live way up north in Sapporo, so people in the Tokyo area probably have a longer commute on average).

So, yes, the jobs and high salaries are out there, but look what you have to do to get them.

[PAULH]

[sutekigaijin]

Ok guys, I haven't written on this forum in ages but I can't keep up with you! All I can say is that in any job you ever have anywhere, your security is NEVER guranteed for a multitude of reasons.

My high school position is as an English Teacher and not an AET. However, I am hired through a company and not direct with the school. My contract is year-to-year. The other native Engish Teacher at my school has been thee 7 years -- and like me -- is really making the most of the great hours and good pretty good salary. He too is married with a couple of kids (like Paul) and has a similarly busy but profitable schedule. And enjoys it!

You're right, there is no guarantee of security. However, with my colleague having been there for 7 years and counting (myself 8 months now), and given the history there, I am pretty confident that as long as I want to continue there, the job is mine. I also have a feeling that better opportunities will get me out of there MUCH sooner than they will like. The principal of the school -- when he agred to my hiring -- wanted me to say that I would be there for years to come. They don't like turnover at this school and they prefer a lot of continuity.

And Glenski, maybe by the school's standards I am not considered a "full-time" teacher. That is great with me. There are other Japanese teachers that come and go as they please around their teaching schedule just like we do. They are considered part-time too (by the school). But the company that I was hired through considers us as f/t. And we get paid for the number of classes we teach. It's a full load...

I have an MA degree and experience teaching various courses including ESL at the college level in N.America. The p/t job where I do all of my evening and weekend teaching is a very stable company and the just keep piling the work on (and I can take or leave whatever I choose when offered). Believe me, the least of my worries is security. Like I said, I am hoping to leave the h.s. job in the future anyway and focus on other jobs in closer proximity to one another. I can assure you that when my h.s. contract is up -- should I decide to stay that long -- they (meaning the h.s. and the company) will be very disappointed if I choose not to re-sign for another year. Like I said, the principal really wants continuity.

They shouldn't have any trouble filling my job when it becomes available. Like I said, it's a tough load of work but the hours and pay (and vacation time) make it worthwhile.

Anything else gentlemen???

[Glenski]

sutekigaijin,
I hope you didn't get the impression that Paul and I were ganging up on you in a negative sense. The information you provided was priceless (to me at least). I have been unable to find people who are teachers (as opposed to AET or ALT) in public schools. I have been trying to get a comparison of public and private HS teachers for my info files.

The only other question I had was, where can I get such a FT HS job?

[sutekigaijin]

Glenski,
No sweat on that. However, I am working at a private school FYI. It is a very prestigious and well-known institution in the area.

And once again for the umpteenth time... I have a full-time job with only a very limited number of hours required for me to be there. Only for my actual teaching. With the schedule, their is really no down time. It allows me to work hard there, make my money, and have loads of free time to either enjoy or work at other institutions. For the past few months, I have chosen mostly the latter. I am sure that all of my p/t work is good in that I am well-paid for my time.

Say what you will but I honestly work very little more -- if at all -- than full-time teachers at Nova, AEON, or GEOS. The only difference is that I make way more than double the money the make and I have option for loads more vacation time -- all paid as well. I have a couple of friends who work for the big companies, and trust me, they put in about the same amount of time as me. Like I said, if I decide that I want to compltely free up my weekends, I could easily drop 2 classes in a heartbeat. On te other hand, I am usually in Tokyo anyway and I only teach 5 hours the entire weekend. It brings in an extra 90,000 to 110,000 per month depending on the number of weeks involved.

I have had offers to teach at schools in the evenings much closer to my home than central Tokyo. However, I opted to commute the extra distance to teach a much higher level of students in TOEFL and TOEIC and get paid more per hour. I could make just as much at a private school or juku closer to home. Personally, I'd rather sit on the train longer than teach more for the same amount of money. It often comes down to that.

So you see, even if I drop half of my extra workload that I presently have, I still have a nice income and I will have more free time than I would know what to do with. It's nice to stay busy t an extent. Especially when you can enjoy those trips to the bank!

ja, mata...

[Glenski]

For what it's worth, I also work at a private high school with a great reputation. My part-time foreign co-workers teach just as many classes as I do (15-17 per week), some of them assist in the extramural activities, but they are not required to do so. They come only to teach the classes, then stay only as long as they want to and never are required to attend the endless meetings that I have to. So, in that sense, they do what you do, but they are considered PT. The school does not pay their health insurance, nor does it offer pension for them, nor does it offer visa sponsorship to PT workers.

What does the agency that sets you up at the high school provide to you? And, if you don't mind, what is the name of the agency? (Feel free to answer that last one privately, if you like.)

And, say what you will, but I still maintain that to put in any time teaching on the weekend (both days at that) is not what newbies will look for, and you are just more industrious than most. More than that, in your case you have a 70-80 minute train ride one way just to get into that weekend assignment, so each weekend day is broken up with over 2 hours of riding the train (round trip) plus teaching 2-3 hours, making a grand total of 4-5 hours "lost" on those precious days when others usually have free time to relax and take their minds off work. I know you don't mind this, but it's a serious commitment to many others, and without sounding too much like a broken record, I'd just like to point this out to the newbies reading this thread. I've worked part-time teaching gigs with supplemental private lessons (a dozen per week at one point in my life), and the feeling of constantly being on the go to make those lessons, plus the need to plan something for them, plus the frequent cancelations or rescheduling really wears one out, and makes one wonder if breaking up a weekday evening or a Saturday is really worth it.

Please don't take offense at this, sutekigaijin, but see it as a heads-up dose of reality to the newbies who drool over making what you do.

[sutekigaijin]

Glenski:
I will say it again... I do not have to work on Saturdays and Sundays. I could work on Fridays instead. Or only on Sat. and not on Sun. It's my choice. Without those 2 classes, I will still have a nice income.

I do not travel back and forth from my weekend job to my home in between classes. My girlfriend lives in central Tokyo. I usually go to her place on Friday evenings and stay for the weekend. Her place is less than 15 minutes by train to my weekend workplace. It is so convenient that I have to do it.

Not everyone has the ability to get these kinds of jobs (which require an MA) and not everyone lives in a location like me that is so convenient to Tokyo. Going to Tokyo for the evening for me consists of a 7-min. walk to the station and a train ride or two after that. Most locations are within 60 or 75 minutes away. So I admit, I have some things that others don't.

There is no preparation required for my evening classes. I go and I teach. I think that your being at that high school from morning till night, sitting in those long and horrible meetings, AND MAKING LESS MONEY, all add up to something I wouldn't even think about doing. Especially having to stay at that same school for numerous hours per day. I'd go bananas. And having to work weekends without getting paid extra is a shame. I get paid good money on the weekends so I choose (right now) to do it. If I want to take a weekend or two off, or quit altogether, I can do too? Can you take a Saturday off when you want?

My agency does not give me anything but a job. In fact they are pains in the asses. But like I said, I make over 600,000 per month and paying for my own health insurance and banking some money for retirement is certainly a good thing for me to do on my own.

And piss on the newbies. If they want to get ahead in life after their honeymoon here, then I can assure you that they will work harder and not try to live happily on the miniscule amount that some of these lousy companies pay them. Besides, I didn't think this that this was the NEWBIE forum. IS IT Mr. Glenski?

If you could trade work situations with me today after giving it a trial first, you would do it in a heartbeat I guarantee. Although you wouldn't have the balls to admit it. You have complained about your situation to no end. I rarely do the same and I also laugh my way to the bank every month.

Fess up man. You would trade.

[Glenski]

Since when did this become a contest?

Yes, I wish I had your salary, but as I have said before, I am not willing to do it your way, and unless things like your schedule are pointed out, other people will think it is easy to do, or that most people do this.

Perhaps we are splitting hairs here, but the way I see it, most of the air in your posts is that of "hey, it's easy to do this". I'm just looking out for people like the original poster who may be gullible enough to think it is, when I know it isn't in most cases. No offense was intended from the start.

I'm glad to see you finally admitted...

[PAULH]

SutekiGaijin

Just to re-iterate what Glenski says:

unless you have a Masters degree, a girlfriend living in Tokyo you can doss down at, and dont mind spending hours on trains your information though interesting is not really much use to anyone.

I dont want to get into a "p...ing contest" here as we are pretty much in the same ballpark qualifications wise. On an annual basis I actually make quite a bit more than you but not everyone, as Glenski points out, has the necessary educational background, qualifications training, networking skills or determination that you or I have.

As far as making the kinds of money that you are talking about, you are also assuming that people without a Masters (less than 10% of the teaching population) want to pluck down 2 or 3 million yen to get themselves a Masters degree, perhaps write a 30,000 word thesis and hit the books for two years. Thats assuming that they even want one in the first place.

If your message is not aimed at newbies or people thinking of wanting to earn those kinds of salaries but dont have the full picture except exposed to a grand display of self-importance I really cant see what kind of point you are trying to make here.

[sutekigaijin]

The point I am trying to make Paul is that Glenski constantly complains about his situation. He has to work a majority of Saturdays. He has to sit in on all meetings. He has to teach several classes and do a variety of extra-curricular activities. He has to stay at the school long after the sun goes down every night. He has to do all of this and he had endlessly complained about it on this forum. He also makes a fair bit less money others without such a full-time job. Basically, he does the same thing that the Japanese teachers do. It is not a terrible thing, however, I asure you that if we polled the people out there in regards to my situation and his, they would choose the former.

As for you Paul, I don't really know what you do to make so much money. However, I can assure you that if I was in this country as long as you've been, I would have a much greater income too.

I just feel really sorry for Glenski. We talk all the time about how the Japanese teachers don't have a life their job occupies them. Well, what's worse is that Glenski lives that life and has little $ to show for it and he seems to really detest it.

I know that Sapporo has a good quality of life and we should all hope and pray that Glenski will find the happiness that he deserves. He should be not be bitter all the time. He's a hard-working guy and could do better for himself. Life is too short to complain and stay bitter.

Cheer up Glenski my man.