Hi everyone. I don't post here much but I needed some advice and I thought people here might have some. If you're willing to read about my situation and tell me what you think, thank you in advance.

I just graduated from college, 23 year old female, majored in Asian Studies and minored in Japanese. I've spent a total of more than three years in Japan, passed JLPT1 last year and basically my Japanese is really freakin' good (haha sorry.) Right now I'm living with my mom, looking for jobs, no experience, bad economy, yada yada. I've been sending out my resume online and I've been contacted by some bilingual English-Japanese recruitment centers offering to send my resume to companies like trading companies and auto manufacturers for jobs doing office work and stuff like that. Since returning from a junior year abroad in 2011, I've been very torn as to whether I want to go back to Japan now or ever, or even do anything related to Japanese, and I've been wondering if devoting basically my whole life to going to Japan and learning Japanese was a huge waste of time when I should have been doing something useful. Anyway, I haven't been very proactive about the job hunt, or very excited about what's out there.

Now, I have a friend who is teaching English at a preschool/kindergarten in Japan to kids ages 2-6. He says they are hiring a new teacher starting April 2013, and if I want the job, it's essentially mine. The only other person interested is Japanese-American, and they want someone with a white face, go figure. That alone makes me uncomfortable but I know that's just the way it is. The salary is good for me (260,000Y a month for the first year, increases over time), plus benefits and they will get me set up with a visa, apartment, etc. A whole month vacation in August and 2 weeks in December. Apparently the job is "very easy--the Japanese teachers do a lot of work but us English teachers don't" (apparently it's that way at most schools). It's basically day care, you play with the kids and sing them songs. He said the English teachers are basically walking advertisements so the school can be like "look, we have white people so your kids will eigo real good!"

My friend really likes it, but I'm not sure I would. I've always been hesitant to consider teaching English in Japan because it seemed like the standards were so low. Frankly being told "you should be an English teacher because you (are white and) speak English!" felt like being told "you should be a prostitute because you're a lady!" Most people probably think that's an extreme analogy but amazingly I'm not the first person who's made it! Anyway, I want a job where I feel like I'm actually doing something, not just slacking off and going home early while all the Japanese teachers do all the real work, even though I know that's what a lot of people DO want, including my friend, and that's fine for them.

Ultimately, I feel like it's a bit moot to ask for advice on this because what it really comes down to is whether *I* want to do it or not, and nobody can decide that but me. But if you've made it this far and have any thoughts, advice or anything, I'd appreciate it very much!

Edited to add that they want a commitment of at least three years, preferably more, which is part of what makes it feel like such a big decision.

The salary seems pretty good. Also, you can use your spare time to look for a better job. It's a lot easier looking for a job in Japan while you are actually in Japan.

And hey, if you don't like it, you can always just go back to [strikeout]America[/strikeout] wherever you're from.

saritza Wrote:Ultimately, I feel like it's a bit moot to ask for advice on this because what it really comes down to is whether *I* want to do it or not, and nobody can decide that but me. But if you've made it this far and have any thoughts, advice or anything, I'd appreciate it very much!

I can't really comment on what you should do or not do. These jobs are usually mind numbingly easy, that's for sure. You'll need a lot of energy though. That aside though, the pay is very good and frugal people can bank a good amount of money here in Japan. The problem though is you'll be basically be putting your life on pause while in Japan unless you are actually actively looking for work in Japan. Life as an "English teacher" here isn't a career, and its easy to get stuck in this job. Its a decent 1-2 year fill gap and can help people pay off loans as well as figure out where to go in life, but don't let it suck too many years out, would be my suggestion.

Quote:Edited to add that they want a commitment of at least three years, preferably more, which is part of what makes it feel like such a big decision.

Don't put too much thought on this. The 3 year thing is mostly locked to the visa they are trying to get you which will be 3 years probably. Its worth noting though that there is nothing stopping you from working a year or even 3 months, and then quitting and finding another job. There are many, many people that do that here in Japan. The work visa is yours to do with as you please; not the company that hired you.

There's not really anything in what you've written that sounds as if you'd really like to take up this job. Firstly, you're a bit over the whole Japan thing right now. Secondly, there are things about the prospective job/company that don't sit well with your value system (and that's pretty important when it comes to making big decisions). And thirdly, it doesn't seem like it will give you much job satisfaction.

You are clearly a bright, intelligent woman with the capacity to do any number of things. If you didn't have to have a job, what would you really love to be doing with your time? If you can think of a few different things, are you passionate enough about one of them to consider it as a career path? It sounds like you want to do work that is meaningful and challenging, and playing with kids is not necessarily going to cut it for you. (Though of course it may be perfect for someone else.)

The fact that you have studied another language and experienced another culture will never be a waste. It is experience you will draw on for the rest of your life, so don't feel bad if you don't want to go any further with it at this point in time. If you have a break from all-things-japanese, who knows, you might miss it after a while and go back to it with renewed enthusiasm. Or not. It'll be okay either way.

Re the visa / 3 year thing. Personally, I couldn't make a 3 year commitment to anything if I didn't REALLY want to do it. The fact that other people have made a commitment to a company and quit after 3 months doesn't mean you should go into it with that attitude. It's one thing to be so excited about a job, feel sure you're going to love it, then get there and find out it's not at all what you expected - of course you'd look around for something else. But when you're not too thrilled about it in the first place, why set yourself up to feel trapped?

Do what you love to do, saritza. And if you don't have a clue what that is yet, that's okay, too. But don't do something you feel you "should" want to do (because the pay sounds good or you could get the job easily because of how you look). Other opportunities will definitely come your way, poor economy or not.

All the best.

Guys here can be of more help regarding teaching English in Japan (this might be helpful: http://forum.koohii.com/showthread.php?tid=9759), but regarding taking the decision I can share my advice on this, because I've been through this confusion.

At first and obviously, sit with yourself and think about what you really want, and what's your passion in life. Ask yourself questions like: What do I like to do? Do I like Japan? Do I like Japanese? Why did I study Japanese? Why did I study Asian studies? What do I want to with my life? What do I want to do as a job for the rest of my life? And so on. But be careful not to answer the questions shallowly, you have to dig deep in the roots of the whys and whats, because sometime we lose the cause along the way and it becomes hard to remember why we are even where we are. This may take hours to finish, sometimes way longer. If you think that you should experiment with or try somethings, don't hesitate (check note below).

Now after arriving to what you really want to do, you have to think about the steps to reach it and work hard on it, make it the first priority in your spare time to get closer to it, it'll probably be something that requires preparation and hard work, commit yourself to reach it. BUT don't gamble with your future, don't put hopes on uncertain things without having a back up plan and don't be too passionate and become blind about the reality, which is the need for a stable career that ensures a good life for you.

If what you want will take sometime to reach, your best option is to find a respectable, well paying job (or work while searching for one) and work through the steps to reach your real target, this job will be you backup job if things don't work out with your passions. This is the real world, dreamers will be crushed by the harsh reality (at least this is how things are here).

One last note, I think we need sometime to discover ourselves, up to 1 year (maybe more?) won't be a big loss to work in a job that you won't continue in, because there isn't much responsibilities after graduation, and so one can be a little adventurous at first, if you think that you need to explore yourself and the world for sometime.

So basically you should balance your passions with the reality while making sure that you understand enough about yourself and prepared to make long term commitment.

I hope that was of some use to you.
Wishing you the best of luck!

Thank you all for your thoughts and advice. It has been tremendously helpful. I feel like I definitely came to the right place.

I realized a lot of things reading your responses.

1) I have never thought of myself as an ambitious person, but reading your post Scarby Dancer, I realized I actually am. I come from a family of ambitious, accomplished people so I've always felt like an unambitious slacker in comparison, but maybe that's not accurate.

2) A part of me must actually want this job, because the thought of turning it down made me feel very sad for a moment. But that may have been more the thought of going back to Japan, than the job itself.

3) If I decide I really do want to go back to Japan, there are plenty of other ways, and as I gain knowledge and experience more opportunities will likely open up.

Undead_saif, I wrote down all your questions and I'll be thinking about them a lot. I also thought about what I'd do with my life if I didn't have to have a job. One thing I've always been very interested in is translating literature, but I sort of talked myself out of it because I've heard it's so hard to get a job doing that--most translation work is very tedious. But now that I think about it again, it's not beyond the realm of reality--it's not like I want to be the first woman on Mars (apologies if there are other women who have already been on Mars that I'm not aware of). If that is my dream, it's definitely something I can work towards gradually. And, reading your responses, I've regained hope and ambition for pursuing it.

I have not yet made a definitive decision about this job. I'm sure it would provide valuable experience for the future no matter what I end up pursuing, and it would help me save money, but I can't let myself get stuck there, as you said Vix86. (I've also thought it might be fun to write and illustrate (bilingual?) children's books, and it would help me understand the way kids think and what they enjoy.)

I felt like I was sort of stuck in a rut, thinking over the same things again and again, and you all have broadened my perspective and helped me start thinking in new directions. Many many thanks!

saritza Wrote:One thing I've always been very interested in is translating literature, but I sort of talked myself out of it because I've heard it's so hard to get a job doing that

You could take the job and translate Japanese stories into English and viceversa and use them as teaching material. Then you could eventually compile your translations and publish a book or something.

It's just an idea. There are many things you can do if you think about it, wether you take this job or not.

Sounds great for a short time gig for a young one like yourself. Just keep in mind that you'll be an entertainer and not an English teacher.

So come and enjoy, just don't get stuck over here like I did.

How much do you like children? I think teaching 2-6 year olds for 3 years would kill me. They're fun, sure - but when they're horrible they're really horrible, and they're all exhausting. Older kids (6-10, say) are far more enjoyable to teach in my experience. If you're open to the idea of teaching English, there are plenty of options available (especially given your degree/language ability) if this particular one doesn't excite you.

I have never taught little kids, but observing them day to day out in public; one thing I can say is that they are, generally, considerably more disciplined than little kids from my home country (America). I think this makes a big difference when it comes to working with them. I know at the higher levels that I work with; even the most problematic kids are still light years ahead of the kids back home which need a police officer or two, stationed at the school everyday.

This could simply be bias though.

Many, many years ago I also wasn't sure if I was suited to teach young kids or not.
I was very worried, but as I wanted to go to Japan, I thought I could as well try.
It ended up to be much better than I thought. I loved the job so much that even nowadays I still do it although my Japanese is on a very advanced level and I could take another job. I just don't want to!

I teach not only kids, though.
I think it can become tiring to teach little kids ONLY, but you won't know until you try!

Good luck!