JAPAN


Mount Fuji is the perfect analogy for modern Japan: symmetrical, beautiful, but with a fiery heart raging under the surface. Walking around the sanitized streets and grand shopping centers, you’re never far from a sight that will get your heart racing – whether it’s the magnificent imperial palace or a man in a green dress casually shopping for food.

Getting around is easy, as Subways criss-cross the cities and the famous bullet trains speed through the countryside at up to 300km/h. Wherever your destination, expect to get there in a comfortable and efficient style that’s unique to this enigmatic country.

TEFL in Japan (Contracts, Salary, Work)

Finding Work

Work Visas

Why choose Japan?


Be Aware


Before you go

A Few Fun Facts



TEFL in Japan (Contracts, Salary, Work)


Demand for teachers

 Very High

After the economic slump of the 90’s, the Japanese economy is experiencing a resurgence. So the already-high demand for English teachers is increasing further.

Main TEFL regions

 Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka, Kobe, Kyoto

Busiest TEFL periods

 Year-round, although most 12-month contracts start with the academic year in April.

Contract lengths

 Usually 6-12 months, although there is a range of short-term jobs that can be arranged in-country.

Types of teaching

Accommodation

 Expect an apartment to cost between 50,000 – 100,000 Yen per month. If your employer helps you find a place, or you live outside of Tokyo or Osaka, it will cost at the lower end of this range. Whereas the price is pushed up by using a rental agency or living in a big city.

You will usually have to pay for utilities (about 10,000 Yen per month) on top of your rent and apartments are often unfurnished, although the better schools will provide you with basic furnishings.

Flight reimbursement

 This depends on your placement

Currency

 Japanese Yen (JPY)
Symbol: ¥

Salary

 This varies, but the basic salary is usually 250,000 Yen (US$2,300) per month. However, you can boost this figure with bonuses and private tuition.

Taxes

 Although tax rates for the rich are among the highest in the world, you should only expect to pay 7% of your 3,000,000 Yen salary in tax.

Cost of living

 Japan has an expensive reputation and when food, accommodation and bills are factored in, living costs can take up 75% of your income. But simple adjustments such as eating like the locals and shopping at cheap “100 Yen Shops” can pay great dividends.

Potential to save money

 This is lower in Japan than other countries, but with a good long-term contract and self-discipline, you should be able to save money.

How much TEFL training is recommended?

 Little to no training is required to get a teaching post, but recognized qualifications such as those offered by i-to-i will prepare you for the pressures of the classroom and increase your employability. Schools will usually only employ university graduates.

Common teaching conditions

 You will typically teach for 6 hours a day, 5 days a week; with the occasional 6-day week. Most lessons happen in the afternoon or evening, although this can vary.

Most students are eager and respectful. Children usually expect lessons to be fun, while the standard of English amongst adult students tends to be lower than in other Asian countries.


Finding Work

How do I find work?

 To help you find your feet in the job market, i-to-i combines their TEFL course with a guaranteed, well-paid teaching placement program.
Otherwise, it’s relatively easy to find a teaching job before you leave home, either through the Japanese government’s JET (Japan Exchange & Teaching) program, university careers departments or specialist recruitment agencies.

Given the current fashion for learning other languages such as French and Spanish, the ability to speak a second European language could boost your employment prospects.

Can I find work while in-country?

 Japan is one of the easiest places to find a job in-country, as long as you’re a native English speaker with a university degree; and if you’re willing to venture outside of Tokyo, the lack of competition could make your search easier. Just be sure that your savings will cover your first few weeks without a job, or you’ll be back home quicker than expected!

What is the usual hiring process?

 Once you’ve applied for a position, you’re usually interviewed over the phone. The Japanese value enthusiasm and professionalism in their English teachers, so make sure you speak clearly. Equally, if you’re invited for an interview, it helps to be smartly dressed and polite.


Work Visas

Is a work visa required to find paid work in Japan?

 It is essential that you have a work visa to teach in Japan. If you have a job offer, your employer will send you an official Certificate of Eligibility, which you then take to your country’s Japanese embassy who will issue a work permit. If you want to turn your tourist visa into a work visa, you will have to exit the country first.

If you hope to find work inside the country, it’s best to have a six-month working holiday visa (extendable for a further six months).

Working holiday visa requirements:

Work Visa requirements:

Why Choose Japan?

Be Aware…
Arriving in Japan for the first time can be quite a culture shock, so arm yourself with a basic understanding of the country and a healthy appetite for new experiences.

You’ll probably be invited to take part in extra-curricular activities, and declining could be seen as rude.


Before you go

Read this…

 The Box Man by Kobe Abe– bizarre but entertaining novel about a man who chooses to live in a cardboard box.

Watch this…

 My Neighbor Totoro – yes, it’s animation; but it also perfectly demonstrates the enigma that is Japanese culture. This society, that seems so restrained to the outside world, comes up with such warm and charming movies.


A Few Fun Facts
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