Job Discussion Forums

[brujj1]

Hello everyone,

I have been looing for job options in Japan and Korea. I have never worked in Asia before but I have worked in 4 different universities in 3 different countries.

If you have any idea of teaching English as a foreign language in Japan or Korea in a university which would you choose?

I hope someone can help me with this questions. Thanks.

Umit Yoksuloglu (Canadian citizen)

[Glenski]

I'm sure the requirements for each of those countries varies somewhat. In Japan, you usually need a minimum of a master's degree in a related field such as linguistics, publications, some Japanese fluency, and some experience in Japan.

Listen to whatever taikibansei tells you, as he seems to have the most experience in this matter, but I can also refer you to several publications that explain things well for Japanese universities.

One important thing. Don't expect tenure. You are likely not to get it.

[Gordon]

You'd have a far easier time getting a job in a Korean university than in a J one. Judging from job ads, they usually ask for a masters, but not always. Japanese ones want more, as Glenski listed for you and which I agree with. Of course there are always exceptions, but as a general rule it is pretty accurate.

[nonsmoker]

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[canuck]

[taikibansei]

[Shimmeringstar]

You may have a hard time finding a job at a university in Japan simply because many colleges and universities are not hiring many new staff members. The population is falling in Japan in such a way that many schools, universities included, are finding themselves in big trouble... and not in a position to hire many new people.

[Gypsy Rose Kim]

Can I ask something a little off-topic because I know people reading this thread will be able to answer?

In Korea, I taught at a private company working with university students who were preparing to study in foreign universities. It was a great program, but that's kind of irrelevant to my question.

Cheating is par for the course for Korean university students. They talk openly about it. Professors very often looked the other way when cheating was going on. I believe this is because in Korea, nobody is encouraged to do ANYTHING alone. However, it's just a theory based on nothing more than my own observations of the culture. I'm not sure if it's the real reason or not.

My question is, is cheating as rampant in Japanese universities?

[ironopolis]

Gypsy, depends what you mean by cheating. Plagiarism definitely happens all the time in Japan, which would have been called cheating when I was an undergraduate. I've known plenty of people in Japan who had some kind of university assignment to write, who'd just underline a whole chunk of text and then copy it out word for word with no mention of sources or anything.....and get an A for it!

From my experience of both countries, my impression is that, from a westerner's point of view, the things we'd find odd are pretty similar in both Korea and Japan.

Having said that, re your not doing anything alone point, I've heard some interesting comments from a guy I know who's an economics professor at a university in Kyushu. He's Korean, but likes living in Japan and is married to a Japanese woman with a couple of kids here too. He's been here a few years now but says he's frustrated how he feels Japanese students are generally LESS willing to think outside the box and take initiative with their studies than he found equivalent Korean students to be.

[Gypsy Rose Kim]

Thanks for satisfying my curiousity, ironopolis! Plagiarism is pretty much what I was thinking of.

I've taught adults in both places, too, and find Koreans far hungrier for knowledge. They are curious and very hardworking, and despite their quirky viewpoints, I admired them.

I'm just sort of thinking outloud here, but I found the Koreans less mentally lazy. On the other hand, when Japanese students are inspired, they can be astonishingly creative. I can see where the Korean professor is coming from, for sure, as I'm sure you can. I can also see where Korean creativity, though more common, often stops shorter than that of Japanese students when they really take ownership for something. Koreans just never take ownership for a thing. It's why I left.

Anyway, thanks for the input. I never have anyone to talk about this stuff with.