Job Discussion Forums

[HLJHLJ]

This is on behalf of someone else, but I think this is the best place to get an honest answer.

19 year old, native speaker with no degree, no teaching experience, a smattering of Japanese and a WHV.

What's the chances of her being able to turn up in Japan land a job that will cover her living costs? She doesn't need a huge income, but she will have to support herself.

Is it a crazy idea in the current job market, or is it feasible?

Also, are there any organisations who would help line something up before arrival? The only one I know is http://www.jawhm.or.jp and they require you to be in country first.

[Glenski]

Coming when? Where will she be located?

That is a very young age, but there will always be someone willing to give her resume a glance. Problem is, nobody has an accurate crystal ball to say what her "chances" are. Nobody!

The JAWHM has shut down, I think, but double-check.

No other real organizations to help WHV holders. It is just a matter of hard work and doing one's own research. This is prime hiring time, if that makes any difference.

And, as far as "covering her living costs", I believe WHV holders have to prove they have a certain amount already in hand. Plus, please realize that the WHV is for people on vacation, and it wasn't intended for long-term FT work (although FT work is still ok). It's for people who just want to supplement their traveling with a little money.

[seklarwia]

What are the chances? Likely very small. And smaller still if the answer to any of the following questions is no:

- Has she ever held down a full time job?
- Has she ever had experience in job hunting and interviewing?
- Does she currently live on her own?
- Does she have any experience living abroad in a foreign country where she doesn't speak the language?
- Has she done anything formal or informal that could demonstrate having worked with kids or done any form of instructing? (day care, volunteer work with kids, camp advisor, tutoring, etc)

If the answer to any of the questions is no then no sane employer would take her on. I know I wouldn't since she'll likely need babysitting, be more interested in partying with a new found freedom, will likely overspend so badly that she can't even afford to feed herself, won't understand what it is to do an honest day's work and will probably end up getting homesick and doing a midnight run back home leaving the employer in the lurch... I've seen it happen so many times with kids her age many of which had decent knowledge of the local language already (we used to rather cruelly place bets on who would crack and bail next when I was an ERASMUS student since about half of us were actually in work placements rather than simply attending uni abroad).

And living costs aside, she will need to consider the huge start up costs that she will likely face. With the exception of JET and a rare few gem entry level jobs (which without even a degree, she isn't even in with a shot of landing), most employers will not fork out for airfares and many regular apartments here have huge moving in costs (deposits, key money, agency fees, a couple of months rent up front, etc) and will come completely unfurnished. And then she may not even receive her first pay cheque until the end of her second month of work, so she will need even more money to support herself until then.

And honestly, if she is still living at home with mummy and daddy, never had to work and live to a budget, then it would be crazy to send her over to any country alone and expect her to just be able to support herself.

[Apsara]

[TokyoLiz]

There is next to no chance of her getting teaching jobs other than private tutoring.

She would need language skills before she could get a job in a convenience store or restaurant.

My Czech colleague learned Japanese and got room and board with farmers while participating in Workers on Organic Farms http://www.wwoofjapan.com/

I've met foreigners working on contstruction sites, factories, foundries, wrecking lots. But these are dirty, dangerous jobs. The few that I've met working in restaurants are Japanese-speaking cooks and servers from Nepal, India, Philippines, or westerners married to Japanese.

[seklarwia]

[Apsara]

I agree that her chances of landing a full time job are slim to none, but in the cities there is a lot more in the way of part time work for people who already hold visas, as well as private students of course. Assuming she doesn't have the funds to pay key money, deposit etc then a rural placement probably isn't really an option so a guest house in a larger city is probably the only way. I know that there isn't much in the way of guest houses outside the major cities, hence my recommendation to search there rather than in more rural areas.

What I'm trying to say is that I don't think it's 100% impossible, even now, to come here without a degree and find work on a WHV. Ideally she would wait a couple of years, get some work experience and save up a lot of money before trying, but provided she is prepared to go home within a few months and is not going to end up destitute, it could be worth a try. Being 20 rather than 19 could make quite a difference as well to some employers who wouldn't consider hiring a teenager.

[HLJHLJ]

Thank you all for your opinions.

She hasn't been to Uni, but she's had a couple of full time jobs since leaving school, and although she is living at home again now, she did live on her own in London for a while. (Well, not on her own, but not with family).

She's currently working and is saving up. She would have her airfare, and money to see her through the first couple of months, but long term, she would need to be self financing. Her parents are not in a position to contribute.

She interviews well, and is articulate and charming (in English) so she doesn't have much trouble finding work in the UK.

She's done mentoring, but it would be stretching it to say she'd done any teaching.

She hasn't got a set date yet, it depends how long it takes her to save the money up. But I would hate to see her pour everything she's got into this, if they most likely scenario is that she'll be back home in a couple of months, with no savings and no job.

My advice was to wait a couple of years, save more money and learn more Japanese. But that wasn't what she wanted to hear.

Can anyone confirm if JAWHM has closed down then? The website still seems to be active.

[Bread]

All of the WHV people I know work in food service. Izakaya, sushiya, McDonald's, that kind of thing. I don't think I've ever met anyone teaching English on a WHV, honestly, but that's the only thing you could possibly do without speaking Japanese.

[HLJHLJ]

[Glenski]

[HLJHLJ]

Thanks Glenski, that's a shame