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tedkarma
Joined: 17 May 2004
Posts: 1598
Location: The World is my Oyster
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 Posted: Mon Nov 05, 2007 8:37 pm Post subject: |
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| cspitzig wrote: |
| I was asking if any interviewer would refuse to talk to me if I didn't have one in my hand(as opposed to having a passport in processing, since processing time is not minor these days). |
Most employers will not take you seriously if you don't already have a passport. In some countries employers aren't interested if you are not already in the country.
Their problem is that they are contacted regularly by people daydreaming about heading overseas - who will never really show up. No one has a lot of time to waste on those sorts of people. One criteria to measure seriousness? A passport in hand. Another? Previous experience overseas.
Anyone who has worked at hiring people overseas (I have) will know this is a major time waster. And often it is the people with the most detailed questions and who consume the greatest amounts of time that are less likely to show up.
What are they to do? Again, you need to help them help you. Get your passport ASAP. |
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cspitzig
Joined: 01 Nov 2007
Posts: 56
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| Posted: Mon Nov 05, 2007 10:40 pm Post subject: |
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| Cool. Between getting the passport expedited and the birth certificate FOR that here quickly, it is going to cost about $100. Otherwise, I'd have about four months to wait for all that to process. So, I AM going the quick route. |
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tedkarma
Joined: 17 May 2004
Posts: 1598
Location: The World is my Oyster
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| Posted: Mon Nov 05, 2007 11:17 pm Post subject: |
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| cspitzig wrote: |
| Cool. Between getting the passport expedited and the birth certificate FOR that here quickly, it is going to cost about $100. |
Ever hear, "Gotta spend money to make money"?
Considering that it is quite easy to save US$1000 a month in Korea - probably about US$800 a month in Taiwan - figure out how much WAITING and doing it the slow way would COST you. A LOT. The hundred bucks is a good investment.
Do your research, there are going to be some other costs too. Make sure you have current transcripts, some countries will want a police clearance, some countries will want your degree "certified" by their embassy or consulate, and who knows what else. You'll also needs lots of passport size photos, visas often have a fee, and on and on.
Frankly, before you can expect an employer to commit - you have to commit. No commitment comes without some risk. Tis how life works. |
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cspitzig
Joined: 01 Nov 2007
Posts: 56
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| Posted: Tue Nov 06, 2007 12:24 am Post subject: |
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| tedkarma wrote: |
Ever hear, "Gotta spend money to make money"?
Considering that it is quite easy to save US$1000 a month in Korea - probably about US$800 a month in Taiwan - figure out how much WAITING and doing it the slow way would COST you. A LOT. The hundred bucks is a good investment.
Do your research, there are going to be some other costs too. Make sure you have current transcripts, some countries will want a police clearance, some countries will want your degree "certified" by their embassy or consulate, and who knows what else. You'll also needs lots of passport size photos, visas often have a fee, and on and on.
Frankly, before you can expect an employer to commit - you have to commit. No commitment comes without some risk. Tis how life works. |
Oh, I'm fine with spending money to make money, and putting away that amount of money is worth the risk of possibly wasting $100 on a passport. I do need to do the research to find out about the other costs you mention. Right now, I'm still in the research stage, though. But, since not spending the $100 is going to put off even interviews by four months, I am going for the quick passport.
Generally, I'm fine with inevitable costs that make me money. I just don't want to spend money and not get anything for it. I like the idea of doing this enough that its likely to not be a waste of $100. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Tue Nov 06, 2007 6:36 am Post subject: |
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We're not (all) complaining about your naivete concerning passports, but you must realize that a passport can be valid for 10 years. If you can't imagine in the slightest that you'd at least venture across your borders in tha time, then it is indeed a "waste of money" to get a passport. About 80% of Americans don't have one, simply because they don't travel to anywhere outside of Canada or the USA. Americans are pretty geo-centric people who often think the world revolves around them.
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| Visiting first isn't really an option. I can't afford it. |
Then, you'd better read up plenty more, and not just on discussion forums, in order to be prepared!
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| is it necessary to pay the $60 to get the expedited passport, so I don't have to wait months before an interview will even talk to me? |
No, it's not necessary to have a passport in hand before an employer will talk to you, but as others have mentioned, why not do it to show that you are making a commitment to moving abroad? Here in Japan, the leading conversation school (NOVA) is going under, and as a result, it has flooded the market with thousands of teachers, newbie and veteran, who are trying to get jobs (any jobs at practically any pay!) just to make ends meet after not getting a paycheck in the last 2 months. Those people alone are going to be stiff competition for you in the short run, whether you were here or not. So, why not at least try to shift the odds more in your favor? A passport won't hurt.
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| I had heard about the JET program a couple of years ago, and liked it, but I couldn't afford it, because of credit card and student loan debts. |
I don't understand this. You couldn't afford what? JET pays airfare, and in many cases provides reduced or free rent, and its salary is among the highest for entry level jobs. What couldn't you afford? The jobs are usually in rural areas, so you wouldn't have to spend lots of money on urban amenities.
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| The thing I posted about entertainment/socializing was more because I suck at socializing in ENGLISH enough as it is. I've gotten a LOT better, but I'd hate to go back to periods of several days with as little conversation as I had back then. But, yes, maybe the "unrealness" of my post was just because of me venting nervous about being on a precipice. |
If you are that introverted, you are not going to have an easy time adjusting to Japan. You will have to live and work (yes, work!) here just as if you were back home, but here has a difference -- the language barrier. Even in larger cities where English signs and menus abound, you will run into a strong language barrier, and for shy people, it is only worse. This is a prime reason I (and others, probably) have recommended you come to visit first. Test the waters, see what some of the culture is like, before you leap headlong into the deep end of the pool and face:
1) a job that requires you to find the right bus/subway/train/etc. to get there on time, or face a financial penalty
2) shopping in supermarkets where you can't even read more than half the labels
3) remote controls on TVs and DVD players all in kanji
4) paying your bills by setting up direct deposit or paying at 7-11
5) trying to figure out how to take out money from an ATM that is not set up for English
6) a job that requires you to be on time, noon to 9pm, usually regardless of whether you are sick
7) disinterested, unmotivated, apathetic non-adult students (JET Programme) or adult students (eikaiwa) whose main goal is not to study serious grammar but be entertained by an outgoing foreigner, not a shy guy
These are just some of the things you have to face in the real world, with a Japanese twist to them.
People will scream back now, "Hey, Glenski! Stop being so doom and gloom. Give the guy the positive aspects of living here. After all, you've been here almost 10 years." Well, I can do that, but would you rather hear only the rosy side of things, or the stuff that is going to pose problems for you? I would gladly tell you the positive stuff, but you seem to have some serious issues, and I think coming here cold will be a serious shock, leaving you disheartened and frustrated, to say the least. My information is not meant to discourage, but it's meant to show challenges, so that you prepare for them. |
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cspitzig
Joined: 01 Nov 2007
Posts: 56
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| Posted: Mon Feb 25, 2008 2:14 am Post subject: |
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| Thank you to all those who were helpful. I recently accepted a position in a suburb west of Taipei. I'll be there in less than two weeks. |
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throwdownyourcrutches
Joined: 02 Oct 2007
Posts: 36
Location: On the road to El Dorado
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| Posted: Mon Feb 25, 2008 4:26 am Post subject: Congratulations! |
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| Congratulations cspitzig! I am impressed. That was a very quick turn around time start to finish. Good luck on your new life and new adventure and I respect your sense of adventure and wilingness to go for it. |
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Anda
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
Posts: 2199
Location: Jiangsu Province
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| Posted: Mon Feb 25, 2008 4:53 am Post subject: Um |
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Try things out where you are and maybe make contacts. The passport paper work in places like South Korea and China would really test you but.
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