Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
EMPLOYMENT RESOURCES
Apart from the websites listed below the main places to look for job
adverts are the free weekly magazines
Metropolis
and
Tokyo Notice
Board
(see p.25).
GaijinPot
W
gaijinpot.com. Classifieds focused on English-language
teaching.
Japan Association for Working Holiday Makers
W
jawhm.or.jp.
Job referrals for people on working holiday visas.
Jobs in Japan
W
jobsinjapan.com. Broad range of classified ads.
Work in Japan
W
daijob.com/wij. Japan's largest bilingual jobs
website.
from impossible, especially if you have the right
qualifications (a degree is essential) and appro-
priate visa.
Unless you take part in the
working holiday visa
programme (see p.33), foreigners working in Japan
must apply for a
work visa
outside
the country, for
which the proper sponsorship papers from your
prospective employer will be necessary. Work visas
do not need to be obtained in your home country,
so if you get offered a job, it's possible to sort out
the paperwork in South Korea, for example. A few
employers may be willing to hire you before the
proper papers are sorted, but you shouldn't rely on
this, and if you arrive without a job make sure you
have plenty of funds to live on until you find one.
Anyone staying in Japan more than ninety days
must also apply for residency status (see p.33).
The most common job available to foreigners is
teaching English
. Some of the smaller schools are
far from professional operations (and even the big
ones get lots of complaints), so before signing any
contract it's a good idea to talk to other teachers
and, if possible, attend a class and find out what
will be expected of you. If you have a professional
teaching qualification, plus experience, or if you
also speak another language such as French or
Italian, your chances of getting one of the better
jobs will be higher.
Another option is to get a place on the govern-
ment-run
Japan Exchange and Teaching
Programme
(JET;
W
jetprogramme.org), aimed at
improving foreign-language teaching in schools
and promoting international understanding. The
scheme is open to graduates aged 40 and under,
preferably holding some sort of language-teaching
qualification. Benefits include a generous salary,
help with accommodation, return air travel to
Japan and paid holidays. Applying for the JET
programme is a lengthy process for which you
need to be well prepared. Application forms for
the following year's quota are available from late
September, the deadline for submission being
early December. Interviews are held in January and
February, with decisions made in March. After
health checks and orientation meetings, JETs head
off to their posts in late July on year-long contracts,
which can be renewed for up to two more years by
mutual consent.
Whatever work you're looking for - or if you're
doing any sort of business in Japan - a smart set
of clothes will give you an advantage, as will
following other general rules of social etiquette
(see p.27).
Studying Japanese language and culture
Tokyo offers all sorts of opportunities to study
Japanese language and culture. In order to get a
student or
cultural visa
, you'll need various
documents from the institution where you plan to
study and proof that you have su
cient funds to
support yourself, among other things. Full-time
courses are expensive, but once you have your
visa you may be allowed to undertake a minimal
amount of paid work.
Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports,
Science and Technology (MEXT;
W
www.mext.go.jp)
offers various
scholarships
to foreign students
wishing to further their knowledge of Japanese
or Japanese studies, or to enrol at a Japanese
university. You'll find further information on the
informative Study in Japan website (
W
www.study
japan.go.jp), run by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
or by contacting your nearest Japanese embassy
or consulate.
Tokyo has numerous
Japanese language schools
offering intensive and part-time courses. Among
the most established are Berlitz (
W
berlitz.co.jp),
with over thirty schools in central Tokyo, and Tokyo
Kogakuin Japanese Language School (5-30-16
Sendagaya, Shibuya-ku;
T
03 3352 3851,
W
technos
-jpschool.ac.jp). The monthly bilingual magazine
Hiragana Times
W
hiraganatimes.com) and the
listings magazines
Metropolis
and
Tokyo Journal
also
carry adverts for schools, or check out the Association
for the Promotion of Japanese Language Education
(2F Ishiyama Bldg, 1-58-1 Yoyogi, Shinjuku-ku;
T
03
4304 7815,
W
www.nisshinkyo.org), whose website
lists accredited institutions.
Mail
Japan's
mail
service is highly e
cient and fast, with
thousands of post of
ces, easily identified by their
red-and-white signs showing a T with a parallel bar
across the top (the same symbol that you'll find
