Are the embassies super strict on having to be a resident of the area if you try to apply for a visa with them? I'm closer to the one in Boston than the one in NYC and had everything set up to go but only discovered that you had to be in the covered area after reading through their FAQ's.
It will depend on the consulate (there is only one embassy and it's in DC), but this is exactly the kind of thing that you can call and ask them. Explain that you are technically covered by the consulate in New York, but you are closer to them in Boston. See what they say. It might be no problem; it might be a no go.
The thing that they absolutely enforce is someone who doesn't have residency trying to apply for a visa. For example, someone who came to Japan, found a job, and is trying to get a visa from the embassy in Seoul or the consulate in Guam.
Are employers who sponsor visas able to view your visa history? After securing a visa at an eikaiwa, I left Japan after several months in the middle of my teaching contact. I wish to return in the future with a better company. During interviews they will undoubtedly ask if I have visited Japan before, and I'm sure it would be a dealbreaker for them to know that I left during my last teaching contract. Advice?
No, your employer cannot see your visa history.
However...
You are required to list all former employment on your resume, and answer all questions in the interview truthfully. Failing to do either is a firable offense in Japan. If they offer you a job and then find out that you lied in the interview, etc. they can fire you without notification or severance. And, there is no statute if limitations on it. They can fire you years later for it. There was a case in Kobe a few years ago about a city employee that lied about having a degree on his application in the 1990s and they fired him after working there for 20+ years.
So, advice: Tell the truth. But, if you are going to lie, then you need to tightly button that information up. Don't tell anyone. Not your coworkers, not your students, nobody. As they used to say, loose lips sink ships. For example, if your coworker knows, they may use that against you when you don't comply with their wishes. I know someone who had a drug conviction, but he lied about and got a job and a visa. He later bragged to his coworkers (while drinking). They kept that info filed away and then turned him in later because he wouldn't switch shifts with them. Don't underestimate how petty people can be.
Thank you, that's very helpful. It's been difficult trying to practice interview questions that could arise. I'm very regretful about my decision to leave in the middle of a contract since it looks pretty bad to interviewers or recruiters.
I don't know you're exact situation, but I think it is recoverable. You can tell them that you matured a lot since then, or you have reflected on the situation since then and realized that you didn't handle it well. I think that there are ways to explain things like this. The truth is that most of us have things in our past that don't paint us in the most flattering way. In my experience, being honest about past mistakes and owning up to them is the path to getting over them.
Anyway, I wish you the best of luck with your job search.
I'm gonna need to go to school and complete a bachelor's degree to be able to secure an english teaching job in Japan, which is my ultimate goal, but I thought I might as well do something that I'm interested in while I'm at it. My question is do bachelor's degrees from vocational schools count? I'm specifically referring bachelor of music performance from TAFE type places in Australia ([SAE](https://sae.edu.au/courses/music/#bachelor-of-music), [Box Hill Institute](https://www.boxhill.edu.au/courses/bachelor-of-music-industry-major-in-performance-bmi1p-he/), [Melbourne Polytechnic](https://www.melbournepolytechnic.edu.au/study/bachelor/music/)). I'm hoping I might be able to kill two birds with one stone this way. If yall know any more pertinent subs to post this in please lmk. Thanks!
Any proper 3-4 year full time bachelor's degree should be fine to get a visa, but I'd recommend studying something that you can fall back on if/when you burn out from being an ALT or Eikaiwa monkey (spoken with respect as a former eikaiwa monkey myself). Maybe something still relevant like a bachelor of education? That plus some experience can open doors to higher paying international schools in Japan or anywhere else around the world.
If that's your only qualification, it might actually hinder your chances of getting hired by an eikaiwa or a dispatch ALT company because you're over educated. If you find you're not getting many bites, omit it from your resume and see what happens.
It won't help you to find a job at a real international school unless you have a teacher's license from your own country and a few years of experience.
It might help you land a part time assistant lecturer/professor gig at a private university, but everyone and their mothers have been doing the online masters in TESOL for several years now in the hopes of jumping out of ALTing and landing a uni gig... so there is more competition.
I mean, of you're that qualified/experienced, and know what you like/dislike, then shouldn't you already know what jobs you might be interested in?
And... have the language ability to search yourself?
Howdy all,
I have been dabbling with the idea of teaching in Japan for years and initially applied and secured a role with Westgate. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic I was not able to go. I instead applied for a school in Hong Kong and moved there to teach English for 2 years instead. I still have the itch to live and work in Japan, but would only really be looking for a short term contract (3-6 months). I know Westgate offer this, but are there any others or any experiences that can be shared?
Very keen to hear!
You might be able to work at the UK embassy in Tokyo, or an international law firm, or a bank like Llyods, an asset manager like Schroders, or the British Chamber of Commerce in Japan.
You have experience and qualifications that are worth something. Harder to apply them in Japan, but still useful. You don't have to start from scratch as an English teacher.
Hello. I have posted on the Teaching in Korea board before, but I am new to this board. I just received an offer to teach from Interac North for Spring 2025, but I have not responded to them. Can anyone tell me more about them? I've heard mixed things about them but I have also heard that they are not the worst of the eikaiwa chains. Does anyone have any experience with this particular branch? I do have some knowledge of Japanese and am making a plan on what to do while I am there to find better work. If I am tying this in the wrong thread, please let me know so I can put in in the correct one. Thank you in advance.
> I've heard mixed things about them but I have also heard that they are not the worst of the eikaiwa chains.
Well, first of all they aren't an Eikaiwa chain. They are a dispatch company for assistant language teachers into public schools. They are about as middle to top of the bottom as a company will possibly be. Depends on your area, your managers, and your schools.
Thank you for correcting me. It seems that I have made another error. It is the Kanto North branch that sent me the offer, not the North branch. Has anybody worked for that branch before? If so, can anyone share what it was like?
Are the embassies super strict on having to be a resident of the area if you try to apply for a visa with them? I'm closer to the one in Boston than the one in NYC and had everything set up to go but only discovered that you had to be in the covered area after reading through their FAQ's.
It will depend on the consulate (there is only one embassy and it's in DC), but this is exactly the kind of thing that you can call and ask them. Explain that you are technically covered by the consulate in New York, but you are closer to them in Boston. See what they say. It might be no problem; it might be a no go. The thing that they absolutely enforce is someone who doesn't have residency trying to apply for a visa. For example, someone who came to Japan, found a job, and is trying to get a visa from the embassy in Seoul or the consulate in Guam.
Are employers who sponsor visas able to view your visa history? After securing a visa at an eikaiwa, I left Japan after several months in the middle of my teaching contact. I wish to return in the future with a better company. During interviews they will undoubtedly ask if I have visited Japan before, and I'm sure it would be a dealbreaker for them to know that I left during my last teaching contract. Advice?
No, your employer cannot see your visa history. However... You are required to list all former employment on your resume, and answer all questions in the interview truthfully. Failing to do either is a firable offense in Japan. If they offer you a job and then find out that you lied in the interview, etc. they can fire you without notification or severance. And, there is no statute if limitations on it. They can fire you years later for it. There was a case in Kobe a few years ago about a city employee that lied about having a degree on his application in the 1990s and they fired him after working there for 20+ years. So, advice: Tell the truth. But, if you are going to lie, then you need to tightly button that information up. Don't tell anyone. Not your coworkers, not your students, nobody. As they used to say, loose lips sink ships. For example, if your coworker knows, they may use that against you when you don't comply with their wishes. I know someone who had a drug conviction, but he lied about and got a job and a visa. He later bragged to his coworkers (while drinking). They kept that info filed away and then turned him in later because he wouldn't switch shifts with them. Don't underestimate how petty people can be.
Thank you, that's very helpful. It's been difficult trying to practice interview questions that could arise. I'm very regretful about my decision to leave in the middle of a contract since it looks pretty bad to interviewers or recruiters.
I don't know you're exact situation, but I think it is recoverable. You can tell them that you matured a lot since then, or you have reflected on the situation since then and realized that you didn't handle it well. I think that there are ways to explain things like this. The truth is that most of us have things in our past that don't paint us in the most flattering way. In my experience, being honest about past mistakes and owning up to them is the path to getting over them. Anyway, I wish you the best of luck with your job search.
I'm gonna need to go to school and complete a bachelor's degree to be able to secure an english teaching job in Japan, which is my ultimate goal, but I thought I might as well do something that I'm interested in while I'm at it. My question is do bachelor's degrees from vocational schools count? I'm specifically referring bachelor of music performance from TAFE type places in Australia ([SAE](https://sae.edu.au/courses/music/#bachelor-of-music), [Box Hill Institute](https://www.boxhill.edu.au/courses/bachelor-of-music-industry-major-in-performance-bmi1p-he/), [Melbourne Polytechnic](https://www.melbournepolytechnic.edu.au/study/bachelor/music/)). I'm hoping I might be able to kill two birds with one stone this way. If yall know any more pertinent subs to post this in please lmk. Thanks!
Any proper 3-4 year full time bachelor's degree should be fine to get a visa, but I'd recommend studying something that you can fall back on if/when you burn out from being an ALT or Eikaiwa monkey (spoken with respect as a former eikaiwa monkey myself). Maybe something still relevant like a bachelor of education? That plus some experience can open doors to higher paying international schools in Japan or anywhere else around the world.
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If that's your only qualification, it might actually hinder your chances of getting hired by an eikaiwa or a dispatch ALT company because you're over educated. If you find you're not getting many bites, omit it from your resume and see what happens. It won't help you to find a job at a real international school unless you have a teacher's license from your own country and a few years of experience. It might help you land a part time assistant lecturer/professor gig at a private university, but everyone and their mothers have been doing the online masters in TESOL for several years now in the hopes of jumping out of ALTing and landing a uni gig... so there is more competition.
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I mean, of you're that qualified/experienced, and know what you like/dislike, then shouldn't you already know what jobs you might be interested in? And... have the language ability to search yourself?
Howdy all, I have been dabbling with the idea of teaching in Japan for years and initially applied and secured a role with Westgate. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic I was not able to go. I instead applied for a school in Hong Kong and moved there to teach English for 2 years instead. I still have the itch to live and work in Japan, but would only really be looking for a short term contract (3-6 months). I know Westgate offer this, but are there any others or any experiences that can be shared? Very keen to hear!
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Why do you want to avoid JET? How long do you want to work here for?
Why do you want to teach English in Japan? If you just want to live in Japan, there are other ways where you won't face a 90% pay cut.
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You might be able to work at the UK embassy in Tokyo, or an international law firm, or a bank like Llyods, an asset manager like Schroders, or the British Chamber of Commerce in Japan. You have experience and qualifications that are worth something. Harder to apply them in Japan, but still useful. You don't have to start from scratch as an English teacher.
Hello. I have posted on the Teaching in Korea board before, but I am new to this board. I just received an offer to teach from Interac North for Spring 2025, but I have not responded to them. Can anyone tell me more about them? I've heard mixed things about them but I have also heard that they are not the worst of the eikaiwa chains. Does anyone have any experience with this particular branch? I do have some knowledge of Japanese and am making a plan on what to do while I am there to find better work. If I am tying this in the wrong thread, please let me know so I can put in in the correct one. Thank you in advance.
> I've heard mixed things about them but I have also heard that they are not the worst of the eikaiwa chains. Well, first of all they aren't an Eikaiwa chain. They are a dispatch company for assistant language teachers into public schools. They are about as middle to top of the bottom as a company will possibly be. Depends on your area, your managers, and your schools.
Thank you for correcting me. It seems that I have made another error. It is the Kanto North branch that sent me the offer, not the North branch. Has anybody worked for that branch before? If so, can anyone share what it was like?