Job Discussion Forums

Schick · Joined: 30 Oct 2007 Posts: 22

Hello My name is Justin

Ive been prepping to go to Japan for about a year now. Have the funds. Have a holiday Work visa
Going to rent out a Guest house, or hostel

I wasnt going to bother applying online Because Everyone Wants a BA if you head to Japan to teach

I do not have a BA. I have a work visa and tesol degree. I was planning on landing in Japan. Getting comfortable ( about week lounge time) Then start looking for a Job .

Are people to land,look and find a job quite Easily, Once your in the Country?

Thank you for your opinions

Wintermute · Joined: 11 Jun 2007 Posts: 79

Without a degree it will be very tough to find a reputable company willing to take you on. TESOL doesn't mean a whole lot in Japan, it helps but something like CELTA is better recognised and more respected. Now would be a terrible time to come given the collapse of Nova - there are thousands of teachers out there with degrees and experience competing for a very limited amount of places. If you have some connections you might land a few private lessons and a company like Gaba might be willing to interview you (provided you have the right 'look') but the lack of degree more than anything will hurt you the most. You'd have better luck (and more fun) in China, Thailand or Korea.

Edit - Sorry, just to clarify, do you have a 3 or 4 year degree or is it a TESOL certificate?

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

Please get the terminology straight. You do not have a work visa. You have a working holiday visa, right?

If that is true, you have a limited time to get over here before it becomes invalid. Coming right now is a bad choice for 2 reasons.

1) November to January is a poor hiring time of year traditionally.
2) There are 5000 NOVA teachers looking for work and willing to take low wages.

I can't speak from experience with WHV's, so I hope others can give you advice that helps, but the above info is just a reality check.

Schick · Joined: 30 Oct 2007 Posts: 22

Apologies
Working Holiday Visa
Tesol Certificate

I dont care what I am doing In Japan. I could live jobless for an entire year in this country

If I teach english Great. If its modelling. Great. Would rather make some money and stay =. Instead of losing money.

is work available for foreigners.?

Just recieved my working holiday visa
I am able to use it within 12 months. As soon as I start using it , its good for 6 months till I re apply

Wintermute · Joined: 11 Jun 2007 Posts: 79

There is work available such as working in a bar to 'entertainment' jobs. Modelling is also an option but that can be pretty competitive. If you want to maximize your chances of finding work then Tokyo is the best bet. What kind of visa do you have exactly? I haven't heard of a 6 month working holiday visa that you can renew in country. Your visa also limits the kind of work you can do, you might find yourself working a lot of cash-in-hand kind of jobs in the short term at least until you find a company willing to sponsor you (or you marry a Japanese girl).

Apsara · Joined: 20 Sep 2005 Posts: 2142 Location: Tokyo, Japan

Working holiday visas are valid for 6 months, and they can then be extended for a further 6 months (twice for Australians) at the Immigration office. Did it myself, many years ago Smile

Yawarakaijin · Joined: 20 Jan 2006 Posts: 504 Location: Middle of Nagano

I did the working holiday visa thing my first time and it was great! Hmm its a tough call though on timing and location. Im of the mind that Tokyo or Osaka might not be the best place to head to find work. I mean that is where the majority of those 5,000 ex Nova teachers would be based wouldnt it?

I did my working holiday in Hokkaido and within 1 month of landing I found a bar that was looking for a bartender. The pay was equal that of an eikaiwa teacher with the added bonus of being able to drink for free every night Wink

Make sure you really do have the funds though, it's no fun being broke or having to live on the cheap in any country.

On the degree thing. For a high paying job at a university or a very reputable school the degree thing is going be a big disadvantage for you. For the average run of the mill eikaiwa, sorry if this offends anyone, but really it seems to be a matter of timing and putting out the right vibe.

Some posters b#tch and whinge how credentials aren't respected over hear and the other half will tell you how essential it is to have the right qualifications, you decide. Wink

If you really do have the funds, come on over and have a good time.

drifter13 · Joined: 27 Mar 2007 Posts: 124 Location: Fujisawa

johanne · Joined: 18 Apr 2003 Posts: 189

If you are coming on a Working Holiday Visa your lack of degree is not such a big deal. Many schools ask for a degree because that is what is required for a work visa (yes, there are other ways, but having a degree is the most common). Since you already have a visa, you don't need the degree. I came over on a WHV many years ago and I worked at a school where most people didn't have a degree. The school only hired Canadians and Australians on a WHV. They didn't want any hassles with sponsoring visas or dealing with immigration. It wasn't a bad place. I only worked 15 hours a week, had a free apartment and was paid 180,000 yen a month.

I don't know about the bigger chains - now the Big Three, but there are many smaller schools that wouldn't be bothered about your lack of visa.

Good luck in your search.

Schick · Joined: 30 Oct 2007 Posts: 22

i have just above 10,000 cnd to live. So maybe not for a entire year
But for a while. Heard it is very expensive in Tokyo Though

I booked my plane ticket for Jan 15th. So hopefully Nova ordeal will settle down by then.

Thank you all for your opinions and Advice!

Im working on my degree. I am a science student in Canada
But want to take a break.
If I actually had a degree I would use it, specifically for what it is for. Geologist
not teaching english :S so this kinda confuses me about degree qualification in Japan.

Johanne what company was that with??

Apsara · Joined: 20 Sep 2005 Posts: 2142 Location: Tokyo, Japan

Luckily it is a myth that Tokyo is so expensive, especially with the rise of the Canadian dollar against the yen. You can get a bowl of beef and rice or noodles for less than 4 Canadian dollars and a coffee at the cheap chain cafes for about $1.80. Transportation by subway and train isn't that expensive- about $1.70 CAD to get across the centre of town, and rent doesn't have to be unless you want to live in the middle of the city or have a big apartment.

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

Schick · Joined: 30 Oct 2007 Posts: 22

you mis understood me
I have a Working Holiday Visa. I undertsand how this works

What confuses me

You need a degree to get visa sponsored in Japan.

Degree in anything

I am currently in school, I am a 2nd year science student. I plan on majoring in earth and atmospheric sciences ( geologist) and minor in business

If I had this degree. I would not use it to teach english in Japan
I would use the degree to its maximum potential. Geologist, So I could make 3 x income id be making in Japan.

They would like you to have a degree, but it doesnt really matter in what field.

I am confused on why a country would require this.
A degree does not make someone a more qualified or responsible english teacher. Unless they have a teacing degree .

Someone Just enlighten me behind the reasoning of a Degree to get sponsored

Schick · Joined: 30 Oct 2007 Posts: 22

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

Schick,
Reread what I wrote. You do not need a degree to get a work visa. However, if you don't have a degree, the only other substitute is 3 or more years of related work experience (for a teacher's job, anyway).

Why does immigration want the degree? Who can say? On pure speculation (since I didn't write the immigration regulations), I would say that they feel a degree represents completion of some academic achievement, perhaps a sign that someone is willing to put in an effort to do something to better themselves. It doesn't matter to immigration if one had financial hardships at home and cannot attend university. It doesn't even matter much to immigration that someone with a microbiology degree is just as eligible as someone with a linguistics degree. Most of the time, being a degreed native speaker shows them that a person has the basic language background and academic aptitude.

Your question in its most raw form is one that goes on all over discussion forums, and I hope it doesn't get rerun here to the point of locking the thread or such. Those things happen because eventually 2 camps emerge:

The one that insists that anyone, degreed or otherwise, is capable of doing the teaching if one's heart is in the right place, and
the one that says immigration policies won't change so just get over it and do what is necessary.