Hello everyone.
I'm in my second year of the JET Programme as an ALT and I've decided to start from the ground up and pursue something in front-end web development now that I've gotten used to the workload and will have a lot of downtime for the next 3 years of my contract. The consensus online for a junior-level transition into a new field within Japan seems bleak and I expect to receive similar replies to this post. However, I'd still like to get some perspective on the realities I might face with my specific situation, some advice about the path I've considered, and if you have it in your heart, some encouragement for someone worried about changing their career path.
Negatives:
Degree is not related to computer science or tech.
Searching for an entry-level professional position at the end of my contract.
I'll be in my early 30s when my contract is over.
Positives:
Already in the country
Married to a Japanese national and don't need my future employer to sponsor my visa.
Likely N3 – N2 Japanese by the end of my contract (thanks to my lovely partner as we communicate only in Japanese)
Took on additional responsibilities through the JET Programme (advisory position to help local incoming ALTs adjust to Japan, joined my local AJET group, and participated in additional ALT training provided by CLAIR) and have actively participated in both the foreign and Japanese communities within my city. Not exactly tech-related, but things that are good to see on a resume no matter the field… I'd hope.
A lot of downtime as an ALT to work on personal projects and gain experience through online schooling
I have money saved and my current ALT salary within my city can sustain further online schooling without going into debt
Generally, a good sense of design that I can continue to develop more during my time on JET
People generally get along with me???
Maybe a positive, but could also be a negative:
- Ideally, an in-person or hybrid position would be within my current prefecture which is considered to be very countryside. However, there is a major city with a decent population that might have more opportunities than my current (smaller) city. Less competition? But, at the same time, less choice?
My current thought process is to do as much as I can for the next three years to learn, gain experience, and build up a portfolio. Job search. And, If there's not an opportunity available within my prefecture or remotely in Japan, I was considering remote work from my home country (the US). If all else fails, sell my soul to an eikawa and slowly lose my mind with each rejection, but continue to put in the work to sharpen my skills.
Based on your own experience (not just what is said online, please),
What do you think?
by Soft_Past2999
12 comments
Learn to code, build a decent portfolio and network like crazy. The market is tough right now, I have two years experience in tech and struggling to find a job. Hopefully by the time you’re ready it’ll have calmed down, good luck 🫡
– Make a website or two as hobby projects
– Join a community about something you like where people are collaborating on a website project or two
– Contribute to open source code (easier when combined with the former)
– Get good activity on GitHub
– Write a couple Qiita articles with things you have learnt
– Join Conpass events
– Connect your GitHub, Qiita and Conpass accounts to sites such as Findy and Lapras
Companies will find you. The better you get, the easier it will be to get a good remote job.
For whatever it is worth, I hired someone that switched careers too. His selling point was that he tried to differentiate himself by making his own custom CSS and designs, rather than copy yet another CRUD project with bootstrap.
The market is tough, so do prepare a lot. And I mean a lot. You also have to understand that this is a career where you will study, and study and study. Then start working, and study, then study , and work and study some more. Then you study and then you die. At least if you want to improve your chances of success.
Connect with a recruiter via Linkedin so they can help you get your foot at the door.
You mentioned a good sense of design. Do you want to do graphic design or the actually front end programming? In case of the latter I can imagine it might be a hard business to get into if you don’t already know how to work with the various languages, frameworks etc.
Posts like this with people wanting to move to IT pop up from time to time but I always wonder why people pick fields that require knowledge of programming when they have none. It makes the barrier of entry so much higher because you are competing with people that have been doing that stuff for fun since they were kids.
Why no look at stuff like AWS, Azure or Powerplatform? With some general IT knowledge and a couple of courses you can actually do something with it. You’re probably much more likely finding a job if you spend time on learning those platforms for the next two year than you’d have learning to program. Unless you happen to love programming and really have a knack for it.
Don’t do it, find something else. Literally everyone has switched to this, the job market is horrible and honestly the future doesn’t look too bright either. Lots more Japanese are getting into the field too and lots of outsourcing to cheap vietnamese devs. It’s a massive time investment to join a huge rat race to the bottom. I’d find another field or niche
If you haven’t even started learning programming for a front-end dev job..How do you know you will actually enjoy the job? Do you just want money?
What happens if you spend 3 years studying, and are able to find a job (as others have said, the market is very hard for entry-level people these days, especially foreigners with 0 experience), what happens if you hate it more than teaching work?
There is more to IT than just web-dev programming, and with a spousal visa it is easier to potentially get into customer support type jobs and work your way up from there.
‘Likely n3 – n2 level japanese’ is not good enough with 0 experience.
Get your Japanese up to as near fluent as possible. All the people I know in the last year to succeed in the switch are pretty much bilingual and joined Japanese companies that are willing to train from zero. Those without the Japanese skill and who have zero professional programming skill outside of self study and boot camps have it much much harder.
Also, if you can grabbing a second, cs degree online through an American college can be a big plus. Otherwise making things that actually prove your skill in a portfolio.Â
Not wanting to sound negative but it seems like you’re clutching at straws here. The first problem that I see if that you don’t have a degree related to the field that you’re trying to work in. So basically you will be all self taught with absolutely zero experience. How competitive do you think that you’ll be against native Japanese who actually have a degree? Again I’m not wanting to sound too negative, but it’s better to be realistic now instead of wasting the next 3-4 years.
You can do it.
Initial pay may be rough but if it’s something u will actually enjoy and can stick with then its possible. It may take quite some time(years) to be earning close to what u get as a jet though.
I think folks have already suggested some of this, but here are my recommendations:
– Contribute to an open source project. Find one that you think is interesting and impactful, and do what you can to help. And when you do, PLEASE start small. Fix some documentation, file some issues.
– Consider learning about accessibility. It’s a front end topic that’s often quite neglected, but is a specialty that’s not too hard to pick up and almost always companies and open source projects need help with it. You can learn a lot about it from online resources like WebAIM.org
– Attend conferences and events, meet people, network. Try to avoid immediately shoving resumes down people’s throats unless they ask, but bring a business card, make sure your LinkedIn is up-to-date, and start making connections. In time, those connections will help. I’ve definitely found jobs through folks I’ve met at conferences, even if it was just to gain familiarity about companies I hadn’t heard of.
Stay strong and be patient with yourself!! You won’t become an expert overnight, but you can get there in time. Good luck 🙂
Just practice and keep getting interviews. Someone somewhere will take a chance on you because they have no choice either.