Job Discussion Forums

[Big_H]

Hi,

I'm a fresh engineering graduate taking my first steps in TEFL and aiming for a long term career teaching English in Japan specifically. I've contacted some English teachers there for advice -including the Boggio family- and got mixed oppinions on the hiring chances of a non-native English teacher (although capable of speaking at a native level).

After I had received my Engineering B Sc. in August and was eager to get a teaching position in Japan, I had applied to around 24 private schools to no avail. So by this December -start of hiring season in Japan I presume-, I'd earned a 120 hour TEFL certificate online, reconstructed my resume and applied for over 50 schools in Japan [email application
packages, gaijinpot, dave's cafe, ..it's a very long list] to the point where I had written an individual cover letter to nearly each of them. I'd failed to get any preliminary interviews and two "we're looking for someone else" replies so far.

Still, right now I am learning Japanese, practicing making lesson plans to no end, giving online English lessons to my Japanese friends, gathering helpful resources for ESL teachers and considering getting a business English teaching certificate online (although I'm having second thoughts now after the not-so-positive feedback of their usefulness here)

In simple terms, I cannot put my motivation into words to achieve this dream and to realistically pursue the steps necessary to make it happen. while it may sound like a whim or an impulsed decision based on some related anime fandom, rest assured that it's not even close to that. I am prepared to listen to advice that I may not like on account of me still being a newbie and that I need to be pointed in the right direction to go on about it successfully.


so what are my options?
To non-native English teachers in there or those who had worked with them, do you have any helpful input? Any past experience in the matter? Schools that might actually consider considering me?
Any advice for my specific circumstances?


On a seperate topic if you have any questions about life in Egypt in all its aspects, send me a PM and I'll be glad to help you (i.e. DON'T mention it in this thread; I'm the noob, you don't have that privilege)


Thanks

==============
Edit: Some additional info

- My country of origin and whose only passport I hold is Egyptian,
- My priorities in finding work are: 1- Acceptance (given my inexperience) and the job being full-time(for VISA purposes) 2- Salary 3- Work benefits (or lack of such as in Gaba/ or having to travel to different schools and companies) 4- Location; in that respective order.
- My native language is Arabic.
- My native level languages are English, French and Arabic; though I can hold my own in a German conversation but it's not at a native level.
- My formal 12 year education was in French, so obtaining a "teacher" visa would only be valid for teaching french (as opposed to a Humanitarian visa for teaching English)
- My Bachelor's degree is from a domestic university accredited by the ministry of Higher Education in Egypt. It is "legit", in the major of Electromechanics and Robotics and its 5 year curriculum was strictly in English.

[mitsui]

You need to give more information.
Where did you get you degree?
Where is your passport from?

Gaba may be a possibility.
I knew an Israeli who worked there.

I know a few people that got MAs in America. All four got good jobs and all of them were good at English. They were from Korea, Finland, Poland, and Brazil.

I have only one interview scheduled and I have been here for 13 years.
There is a lot of competition.

[nightsintodreams]

Have a look into getting a one year working holiday VISA for Japan. It's supposed to be used only for part time work, but that shouldn't be a problem as most of the full time positions here are called part time positions due to a technicality in how they calculate your 'working hours'.

Save some money, come over on a working holiday VISA, look for jobs on the ground and hopefully you'll be lucky enough to get a position at a company that will then get you a humanities or instructor VISA before the working holiday visa expires.

What's your native language? Can you speak any other languages at native level? If so then Berlitz may give you a shot. I've met a number of non native teachers who work there teaching multiple languages.

[nightsintodreams]

Have a look into getting a one year working holiday VISA for Japan. It's supposed to be used only for part time work, but that shouldn't be a problem as most of the full time positions here are called part time positions due to a technicality in how they calculate your 'working hours'.

Save some money, come over on a working holiday VISA, look for jobs on the ground and hopefully you'll be lucky enough to get a position at a company that will then get you a humanities or instructor VISA before the working holiday visa expires.

What's your native language? Can you speak any other languages at native level? If so then Berlitz may give you a shot. I've met a number of non native teachers who work there teaching multiple languages.

[rtm]

As nightsintodreams mentioned, you should look into whether you are able (based on your citizenship) to get a working holiday visa. That would likely give you up to a year in Japan, during which you could work part-time or full-time, while looking for a sponsor for after your WHV ends.

From what I understand, if at least 12 years of your formal education has been English-medium, then you can qualify for a work visa to teach English.

The bigger issue, as it seems you've found out, is getting an employer to hire you. You have to think about why someone would hire you over someone else. The 120-hour TEFL certificate is OK, but online certs aren't that great, and it's still a short-term certificate. It's more than a lot of people have, but less than others. Also, you're a non-native English speaker applying from abroad, which puts you at a disadvantage compared to the hordes of native English speakers already in Japan who are applying for the same jobs you are.

So, what are your advantages are over those people? One is that you have a high level of proficiency not only in English, but also in another language (Arabic?). How is your Japanese language ability? Could you teach Arabic (or whatever language(s) you speak) in Japanese? You also have an engineering degree, and if that degree was done in English, then you might have an advantage for corporate English classes in engineering firms.

Basically, I think that trying to compete with native speakers while abroad won't get you much because you'll always be trying to be "just as good", and very few places want to hire someone who is "just as good". You should focus on your advantages.

[Big_H]

Hi mistsui, nightsintodreams and rtm,

Let me edit the first post to give you some additional details;

- My country of origin and whose only passport I hold is Egyptian,
- My priorities in finding work are: 1- Acceptance (given my inexperience) and the job being full-time(for visa purposes) 2- Salary 3- Work benefits (or lack of such as in Gaba/ or having to travel to different schools and companies) 4- Location; in that respective order.
- My native language is Arabic.
- My native level languages are English, French and Arabic and I can hold my own in a German conversation but not at a native level.
- I do have a few friends and online students from Japan, but no contacts that could provide me with a teaching position or a chance to be considered for one.
- My formal 12 year education was in French, so obtaining a "teacher" visa would only be valid for teaching french (as opposed to a Humanitarian visa for teaching English)

[rtm]

[Big_H]

Hey, thanks for your follow-up effort,

I always list all my languages in my applications, but I highlight English to adapt for its market size through which I can secure a living in Japan; because take the "language exchange" section from japan-guide.com for example, if you search there for Japanese nationals wanting to learn Arabic, you get two posts. Now by changing Arabic to English, you get 91 pages of nearly 2000 requests.. and they're increasing by the hour. I'm thinking that about sums up my chances of finding a job in terms of comparing those two languages.

To be honest I have doubts about finding a position that covers French or Arabic -let alone both together- given that they are rarer to find than an already shrinking English market and I am thinking that if needed together it would fall under the translation agencies' category. As you said, it's not that easy anymore even for native English speakers.

The abroad experience I mentioned only means that I've been learning to rely on myself in a foreign country and adapt to its culture since a young age. Similarly, I mentioned my internships in "professional" environments because I thought in Japan employers value reliability, punctuality and teamwork as they were always expected from me in those jobs. Do you expect that they just won't make a difference?

I agree that actions speak louder than words, which is why I'm here asking you fine people on how to aim my actions in the best way Which brings me to the -now bold- questions in my first post. I don't just expect to show up at the door as a non-native and inexperienced and then be put off by a "rude" employer for not hiring me, but is it seriously that hopeless with the start of this hiring season?

I've been reading some positive feedback on CELTA here, having already had an online TEFL certificate, how much of a difference would it make to add to it another cert. and 6 hours of supervised teaching? What about seeking ELT in a nearby Asian country (South Korea or China) for a year for example?

Merry Christmas to everyone and your feedback has been very helpful so far! (seriously, for a matter of contrast, some others had advised me to completely give up simply on account of racist hiring policy, a claim I refused to believe of course)

[mitsui]

Maybe China due to demand. Korea is tough and Taiwan is impossible.
I know a Russian who was fired since the school realized he was Russian.
Taiwanese want native speakers but don`t want to pay well.

[rtm]

[Big_H]

[Solar Strength]

[mitsui]

I have met a couple teachers with wives from Taiwan, but they prefer to work in Japan. With the salaries there, it is not a surprise.

[Big_H]

So what about heading there right now and applying in person -at least I'll the chance for an interview-, and get the visa sponsored once there?