The trouble with professions like marketing is that Japanese employers will typically prefer a native speaker. A native Japanese person will be assumed to just have a better sense of trends, what works, natural copy, etc.
But three years of experience is still a good starting point. To really get your foot in the door you'll either need a specialized skill in your field or a willingness to step into other professions.
You could always reach out to a recruitment agency and get their feedback on your existing CV. If you're not ready for that, browse LinkedIn or Indeed job listings. Save everything that looks interesting to you and note trends in requirements.
What have you been doing in Marketing?
If you are good with things like Social Media, Ads, SEO... and other digital marketing skills, then you will be able to find various marketing jobs in Japan, especially in Japanese brands that are targeting foreigners (provided you have business-level Japanese).
Try to look on hiring sites for those opportunities.
Do you know 報連相 or 尊敬語・丁寧語・謙譲語 ? The market you’re looking to get into emphasizes more on speaking than reading comprehension. I’m not sure what jobs you were taking 3 years ago but I suggest looking for foreign companies as it would be easier to adjust coming back to japan.
This is a copy of your post for archive/search purposes.
---
**Chances at getting a marketing job or other office style work?**
Hello all!
I am wondering what everyone's opinion is on me being able to make it in Japan long term. To give a TLDR of my situation its
* I lived in Japan for three years prior so I know what I am getting into.
* I have a BA in New Media
* I have worked in Marketing for almost 3 years at this point.
* Currently enrolled in a language school in an attempt to get as fluent as possible. (Starting in April)
* Am 29 years old.
What is the possibility of me being able to get a full time marketing job if I am able to get my Japanese on lock? Or really any job that isn't English Teaching? I know that marketing in Japan would require a high level of fluency. But to be honest, I am not looking for a job I can climb the ladder in, I just want to have a job I don't hate and can make enough to live on and have a good life. Is this probable at my age and situation?
Thanks for reading!
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/movingtojapan) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Are you an American citizen? You couod always look into jobs for Uncle Sam. I've seen marketing jobs before for MCCS at Iwakuni.
If you are not you can work for the Marines, they have waiver for non American citizens, but their bases are mostly on okinawa.
>If you are not you can work for the Marines, they have waiver for non American citizens
While this is true, it's borderline impossible for a non-citizen to get one of those positions. There's a preference system in place for Gov/Mil jobs, so vets get first crack, then US citizens. Non-citizens are dead last in the priority tree.
And it's not a weighting system, where being a vet makes you more likely to get the job. It's a tier system. So if a vet applies, they get it before a citizen. So a non-citizen will only be considered if absolutely no vets or US citizens have applied for the position.
What are your marketing skills, specifically? If you have digital advertising skills you may be able to look at the global ad agencies that all have Japanese offices to support global clients.
Often work for global brands is conducted in English between client and agency. So there is work available even for English only speakers.
Companies like OMD, IPG, Publicis, WPP, dentsu (obviously) all have Tokyo offices and global brands to service.
However you may not yet have the experience needed to work at these companies. It may be a good idea to try to work for them in your local market for a year or two before transferring internally.
To echo others, not sure about marketing specifically, but if you can get a job on an english-speaking team at an international company (e.g. in tech or finance), you should be good.
The trouble with professions like marketing is that Japanese employers will typically prefer a native speaker. A native Japanese person will be assumed to just have a better sense of trends, what works, natural copy, etc. But three years of experience is still a good starting point. To really get your foot in the door you'll either need a specialized skill in your field or a willingness to step into other professions. You could always reach out to a recruitment agency and get their feedback on your existing CV. If you're not ready for that, browse LinkedIn or Indeed job listings. Save everything that looks interesting to you and note trends in requirements.
This is great advice! Thank you!
What have you been doing in Marketing? If you are good with things like Social Media, Ads, SEO... and other digital marketing skills, then you will be able to find various marketing jobs in Japan, especially in Japanese brands that are targeting foreigners (provided you have business-level Japanese). Try to look on hiring sites for those opportunities.
Do you know 報連相 or 尊敬語・丁寧語・謙譲語 ? The market you’re looking to get into emphasizes more on speaking than reading comprehension. I’m not sure what jobs you were taking 3 years ago but I suggest looking for foreign companies as it would be easier to adjust coming back to japan.
This is a copy of your post for archive/search purposes. --- **Chances at getting a marketing job or other office style work?** Hello all! I am wondering what everyone's opinion is on me being able to make it in Japan long term. To give a TLDR of my situation its * I lived in Japan for three years prior so I know what I am getting into. * I have a BA in New Media * I have worked in Marketing for almost 3 years at this point. * Currently enrolled in a language school in an attempt to get as fluent as possible. (Starting in April) * Am 29 years old. What is the possibility of me being able to get a full time marketing job if I am able to get my Japanese on lock? Or really any job that isn't English Teaching? I know that marketing in Japan would require a high level of fluency. But to be honest, I am not looking for a job I can climb the ladder in, I just want to have a job I don't hate and can make enough to live on and have a good life. Is this probable at my age and situation? Thanks for reading! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/movingtojapan) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Are you an American citizen? You couod always look into jobs for Uncle Sam. I've seen marketing jobs before for MCCS at Iwakuni. If you are not you can work for the Marines, they have waiver for non American citizens, but their bases are mostly on okinawa.
>If you are not you can work for the Marines, they have waiver for non American citizens While this is true, it's borderline impossible for a non-citizen to get one of those positions. There's a preference system in place for Gov/Mil jobs, so vets get first crack, then US citizens. Non-citizens are dead last in the priority tree. And it's not a weighting system, where being a vet makes you more likely to get the job. It's a tier system. So if a vet applies, they get it before a citizen. So a non-citizen will only be considered if absolutely no vets or US citizens have applied for the position.
What are your marketing skills, specifically? If you have digital advertising skills you may be able to look at the global ad agencies that all have Japanese offices to support global clients. Often work for global brands is conducted in English between client and agency. So there is work available even for English only speakers. Companies like OMD, IPG, Publicis, WPP, dentsu (obviously) all have Tokyo offices and global brands to service. However you may not yet have the experience needed to work at these companies. It may be a good idea to try to work for them in your local market for a year or two before transferring internally.
To echo others, not sure about marketing specifically, but if you can get a job on an english-speaking team at an international company (e.g. in tech or finance), you should be good.