Background: American coming from a academic/non-profit background with a focus on museology, material preservation, and libray/archival sciences. I'm married and approaching 40. I've been studying Japanese language and culture intermittently since grad school and believe I could make N2 or N1 within 2-3 years.
Situation: I'm experiencing a calculated mid-life change of profession and have been trying to make a go of moving to Japan for several years. I'd like to leverage these preservation skills in Japanese material culture – via daiku, miyadaiku, or funadaiku work (I have zero direct experience in this and was excited to learn). Even a cursory glance at immigration sites, talking with daiku, shows this wont work directly (visas, etc… for this type of work – if you're on this sub, you know the drill).
Ultimately, any workaround puts me SOL: for example, gaining N1 proficiency plus Japanese tradeschool puts me in my mid-40s and "too old" by most metrics (according to daiku I've spoken to) for starting an apprenticeship in woodworking or heritage preservation; ESL schools are mostly looking for young, unmarried new grads with TOEFL training (back to school a 3rd time with no guarantee of making the transition out); and finally… I'm just average.
I'm good at my profession, proud of my work, but not great enough to truly leverage it overseas (indeed why would ANY Japanese company in their right mind hire a foreigner for a museum, library, archive, or trade job against a Japanese national, already trained in the nuances of their own language and culture?) I'd love to convince them otherwise but degrees, a few industry awards, and a couple of conference proceedings dont count for much.
Honestly, I'd do just about any job to get me and my partner to Japan – but I'm just not enough.
Conclusion: Not happening. Indeed without an "economically important" profession (engineering, tech, medicine, business, or just plain having a ton of money)- NO country really has an interest in you. You are a burden, a waste of resources, and not worth the effort of integrating you into Japanese society (or German, or British, or take your pick) no matter what you might be capable of. Frankly, my own country isn't doing much to convince me they want me either (awful healthcare, dwindling interest in higher ed and learning, insane prices in housing, gestures vaguely at everything)
Letting a dream die is hard. Really hard. I've tried so many avenues both here and abroad to make a move work for several years now – I'll never be enough. Again, no bitterness, no anger, just a genuine sadness that I'll never achieve something that seems so damn simple in theory, but impossible in practice.
So am I wrong? A huge blindspot I'm not seeing? Anybody else grappling with this – coming to terms with a dream denied? Curious about others thoughts! Thanks!
by DeviousFrog