I have been considering moving to Japan recently, and have come up with a plan that I would most likely execute in the next 3.5-4 years.
The reason im writing this post is not because I cant find any jobs for my profession (software engineer), but it is because my wife works in rail signalling engineering and im having a hard time finding any results for her profession. It seems that Japan has an insatiable appetite for just software engineers, and none at all for very niche engineering professions like rail signalling, and its confusing the hell out of me because it is such a niche profession that you would think a place like Japan that has one of the most (if not the most) advanced rail systems they would need foreign talent too. And because its such a niche position they can usually command a greater salary (if I were to convert her salary to JPY it would come out to be around 22M).
I know this is a long shot, but does anyone else have any experience with rail engineering in Japan? How likely is it that she could find a job with a similar salary? She has been contemplating changing her company to Hitachi, if that is at all relevant.
If I go the HSPV route, this allows her to work full time with no restrictions right? She does all her work entirely from home.
And finally, let me know if this is just a pipe dream that I should abandon because its all too hard
4 comments
I am not sure if Japan ever recruit specifically Rail Signal Engineer, but. I know they do recruit mechanical engineer, software engineer, etc. I think they mostly do specialization training in-house since Japan system is almost totally different from the European or US system.
I’m operating under the assumption that by “rail signalling engineering” you mean the people who design and build rail signals, not the people who operate them.
>It seems that Japan has an insatiable appetite for just software engineers, and none at all for very niche engineering professions like rail signalling
It’s not that there’s no demand for rail workers/rail engineers, it’s that there’s no demand for *foreign* workers in those fields.
>you would think a place like Japan that has one of the most (if not the most) advanced rail systems **they would need foreign talent too**.
Why would you think that? The reason things like software engineering are in high demand here is because there is a worldwide shortage of talent. Low Supply = High Demand.
Japan’s railroads are the pride of the country, and are famous worldwide. They have *zero* problems finding domestic talent to work in rail-related industries. Rail related companies get so many domestic applicants that they can afford to be *very* choosy. High Supply = Low Demand.
>If I go the HSPV route, this allows her to work full time with no restrictions right?
Yes, she can work full time. But the chances of finding a job in her field in Japan are, being blunt, nonexistent. She would, however, be allowed to work remotely, including for her current employer.
Just wanted to add that your wife is unlikely to find an engineering gig in Japan that will pay 22M per annum. That’s like mid to upper c-suite level at smaller companies, even in Tokyo.
I highly doubt that they would hire a foreigner for that.