Job Discussion Forums

[Ngrish]

Hello, I have recently graduated from my Bachelor of Social Science at an Australian university and I am planning on starting a career in TESOL. I want to begin my career in Japan and I've applied to all the major recruiters and I am in the initial stages of the interview process.

At this stage my plan is to apply for jobs from outside Japan until the end of the year while I complete my CELTA and attain Japanese level 1 language proficiency.

At the end of the year if I haven't secured employment I plan to go to Japan on a working holiday visa and search for work in the major cities.

Is there any advice anybody can give me on how I may find a job while in Japan? When is the best time of year to arrive in Tokyo looking for a job? What sort of difficulties can I expect to encounter having never lived in a foreign country and having limited Japanese? What would be my best plan to secure employment while in Japan?

Thanks in advance!

[Glenski]

[Ngrish]

Thanks for your reply Glenski, I have noticed your contribution to this forum and it doesn't go without appreciation.

I have some other questions about living in Japan.

Firstly, I am prepared to stick in Japan for the long haul to find a job assuming one doesn't present it's self immediately. By the time I plan to arrive in Japan I should have at least 500,000 yen and I am entrusted with 20,000 yen a week until I can find work. How long will I be able to survive with these sorts of funds in a city like Tokyo?

Secondly, in terms of accommodation where should I seek to begin with? I was thinking back packer hostels would be the best choice because I am likely to find plenty of English speaking people to socialise with and make connections. But is there a better choice?

Thirdly, how will I get around Tokyo for job interviews and such? I have no idea how to read a map in Japanese and I have heard taxis are very expensive. Is public transport a realistic option?

I'm really hoping to get a job with one of the major recruiters because the entire process seems painless in comparison but I am adamant that I am going to find a job in Japan somehow, but at this stage I am filled with doubts and questions.

[little_kitty]

As far as transportation goes, you can cross it off your list of things to worry about. Japan has (more than likely) the best public transportation system on the planet.

The trains are fast, inexpensive, and prompt. Buses are the same. The maps within the train stations almost always have English written underneath the station name and so do handheld maps you can acquire inside. Taxis are not necessary.

I'm back in the States now and the two things I miss the most are okonomiyaki and trains.

[seklarwia]

Ngrish,

You say you want to pursue JLPT 1 this year then ask about difficulties with regards to only speaking limited Japanese and not being able to use transport in Tokyo. Can I assume that you meant you wanted to obtain the lowest level JLPT (i.e. JLPT 4)?

Don't worry about the Tokyo trains. It can be slighlty difficult finding an entrance into the stations, or finding the station at all in places like Akihabara, but once you are in, navigating the network is quite easy. On the platforms there are signs in both Japanese and English telling you the station, the station before and the one after so you can at least make sure you are heading in the right direction. On the trains the announcements are done in Japanese then in English. And if you can't hear the announcement properly, just look to one of the screens over the doors for the next stop, because... you guessed it... it is also done in both Japanese and English.

Make sure you pick up a train map with the stations in English and Japanese though. Many of the stations I went to had fare maps over the ticket machines that only had the station names in kanji. At least if you are too scared to ask a passerby how much you need to pay, you can resort to playing match the kanji with your handheld map and the fare map.

[Glenski]

[Apsara]

I was also wondering about the "attain JLPT 1 proficiency as well as a CELTA by the end of the year" part- for most people going from scratch to JLPT 1 requires 2-3 years of fulltime study in Japan, longer if outside Japan.

I'm embarrassed to say I'm still struggling to bring my vocab and grammar up to that level, after a long time in Japan! I passed JLPT 2 a couple of years ago, but JLPT 1 is a big step above that.

Ngrish, if you are worried about things like trains and what kind of accommodation is available, it sounds like you need to get yourself a Japan guide book like Lonely Planet, and spend some time browsing sites like www.japan-guide.com, just to sort out the basics of coming here. Google things like "gaijin house" and "Tokyo subway" and have a look for blogs written by people who are living in Japan to get an idea of how they manage.

[Ngrish]

Thank you everybody for your replies.

In regards to the Japanese language ability. My university appears to grade Japanese language courses from 1-5 with 1 being the introductory course. This is confusing I admit because it conflicts with the Japanese standard.

Suffice to say I will only have 45 hours of Japanese language instruction and my CELTA by the end of the year.

More questions!

Firstly, are there any places that English speaking foreigners frequent that I could visit to meet people in Tokyo?

Next, where can you buy cheap food and what can I expect to be eating on the leanest budget I can afford?

Next, supposing I can't find any work in Tokyo where should I move to next? The only reason I choose Tokyo as a place to start is because I expect there to be the most opportunities in the more densely populated centers.

Lastly, is this a bad idea? My mother and brother both teach TESOL, but they all arrived in their destinations via recruiters. It's my understanding that recruiters for Japan are so picky that I'm unlikely to be chosen despite my best efforts. So as a last ditch effort to live my dream and teach in Japan I am prepared to go there myself, but is this foolish?

[Glenski]

[tclowers]

[Glenski]