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tim_watts
Joined: 15 Jan 2010
Posts: 17
Location: London
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 Posted: Thu May 20, 2010 12:54 am Post subject: Arriving in Tokyo in September? |
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Hello all. Could someone help me please?
I am planning on flying into Tokyo in late August/early September this year. What are my chances of getting a job?
Thanks.
Last edited by tim_watts on Thu Jan 20, 2011 5:27 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Thu May 20, 2010 12:11 pm Post subject: |
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Your "chances" are fair to poor. They will improve a bit if you come with a working holiday visa, but since you didn't list your age, it's impossible to know whether you qualify.
September sees a small blip on the hiring scene for October hires. That's about it until late January or mid February for the April hires.
If you haven't already done basic research, here's the latest news. The 2 biggest eikaiwa here just went bankrupt, and although many of their employees got picked up by G.com to continue working, there are still many on the streets. You have lots of competition, experienced and otherwise. |
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rxk22
Joined: 19 May 2010
Posts: 1629
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| Posted: Thu May 20, 2010 12:26 pm Post subject: Re: Arriving in Tokyo in September? |
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| tim_watts wrote: |
Hello all. Could someone help me please?
I am planning on flying into Tokyo in late August/early September this year. What are my chances of getting a job?
I am a British citizen with an Honours degree and Master's degree in science, a CELTA, two years experience teaching English. I also have good references from two UK summer schools and a school I worked for in Poland for a year. If it helps to know - I'm white, 6ft tall, slim and I can dress smartly. Thanks. |
Try Shanes, they hire from the Uk quite a bit, and can get you a Visa. Better than trying it blind. |
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QuasiJL
Joined: 24 Mar 2010
Posts: 9
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| Posted: Fri May 21, 2010 4:38 am Post subject: |
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| I have a similar situation. Does arriving in July help at all? |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Fri May 21, 2010 11:21 am Post subject: |
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| QuasiJL wrote: |
| I have a similar situation. Does arriving in July help at all? |
Tell us more.
What is your background and experience?
What is your goal for teaching (what type of school/students)?
Do you have a location preference, and how strong is it?
July is 3 months after the peak hiring season is over here. ALTs are locked in, and summer break--short though it is--is rapidly approaching for those in the public school system. |
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Shimokitazawa
Joined: 16 Aug 2009
Posts: 458
Location: Saigon, Vietnam
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| Posted: Sat May 22, 2010 12:58 am Post subject: Re: Arriving in Tokyo in September? |
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| tim_watts wrote: |
| I'm white, 6ft tall, slim and I can dress smartly. |
That's pretty much all it takes, as long as you aren't too much past 30. |
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QuasiJL
Joined: 24 Mar 2010
Posts: 9
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| Posted: Sat May 22, 2010 7:58 pm Post subject: |
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Oh, sorry haha. Some info would probably help.
I'm 23, born in Canada and of Asian descent. I have a degree in business and will be coming with a WHV. For experience, I taught English in Taiwan for one year and tutored students in Canada for 3 years. I also helped organize and was an instructor for an English camp in Taiwan.
I would like to teach Children (around 8 to 14). I'm flexible on being an ALT or working at a Eikawa.
I have a very strong preference for Tokyo.
I'm pretty confident in the professional demeanour, interview skills, strong resume/cover letter, etc. aspects. I did quite well in my interviews in Taiwan and at home. |
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tim_watts
Joined: 15 Jan 2010
Posts: 17
Location: London
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| Posted: Sat May 22, 2010 8:35 pm Post subject: |
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thanks for your replies.
Sorry I should have said that I also do well in interviews. I am culturally aware and respectful and have a good CV/resume and cover letter. I don't mind who I teach. I have experience teaching. I want to work in Tokyo only.
I understand that April is the beginning of the academic year, is that right? Therefore the main hiring season is February/March?
What is the next major academic start? October?
So, is September the next main hiring season?
Could someone please give me a clearer idea of my chances? Thanks.
Last edited by tim_watts on Thu Jan 20, 2011 5:27 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Sat May 22, 2010 11:33 pm Post subject: |
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| QuasiJL wrote: |
I'm 23, born in Canada and of Asian descent. I have a degree in business and will be coming with a WHV. For experience, I taught English in Taiwan for one year and tutored students in Canada for 3 years. I also helped organize and was an instructor for an English camp in Taiwan.
I would like to teach Children (around 8 to 14). I'm flexible on being an ALT or working at a Eikawa. |
ALTs are usually hired to start at the beginning of the academic year (April). Eikaiwas usually do, too, but they seem more flexible to hiring throughout the year. That doesn't mean all eikaiwas hire every month, just that you'll see more ads for them.
Be careful about dispatch companies (ALT hiring agencies). Many are disreputable.
| Quote: |
| I have a very strong preference for Tokyo. |
Bigger outfits with many branches or presence in many schools will often say that they will "listen to" your requests for location preferences. Don't take this too seriously. Unless you have a very strong reason for wanting to be placed somewhere, you will probably end up where they need you (or where they think you would work out best).
| tim_watts wrote: |
What is the next major academic start? October?
So, is September the next main hiring season? |
Roughly, September. It may depend on the region.
| tim_watts wrote: |
| Could someone please give me a clearer idea of my chances? |
Tim, nobody can give you a clear idea. There are just too many factors involved. This is not like the old days when people were guaranteed a job almost anywhere in Japan just by showing up or by applying. The saying used to be that places like the big 4 eikaiwa (GEOS, NOVA, AEON, ECC) would hire anyone who could fog a mirror or had a pulse. They still take people with degrees unrelated to teaching or EFL/ESL, but there are far more people out there looking for work nowadays, so competition is stiffer, and applicants may have to prove themselves more.
Your degree is in science (like mine). You have a CELTA (good) and a little teaching experience (very little, and not in Japan where it is more respected).
1) Have someone who works here look at your resume and cover letter to confirm it's at least somewhat in the ballpark of being acceptable. Many think so, but they are surprised to see that US/UK standards of writing such things don't go over well here. Or at least that they could improve them significantly.
2) Learn more about the market so you can answer the tough questions in an interview. Start with "Why Japan?"
3) Learn some Japanese to make yourself more marketable.
4) If you plan to come here to look around, send introductory letters to employers with ads, telling them when you will arrive, and then follow up on that when you get here. Most places do not interview outside of the country, and being here shows strong commitment, far more than just saying you are committed in a cover letter. |
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tim_watts
Joined: 15 Jan 2010
Posts: 17
Location: London
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| Posted: Mon May 31, 2010 1:36 am Post subject: |
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Thanks for this helpful reply, I appreciate it.
I may fly in to Tokyo in late August and stay in a hostel in the city centre for a month.
How much money money do you think I would need for a long stay in a hostel while looking for work, food and the first months rent after I find a job, etc?
Do most landlords ask for a deposit in addition to first months rent?
I am prepared to live modestly/inexpensively. I'm going for the buzz of living in an exciting city and don't care much about comfort. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Mon May 31, 2010 2:27 am Post subject: |
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Don't know about hostels for long-term stays. Guesthouses are more the norm.
Figure 2-4 months will run you about US$4000-5000.
If you land an apartment, plan on spending 2-5 months' rent equivalent on key money. Not all places do this, and if your employer has a place already established from previous teachers, you shouldn't have to pay the key money. A first month's deposit of 50,000-80,000 yen is typical. |
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SweetTea
Joined: 27 May 2010
Posts: 10
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| Posted: Fri Jun 11, 2010 11:35 am Post subject: |
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| Glenski wrote: |
4) If you plan to come here to look around, send introductory letters to employers with ads, telling them when you will arrive, and then follow up on that when you get here. Most places do not interview outside of the country, and being here shows strong commitment, far more than just saying you are committed in a cover letter. |
Thanks for the information. Is there a chance that companies will narc on someone without a working visa who is coming to japan to look for a job? How should one go about finding these companies? Going on company websites, looking up building addresses, and walking in with a smile and a resume? I'm kind of worried but I'm bright-eyed and hopeful still. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Fri Jun 11, 2010 1:42 pm Post subject: |
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No, places will not "narc" on you.
How to find companies that are hiring? Geez, just look at all the web sites with ads. Do a search here to find many that I've listed. You have a lot of basic research to do. |
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SweetTea
Joined: 27 May 2010
Posts: 10
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| Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2010 5:56 am Post subject: |
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| Thanks for the advice. Point taken. I've applied to some places but I got rejected recently so I'm a little gun-shy. I'm a little afraid that if I say I'm coming to Japan on a certain date in July that they'll tell immigration and won't let me into the country because there's so many people applying, but now that I think about it, employers probably want a larger pool of people applying so that they have a better chance of finding someone that matches their ideal. |
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Bread
Joined: 24 May 2009
Posts: 318
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| Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2010 7:22 am Post subject: |
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| SweetTea wrote: |
| Thanks for the advice. Point taken. I've applied to some places but I got rejected recently so I'm a little gun-shy. I'm a little afraid that if I say I'm coming to Japan on a certain date in July that they'll tell immigration and won't let me into the country because there's so many people applying, but now that I think about it, employers probably want a larger pool of people applying so that they have a better chance of finding someone that matches their ideal. |
What would be the company's motivation to do this? Filling out paperwork to report you to immigration out of pure vindictiveness? What would be immigration's motivation to process said paperwork and flag your passport number and such just because some random company told them that you were looking for a job?
And to top it off, they shouldn't even have your passport number so they couldn't even do that. What, are they going to set their computers to deny anyone with your name (which might not even be your registered legal name) who enters the airport for that whole day, based on your word that you'd be arriving that day to some company in an email? |
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