Job Discussion Forums

Marigold · Joined: 02 Dec 2003 Posts: 4 Location: Philippines

Hello:

I'd like to know what I should keep in mind in writing the AEON essay on "why I want to work and live in Japan". What should the structure be? What does AEON want me to write? What exactly do they want to hear from me? What kind of people are they looking for?

Also, I'm not a native speaker. Does anyone know if AEON hires non-native speakers? I emailed AEON Tokyo and they said I should go on with my application as long as I have a degree and I must have received an education in English as the first language. I meet those two requirements. They were sort of encouraging and they sounded as if my being a non-native speaker was no big deal.

Thanks very much.

viddy · Joined: 07 Jan 2004 Posts: 50 Location: London, England

The essay isn't that big of a deal. I just had my two-day interview with AEON over the weekend and it didn't come up once. Just write with honesty about why you want to go to Japan.

About you not being a native speaker - Japanese immigration requires that you have 13 years of schooling in English. At my interview there was a Hungarian girl, whose first language was obviously not English, and she did fine.

Canuck2112 · Joined: 13 Jun 2003 Posts: 239

The AEON essay is a breeze, don't worry about it.

Just think about it from a AEON recruiter's standpoint. It is their job to hire level-headed, open-minded, flexible people...people who are unlikely to bail out after a month on the job. Make this evident in your essay, without making it obviously evident. For example, you might want to subtely call attention to times in the past where you've been independent or been forced to adapt to new situations. Also, just be honest as to why you'd like to go to Japan. No need to play it up.

You will want someone to check over it a few times for spelling and grammar errors. I imagine they read through it not only for a sense of who you are, but also to determine basic english competency.

Good luck!