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ohdannyboy
Joined: 23 Jun 2004
Posts: 18
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 Posted: Fri Jan 07, 2005 9:13 pm Post subject: Leaving JET |
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I worked at Eikaiwa's for 2 years in japan and decided I wanted a future in Japan so I decided to return home to do my masters with the intention of returning to Japan to try and get a job at a university.
My question is this, I am applying for the JET program, but is it a good idea to return to japan on the JET so I at least have a job while I'm looking for a uni job or is it difficult to leave the Jet program should I sucessfully find a uni job. Plus perhaps doing the JET program after my masters would look bad on my CV.
Any advice
Many thanks |
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PAULH
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 4672
Location: Western Japan
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| Posted: Fri Jan 07, 2005 9:27 pm Post subject: Re: Leaving JET |
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| ohdannyboy wrote: |
I worked at Eikaiwa's for 2 years in japan and decided I wanted a future in Japan so I decided to return home to do my masters with the intention of returning to Japan to try and get a job at a university.
My question is this, I am applying for the JET program, but is it a good idea to return to japan on the JET so I at least have a job while I'm looking for a uni job or is it difficult to leave the Jet program should I sucessfully find a uni job. Plus perhaps doing the JET program after my masters would look bad on my CV.
Any advice
Many thanks |
Just speaking from experience, a couple ofyears experience at a conversation school is not enough to get you a job at a university full time, you would need to have worked at a university part time and have developed relevant experience, not to mention publications and japanese ability.
Second, universities only hire at certain times of the year, between October and January for most positions and there are a few in the summer. For those jobs you are competing with hundreds of other people many of whom have Masters degrees, publications, teaching experience and Japanese ability. Many jobs I applied for last year had 40 or 50 applicants for oneposition.
Third, You are assuming a university will sponsor your visa if you quit the JET program, as I mentioned they will probably want you from April, and its unlikely they will sponsor you if you are already sponsored by JET. Universities are not in the habit of poaching teachers from other places, and as I mentioned from your background you wont be qualified enough to get a full time job at a university with no university teaching experience and no Japanese.
My advice, finish the Masters, come on the JET program or work at a conversation school, develop some teaching experience e.g part time at a university (though I dont think you can moonlight on the JET program and you will be busy as it is) work on your publications and improving your Japanese skills. You will likely have to develop connections at universities as well.
There may be a gap between the end of JET (you would have to fly back home anyway) and return at the start of the university year in which case you could work up until April when university starts. My feeling is that dumping the JET program to work at a university wont fly as you will only be able to get part time work and you wont get visa sponsorship. |
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PAULH
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 4672
Location: Western Japan
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| Posted: Fri Jan 07, 2005 9:37 pm Post subject: Re: Leaving JET |
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| ohdannyboy wrote: |
I worked at Eikaiwa's for 2 years in japan and decided I wanted a future in Japan so I decided to return home to do my masters with the intention of returning to Japan to try and get a job at a university.
My question is this, I am applying for the JET program, but is it a good idea to return to japan on the JET so I at least have a job while I'm looking for a uni job or is it difficult to leave the Jet program should I sucessfully find a uni job. Plus perhaps doing the JET program after my masters would look bad on my CV.
Any advice
Many thanks |
Speaking as some one who is full time at a university, on his second full time university contract I would strongly advise against someone deciding to make a full-time career teaching at a university in Japan.
A full time foreign teachers contract is a maximum of one year, usually renewed twice, giving you three years at one institution. It will take you 6 months to get settled and established work for 2 years and then you start looking for another job to replace your income. Whe you leave you lose all your classes, not just one or two days like part tiime. The last 6 months is a total loss as all your efforts are devoted to a job search and sending out resumes.I must have sent out 50 last year. Do this every two or three years and it gets tiring very quickly. Its even more stressful when you have a family to support.
The number of students is now decreasing, which means universities are now trying to save money. They do this by getting rid of expensive full time foreign teachers getting more part timers, and bringing in dispatch companies. Many universities now simply find an excuse (they only need one) to not renew your contract if you are full time e..g not enough publications in the kiyo magazine. I am on several mailing lists where full time teachers are getting thrown overboard and their departments are being eliminated or classes taken away. Some universities you will teach up to 10 first year classes a week, while someone with tenure teaches six or seven. I am teaching twelve this year. Universities are starting to ask for more in the way of qualifications too.
You can do a Masters and get a job at a university if thats what you really want, but all i can say is that its not a growth profession, universities are closing, the number of students is disappearing, classes are getting larger as you are given the large freshmen classes (which are harder to teach) and jobs are getting harder to get by the year, and soon you will need a PhD to get the decent jobs as well as all the rest of it. |
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ohdannyboy
Joined: 23 Jun 2004
Posts: 18
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| Posted: Sat Jan 08, 2005 6:42 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks for your informative reply to my message. Firstly I am very awear of the ethical issue of leaving JET, it is this in fact that inspired me to post the message in the first place. I certainly don't want to be seen as dumping on anybody, so perhaps JET is not for me.
I understand advice about the University job climate in Japan, and in one of your messages you advise against anyone trying to make a career of university teaching in Japan. However, I'd like to make the point that after living in Japan for 2 years I came to the conclusion that I wanted to build a future for myself in Japan, so I decided to return home to do my masters. I adore the country and am continuing to study the language. At the moment I have san-kai, but hope to be ready for ni-kai by this december when I return to Japan. I have a couple of contacts at Japanese universities who keep me posted of openings, and, although I realise it is a dificult task, I will try to get something published this year.
Since uni's don't recruit from overseas, the question I am asking myself is 'do I turn up Jobless in Japan and hope I find a job, visa etc when I get there or should I try and pre arrange somekind of job (Jet or even Nova perhaps) so at least I will have a visa and some income. I'm sure you'd agree there are less ethical issues leaving Nova than Jet.
My goal is to teach at universities, of course full time is preferable, but if that's not possible, then part- time. I certainly don't want to be seen as taking advantage of anyone, I dont know a great deal about the JET program (only what I've read on their website) but if leaving Jet before my contract finishes causes difficulties for people then I guess it's better not to go with them in the first place.
Many thanks
Danny |
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PAULH
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 4672
Location: Western Japan
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| Posted: Sat Jan 08, 2005 11:36 pm Post subject: |
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| ohdannyboy wrote: |
Since uni's don't recruit from overseas, the question I am asking myself is 'do I turn up Jobless in Japan and hope I find a job, visa etc when I get there or should I try and pre arrange somekind of job (Jet or even Nova perhaps) so at least I will have a visa and some income. I'm sure you'd agree there are less ethical issues leaving Nova than Jet.
Danny |
Glenski has often mentioned this, but if you plan to come to Japan with no job lined up you should come with US$4000 in your pocket as you will not see a paycheck for 6 weeks and you still have to find housing, get a phone and have something to live on. You should find somewhere that is close enough to commute to work each day. You dont want to be spending 2 hours each way to get to work.
Looking for part time university jobs, most teachers hired for the Spring (April) have been hired by late December or early January, so if you come in November or December what will you do for 3 months until April?
Part time you can only work one or two days at one university (if you are very lucky, they usually dont give lots of classes to new teachers, or more than one day) you will have to find jobs on different days in the same commuting area, and there is the question of who will sponsor a work visa if you are working part time. Most places you wont be earning more than 90-100,000 a month if you are part time, not enough to sponsor a full-time work visa.
Come here with NOVA or GEOS etc, get settled, get your resume in order and then start networking and combing the college job ads- I have already sent you a few good leads. |
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