Is your intent to start an ELT career? Their advice is good. Aim for JLPT N3 or higher, and a post-grad diploma TESOL. Assisting an ESL teacher in an immigrant or refugee program is a powerful experience for life besides great teacher preparation.
I’m sure they’re full of people who want to come over (assuming they ever can), but the fact that they gave you the advice on how to make you a better-rounded (not an actual word, but that’s one of the reasons we’re glad this bloke is stuck behind a desk) candidate seems to indicate that they may want you to do some of those things for when they are looking again.
Can confirm, all spots filled for 2022.
There’s a lack of employees right now, but that’s because nobody can enter the country. There’s a **lot** of people who want to work for Interac the moment they can enter the country though, so yes, the 2022 positions are most likely all accounted for.
The advice they offer is pretty sound, and it’d be wise to do so if you want to live and teach in Japan. Shame that the big dispatch companies like Interact don’t actually pay according to people’s qualifications/experience. Then again, if you have applicable experience and are able to speak at least *some* Japanese, this will also make it easier to find a job outside of the dispatch companies, whether that’s in English teaching or elsewhere (though for that, JLPT N2+ level Japanese is advised).
You can try applying for other dispatch companies as well, if you want to. As it stands, most of the big companies have far more applications from abroad than they need, however.
It’s a rejection, probably not personal at all.
Massive backlog. Like, super massive.
Option; if you’re able to travel here, and can afford to live for about 3 months, apply from within the country. Massive advantage; applying in person, avoiding the insanely over-crowded main channels of info. Plenty of brick and mortar schools are in a bind, lots of opportunity if you can get boots on the ground here.
Caution; 2021 has been Rocky af.
Typing like this; just kind of started the message that way and think it’s a bit funny.
If you need some serious help, like looking into things on the ground here, holler at me. Been working and living in Tokyo 10 years +. Working strictly online atm, plenty of spare time.
Someone from my branch called me the other day and asked if I knew anyone who could move to Japan and work for them. So where I am, there’s definitely a shortage but idk how many people are set to come over for the spring semester.
I’d say this is a pretty “good” rejection letter. I mean, they even give you things to work on while you wait. I got a similar letter from them years ago and they did get back in touch with me a year later (though, I had already found a position by that time).
So, yeah, don’t worry. Keep on prepping and who knows, you might get a call back.
Best of luck to you!
They’re pretty much sending it to everyone. I got the same email and you can tell they aren’t looking at applicants because I have done some of the bullet points.
Not a rejection, but they’ll probably go back through the applicants when things open back up and get in touch with you and see if you’re still interested. That’s what “we will hold on to your application” means.
A rejection would say something like “unfortunately we are not able to proceed with your application” or the like.
In Kyushu they lost the contract to another company. Almost 200 teachers lost their jobs with Interac and moved on to another company or went back home.
It’s not you. Just try some other companies. Most ALT gigs are equally crappy.
Got the same one when i applied back in june, with them saying positions will star opening for fall 2023. the backlog is probably just growing plus the naticipation from reopening is likley flooding them with applications.
It’s 100% full too, I got my formal offer summer 2020 and won’t actually be going until at least spring 2022 after several delays at various points
They’re filled. I applied spring of 2020, and got it shortly thereafter.
People have answered already, but yes it is full because of covid restrictions creating a backlog, high global interest in Japan in general , and the loss of some contracts recently probably factors in too.
So feel better, you likely were not rejected.
In my personal experience, however, It’s not a good company to work for and I would recommend anyone coming to Japan to search elsewhere for work.
*Especially* if you do what they advise, and learn Japanese and get teaching certifications, just look for better jobs from the start those qualifications mean nothing to interac, you will not be compensated appropriately for them.
Even if you just come “to get a foot in the door”, that means a student will have *another* newbie teacher for a year, and another newbie the next year etc. Its not a good cycle for public education imo.
Don’t mean to rant per se, but i feel strongly about it, so at least take this perspective into consideration while you build skills and continue your job hunt. 👍
Since everyone already hit the clear intended question, I’ll respond the literal.
This subReddit does not run interac, how should we be able to tell you if they are lying
Lol, but anyways Japan has long been a huge draw for applicants, and there are no shortage of English speakers the world over that fill these roles
Combine that with, as most people are point out, closed borders for over a year and .. yeah you are at the end of a very long queue for an entry level company.
If you want to fast track your options are to keep applying for every little position, especially the remote ones – or invest in the career you want and shoot for MA Tesol or something that gives you some kind of competitive edge (TESOL certs online can be done in 20 hours, but also mean very many people have them. Less so for Grad Degrees)
This is dubious ‘advice’. Firstly, Japan won’t allow randoms to enter anytime soon. Nobody is getting working holiday visas. Secondly, most of the ‘mom and pop’ outfits are worse than Interac!
The ALT positions are actually full. Take their advice. Use it to apply for 2023, or better yet, use it to apply for JET.
I got one of these nearly 10years ago, exactly the same. What annoyed me next was; not even a day later, I got an email announcing they were opening recruitment for my area…..
Needless to say I’m glad I dodged that bullet
May I also add, contrary to to what everyone is saying, Interac and other companies are not full. I get weekly requests from OWLS and INTERAC asking if I could ask friends of mine to help them out when people up and suddenly quit on them.
Not to be that guy but coming here with Interac or another dispatch company will only ever lead to tears. You will always get paid the same, never listened to, and the only people who will have a good experience are the extremely fortunate who are placed in decent areas with reasonable job expectations. My advice is work with them insomuch that you can get some job experience, then try to find a better job directly hired by a Board of Education.
OP, as a former ALT I hope you consider my advice. While you are not here yet, I would highly HIGHLY recommend doing any of the following:
1) studying Japanese and seeing if you can take the JLPT in your country. Having N2 at least will aid you so much in terms of growth. You could even apply for staff roles at Interac (min level is n3 I believe)
2) if you really love the idea of teaching, get a teaching license in your home country. That may take time but I highly recommend you do because that opens up opportunities beyond being just an ALT. You will also be so much more prepared and less frustrated when you come here (you’ll probably be frustrated at the lack of responsibility but everyone cuts their teeth and earns that in my experience)
3) If being an ALT is just a means to an end to living in Japan, then I highly suggest point 1 and highly suggest building up experience in whatever career you would ideally like to do here.
4) participate in some refuge volunteer opportunities in your home country specifically with teaching ESL. Get some experience working with kids. Then evaluate for yourself if you like it. Japanese children aren’t some magic creature. They have mood swings, resist learning subjects they don’t like, and are just as curious about you as any other child that could use a good ESL teacher. The only difference is that in Japan their teachers (not esl) whip them into shape if they step out of line..quite strictly😶
It is quite a challenge to say the least to transition out of being an ALT, not impossible but a challenge. Before coming here, having a career plan(within teaching) or after teaching will save you months of frustration and difficult decisions.
You can learn more marketable skills in 1.5+ years than teaching English.
I got that email from Interac back in July about Spring 2023 when I was applying for 2021. So my application is put on hold. I gave up on JET. I passed the interview stage twice in 2019 and 2020. I didn’t even pass the application stage for 2021 which makes no sense.
26 comments
Basically yes, you should do the things they said and think about bettering yourself. You can also apply at other places.
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They may also reach out if there are some emergencies in filling out positions.
They may also have been filled for the positions you listed. Or, you said something that made them not want you.
Close to 2 years of Japan being closed off. They have a backlog of applicants from 2020 and 2021.
I don’t think it’ll be anything against you, just there’s a massive backlog of ALTs waiting to get into the country.
See r/movingtojapan has a monthly thread about visa restrictions.
https://old.reddit.com/r/movingtojapan/comments/p0trd2/covid19_border_visa_restrictions_thread_august/
Is your intent to start an ELT career? Their advice is good. Aim for JLPT N3 or higher, and a post-grad diploma TESOL. Assisting an ESL teacher in an immigrant or refugee program is a powerful experience for life besides great teacher preparation.
I’m sure they’re full of people who want to come over (assuming they ever can), but the fact that they gave you the advice on how to make you a better-rounded (not an actual word, but that’s one of the reasons we’re glad this bloke is stuck behind a desk) candidate seems to indicate that they may want you to do some of those things for when they are looking again.
Can confirm, all spots filled for 2022.
There’s a lack of employees right now, but that’s because nobody can enter the country. There’s a **lot** of people who want to work for Interac the moment they can enter the country though, so yes, the 2022 positions are most likely all accounted for.
The advice they offer is pretty sound, and it’d be wise to do so if you want to live and teach in Japan. Shame that the big dispatch companies like Interact don’t actually pay according to people’s qualifications/experience. Then again, if you have applicable experience and are able to speak at least *some* Japanese, this will also make it easier to find a job outside of the dispatch companies, whether that’s in English teaching or elsewhere (though for that, JLPT N2+ level Japanese is advised).
You can try applying for other dispatch companies as well, if you want to. As it stands, most of the big companies have far more applications from abroad than they need, however.
It’s a rejection, probably not personal at all.
Massive backlog. Like, super massive.
Option; if you’re able to travel here, and can afford to live for about 3 months, apply from within the country. Massive advantage; applying in person, avoiding the insanely over-crowded main channels of info.
Plenty of brick and mortar schools are in a bind, lots of opportunity if you can get boots on the ground here.
Caution; 2021 has been Rocky af.
Typing like this; just kind of started the message that way and think it’s a bit funny.
If you need some serious help, like looking into things on the ground here, holler at me. Been working and living in Tokyo 10 years +. Working strictly online atm, plenty of spare time.
Someone from my branch called me the other day and asked if I knew anyone who could move to Japan and work for them. So where I am, there’s definitely a shortage but idk how many people are set to come over for the spring semester.
I’d say this is a pretty “good” rejection letter. I mean, they even give you things to work on while you wait. I got a similar letter from them years ago and they did get back in touch with me a year later (though, I had already found a position by that time).
So, yeah, don’t worry. Keep on prepping and who knows, you might get a call back.
Best of luck to you!
They’re pretty much sending it to everyone. I got the same email and you can tell they aren’t looking at applicants because I have done some of the bullet points.
Not a rejection, but they’ll probably go back through the applicants when things open back up and get in touch with you and see if you’re still interested. That’s what “we will hold on to your application” means.
A rejection would say something like “unfortunately we are not able to proceed with your application” or the like.
In Kyushu they lost the contract to another company. Almost 200 teachers lost their jobs with Interac and moved on to another company or went back home.
It’s not you. Just try some other companies. Most ALT gigs are equally crappy.
Got the same one when i applied back in june, with them saying positions will star opening for fall 2023. the backlog is probably just growing plus the naticipation from reopening is likley flooding them with applications.
It’s 100% full too, I got my formal offer summer 2020 and won’t actually be going until at least spring 2022 after several delays at various points
They’re filled. I applied spring of 2020, and got it shortly thereafter.
People have answered already, but yes it is full because of covid restrictions creating a backlog, high global interest in Japan in general , and the loss of some contracts recently probably factors in too.
So feel better, you likely were not rejected.
In my personal experience, however, It’s not a good company to work for and I would recommend anyone coming to Japan to search elsewhere for work.
*Especially* if you do what they advise, and learn Japanese and get teaching certifications, just look for better jobs from the start those qualifications mean nothing to interac, you will not be compensated appropriately for them.
Even if you just come “to get a foot in the door”, that means a student will have *another* newbie teacher for a year, and another newbie the next year etc. Its not a good cycle for public education imo.
Don’t mean to rant per se, but i feel strongly about it, so at least take this perspective into consideration while you build skills and continue your job hunt. 👍
Since everyone already hit the clear intended question, I’ll respond the literal.
This subReddit does not run interac, how should we be able to tell you if they are lying
Lol, but anyways Japan has long been a huge draw for applicants, and there are no shortage of English speakers the world over that fill these roles
Combine that with, as most people are point out, closed borders for over a year and .. yeah you are at the end of a very long queue for an entry level company.
If you want to fast track your options are to keep applying for every little position, especially the remote ones – or invest in the career you want and shoot for MA Tesol or something that gives you some kind of competitive edge (TESOL certs online can be done in 20 hours, but also mean very many people have them. Less so for Grad Degrees)
This is dubious ‘advice’. Firstly, Japan won’t allow randoms to enter anytime soon. Nobody is getting working holiday visas. Secondly, most of the ‘mom and pop’ outfits are worse than Interac!
The ALT positions are actually full. Take their advice. Use it to apply for 2023, or better yet, use it to apply for JET.
I got one of these nearly 10years ago, exactly the same. What annoyed me next was; not even a day later, I got an email announcing they were opening recruitment for my area…..
Needless to say I’m glad I dodged that bullet
May I also add, contrary to to what everyone is saying, Interac and other companies are not full. I get weekly requests from OWLS and INTERAC asking if I could ask friends of mine to help them out when people up and suddenly quit on them.
Not to be that guy but coming here with Interac or another dispatch company will only ever lead to tears. You will always get paid the same, never listened to, and the only people who will have a good experience are the extremely fortunate who are placed in decent areas with reasonable job expectations. My advice is work with them insomuch that you can get some job experience, then try to find a better job directly hired by a Board of Education.
OP, as a former ALT I hope you consider my advice. While you are not here yet, I would highly HIGHLY recommend doing any of the following:
1) studying Japanese and seeing if you can take the JLPT in your country. Having N2 at least will aid you so much in terms of growth. You could even apply for staff roles at Interac (min level is n3 I believe)
2) if you really love the idea of teaching, get a teaching license in your home country. That may take time but I highly recommend you do because that opens up opportunities beyond being just an ALT. You will also be so much more prepared and less frustrated when you come here (you’ll probably be frustrated at the lack of responsibility but everyone cuts their teeth and earns that in my experience)
3) If being an ALT is just a means to an end to living in Japan, then I highly suggest point 1 and highly suggest building up experience in whatever career you would ideally like to do here.
4) participate in some refuge volunteer opportunities in your home country specifically with teaching ESL. Get some experience working with kids. Then evaluate for yourself if you like it. Japanese children aren’t some magic creature. They have mood swings, resist learning subjects they don’t like, and are just as curious about you as any other child that could use a good ESL teacher. The only difference is that in Japan their teachers (not esl) whip them into shape if they step out of line..quite strictly😶
It is quite a challenge to say the least to transition out of being an ALT, not impossible but a challenge. Before coming here, having a career plan(within teaching) or after teaching will save you months of frustration and difficult decisions.
You can learn more marketable skills in 1.5+ years than teaching English.
I got that email from Interac back in July about Spring 2023 when I was applying for 2021. So my application is put on hold. I gave up on JET. I passed the interview stage twice in 2019 and 2020. I didn’t even pass the application stage for 2021 which makes no sense.