Job Discussion Forums

[digitalshoujo]

Standard info about me:
College grad, BA in Japanese, Psych minor (although I took more than the required number of classes for this).
Studied abroad at a Japanese university for one semester.
I would say my Japanese ability is JLPT 2級 - I mistakenly thought I could increase my knowledge through self-study enough to pass 1級 last December but I failed.
I have some part-time work experience at day care schools (ages 6mo to 5 years) - a whole year at one, only a few months at another - primarily as an assistant. I do really enjoy working with kids, but hadn't seriously considered it as a career opportunity so I have no certification at the moment.

I'm interested in going back to Japan primarily to improve my Japanese skills by living in an environment where I'm required to use it on a daily basis. I realize that returning to there to teach English might seem like a weird way to do this, and I'm considering other options, but I find the idea of combining my enthusiasm for working with young children with the opportunity to experience language immersion again very appealing.

Ideally I'd like to work at an international preschool or kindergarten, but most of the listings I've seen require that applicants currently reside in Japan. I would assume that full-time positions would come with the promise of a visa sponsorship, so is the issue primarily that the companies do not want to deal with setting a new teacher up? i.e. finding housing, cell phones and so on? Secondarily, or perhaps equally, are schools concerned about being unable to conduct in-person interviews? I've noticed people encouraging prospective teachers to come stay in Japan for a short while on a tourist visa to go job hunting - would these companies then be willing to put through the paperwork to turn a tourist visa into a work one? As work visas seem to tend to be renewed for only one year at a time (at least that's what I've encountered in my research) I doubt schools would expect someone to just happen to have an already valid visa good for a whole year. I suppose renewing a work visa might be less paperwork than sponsoring a new one.

I'm considering some child-oriented eikaiwas, but I'm admittedly less interested due to the high variability of placement locations - Peppy Kids Club, for example, looks great, but I wouldn't know where I was going until weeks before I left the country. The anxiety of not knowing would bother me a lot. (Also I kind of got the feeling that you'd have to agree to the contract and THEN at some later point you'd be told where you were going?)

I would be open to eikaiwas that taught a range of students from children to adults - having a variety of students could be rather interesting, potentially.

I'm wary of the current ALT situation and would probably place those positions at the bottom of my list unless I somehow came across a school that would be interested in directly hiring a complete newbie (extremely unlikely, I would think).

Primarily I'm focused on the Kanto region, since I've lived in that area before and already have some friends there. I know Tokyo is of course high-demand, but I'd actually be most interested in Chiba.

Were I to be hired by an early childhood school I would certainly look for ways to obtain certification if not some kind of degree through perhaps distance learning. I don't know if this willingness to continue my education would win me any points with a prospective employer. I would also be open to pursuing TEFL or similar programs should I find employment with a more broadly aged school.

I am unable to commit to a start date before mid-August, and could hold out until next April to start if necessary, so in the meantime I'm wondering if I should bother trying to pursue any kind of certification or education while I'm applying to jobs, and if so, what would be most beneficial for me? (I realize this is kind of mid-semester for learning, but personal circumstances prevented me from seriously considering such things earlier.)
Any other advice concerning job hunting from abroad?
I will be in Japan for a couple weeks in August for an event I've been scheduled to go to for over a year now and could tack on some extra time to accommodate in-person interviews if that makes sense.

Sorry if this post is too long and/or personal - I've done some lurking on the board for a few weeks and would really value the opinion of experienced members on my particular situation.

Thank you for taking the time to read this!

[Glenski]

[digitalshoujo]

Thank you for your response.

[Glenski]

[TokyoLiz]

You say you are interested in early childhood education, but you have no certification or training in this highly specialized area if education.

Kindergartens and international schools want people with skills and experience. With only a BA, you're shut out from the competition for these jobs.

Like Glenski says, the job market is flooded and wages have been steadily dropping due to the economic situation and the demise of two major conversation skills. To get a job here, you have to stand out.

You say your intent is to increase your language proficiency. Why not go to school here in Kanto, and after your first term, ask immigration for permission to do a part time job? Such a foothold will let you see what the job market is like.

[TokyoLiz]