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peachy and danny
Joined: 04 Aug 2009
Posts: 16
Location: Not in Sacramento
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 Posted: Sun Oct 04, 2009 10:51 pm Post subject: What are some good reasons to want to go to Japan |
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| I am tentatively preparing to move to Japan and teach English next year. I've already applied to a few places, but no luck. A few potential employers ask why I would want to go to Japan. Thus far, I've always been completely honest in answering that question. I left Tokyo eight years ago to return to the US, for the sole purpose of getting a bachelor's degree and going back to Japan when I'm done. I wonder if I sound too needy or desperate to a potential employer. What should I say instead? What kind of answers are they looking for? What kind of "interest" in Japan looks favorable for someone to at least give me an interview? |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Mon Oct 05, 2009 4:04 am Post subject: |
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You left Tokyo. What were you doing then?
"going back to Japan when I'm done"
This still does not state why you want to work in Japan. It's not needy, just completely empty of reason.
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| What should I say instead? What kind of answers are they looking for? What kind of "interest" in Japan looks favorable for someone to at least give me an interview? |
How about telling us first why you want to come back?
Don't say it's because of a girlfriend or boyfriend.
Don't say you want to study the language. (You're being paid to work, not study, and as much as you should study, employers want to know what you offer them.)
Don't say you love manga or anime. |
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peachy and danny
Joined: 04 Aug 2009
Posts: 16
Location: Not in Sacramento
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| Posted: Mon Oct 05, 2009 11:44 pm Post subject: |
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| You left Tokyo. What were you doing then? |
In those days, I worked for two different private English schools. As far as I knew, they didn't provide sponsorship visas. I had a spouse visa at the time that allowed me to work. I can't get one of those again in the near future, as my wife has been working here in the States for the past eight years. Best jobs I ever had, though.
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"going back to Japan when I'm done"
This still does not state why you want to work in Japan. It's not needy, just completely empty of reason.
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Sorry for not clarifying myself. I want to work in Japan because it was simply the greatest place I've ever lived. It felt more like home than anywhere else, too. There is a lot of sentimentality in my intentions also, I guess. I was there for about three years when I was in the military and an extra two as a civilian. My Japanese wife also wants to go back (she never really wanted to come out here, anyway) and spend some casual time with her parents and siblings. So, I guess you could say that I am returning to Japan partly because of a "girlfriend." My wife is kind of a girlfriend. You don't have to worry about me being too interested in learning the language, though. Most of my friends were either expats or sailors, and I'm far more interested in the English language, anyway. Needless to say, I've thought about returning to Japan day and night for the last eight years, shooing away the increasingly persistent thoughts comparing the value of a college degree against eight years of my life.
At any rate, I always thought a person's true reasons for wanting something were irrelevant. Truth is relative. I am sure that a person who bangs a Japanese exchange student at "Uni" and follows her all the way from the campus to Roppongi would not think his reasons are more or less important than mine for wanting to go to Japan. Nobody really cares, anyway. At least in my opinion this is true, and I sincerely hope that I am wrong. I am fairly confident that a potential employer who holds the power to make that goal come true will not care. The only important thing is achieving that goal. Don't get me wrong, though. I sincerely appreciate your interest in my backstory.
I guess what I would really like to know is what a potential employer is looking for when asking a candidate why they want to come to Japan. Do they lean more toward someone who is looking for a cultural adventure before settling down back in their home country, happy to have fond memories of their "year" in Japan? Perhaps someone who wants to make a long term career in Japan? What "persona" should I embody when answering this question, in order to present the most favorable response? |
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Mr. P
Joined: 25 Sep 2009
Posts: 32
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| Posted: Mon Oct 05, 2009 11:55 pm Post subject: |
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I'd say you just answered the question. Honesty is the best policy.
Good Luck! |
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peachy and danny
Joined: 04 Aug 2009
Posts: 16
Location: Not in Sacramento
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| Posted: Tue Oct 06, 2009 3:38 am Post subject: |
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| I'd say you just answered the question. Honesty is the best policy. |
Well, actually I haven't answered my own question. As it has been a long time since I've applied to Japanese employers, I am somewhat rusty in getting a feel for what they want, especially in regard to this particular issue. A lot of employers seem to hate candidates with families and long term plans to stay. This is shown in Aeon's refusal in allowing candidates to take their families with them for example, or even live in an apartment that is not owned by them (where you can live with your family). That information is written right on their website in the faq section. While this is one extreme example, other companies seem to have overtones of this. Many companies stress the short-term limits of potential contracts, suggesting that they don't want you to stay. However, maybe the reality of it is entirely different from what I perceive. Now, I couldn't know this if I am not actually there in Japan. I was hoping that someone who is actually in Japan would, however. |
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Mr. P
Joined: 25 Sep 2009
Posts: 32
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Tue Oct 06, 2009 10:05 pm Post subject: |
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| peachy and danny wrote: |
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| You left Tokyo. What were you doing then? |
In those days, I worked for two different private English schools. |
Ok, one reason you can state that you want to come (back) to Japan is to continue working in the field and perhaps move up.
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I had a spouse visa at the time that allowed me to work. |
Ahem, you might have said so in the beginning. Now that we know you and your wife want to come back, all the more reason to tell an employer. It will give a strong sense of stability here.
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| I can't get one of those again in the near future, as my wife has been working here in the States for the past eight years. |
So you have let your spouse visa lapse? Why can't you apply for it again? Should be no problem AFAIK.
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| Sorry for not clarifying myself. I want to work in Japan because it was simply the greatest place I've ever lived. It felt more like home than anywhere else, too. There is a lot of sentimentality in my intentions also, I guess. I was there for about three years when I was in the military and an extra two as a civilian. My Japanese wife also wants to go back (she never really wanted to come out here, anyway) and spend some casual time with her parents and siblings. |
There are all the reasons any employer needs to hear.
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| At any rate, I always thought a person's true reasons for wanting something were irrelevant. Truth is relative. |
Being philosophical like this will only confuse yourself, the employer and the issue at hand. Put these thoughts aside when you are asked in an interview, ok?
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| I am sure that a person who bangs a Japanese exchange student at "Uni" and follows her all the way from the campus to Roppongi would not think his reasons are more or less important than mine for wanting to go to Japan. Nobody really cares, anyway. |
I have to disagree with your line of thought here. An employer would certainly care. That is, if a candidate said he had a girlfriend (the above one, not your philosophical view of your wife) as one of his reasons to come back, compared to your own reasons of a spouse wanting to return, hands down the choice would almost inevitably go to you. Lots of teacher wannabes say they have girlfriends they want to see again, and one of the first thoughts in an employer's mind is negative.
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| I guess what I would really like to know is what a potential employer is looking for when asking a candidate why they want to come to Japan. |
I can't speak for all employers, but your case is not the same as a newbie's. Just consider alone what you said the first time you were interviewed! What did you say then?
Employers are alike and different. Many will want an enthusiastic person, not a dull academic type. Most want someone who seems to have a personal chemistry that matches the staff & students. If they seem like they can be reasonably understood in terms of pronunciation and how they answer general questions in an interview, all the better. Finally, they look at whether they think the person will survive culture shock here. They don't want people who are here just to study and gain stuff for themselves without regard to doing the actual job.
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| What "persona" should I embody when answering this question, in order to present the most favorable response? |
Yourself. Give the answers you've written above, and move on to the next line of questioning in an interview. You already have the answers. Just stop dwelling on them so much. |
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denise
Joined: 23 Apr 2003
Posts: 3419
Location: finally home-ish
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| Posted: Wed Oct 07, 2009 6:12 am Post subject: |
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Employers also want stability--which is why having a wife who wants to return home would be a better reason than having a one-night-stand "girlfriend" in Japan. And if you're married, then you're a lot less likely to fool around with the school's female students, too...
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