Hey!
I’m Polish, currently 23 years old, and next year I’m finishing my bachelor’s degree in English Linguistics with a specialization in teaching! I’ve always been extremely into Japan and so I was always dreaming of becoming an Assistant Teacher there once I finish my uni.
I do however hear very conflicting statements about the chances of doing so without being a citizen of one of the English-speaking countries. For example, the 12+ years of attending an English school, which is quite ridiculous given that it’s only a possibility from University here, would take me 9 more years :)))
So, as much as it might not matter: for as long as I remember I’ve been communicating mostly in English online, I work online in English too and consider my English skills to be on a native level, sadly I was just born in the wrong country \^\^. **What are my chances of becoming an English Assistant Teacher in Japan? Can I even do anything to pursue that?** Would be pretty devastated if it turned out I had no chance to teach there unless I do finish 9 more years of education somehow…
Thank You in advance <3
22 comments
You could work as an ALT at an elementary school. I know a bunch of people from South America and Eastern Europe who do.
You can come with a working holiday visa and find a teaching job for a year. But probably not as an ALT. I think kindergarten is more likely.
Then after a year if they want to keep you, they can apply to change your visa. You might have to leave to do it, not sure as this is different for every country
Well, as the other poster mention and what you’ll hear over and over is that yes, your chances to become an ALT are slim. If you want to avoid teaching at an Eikaiwa/English conversational school and be in a classroom setting, you have 3 options:
1.) get a spousal visa and apply for dispatch or direct hire jobs. May be the easiest or more difficult of the options.
2.) if you want to work as soon as possible, you can work at private/“international”/bilingual Kindergartens. These will sponsor a Humanities visa so that you can work here. Be aware that these usually have day class with the children and have an after school Eikaiwa component to them. You’ll most likely be very busy and even have some homeroom responsibilities with a partner Japanese teacher, who will do most if not all the technical aspects of the job. Expect to deal with the kids more often.
3.) I would like some clarity on this, but instead of the 9 years of university that you mentioned, you could work towards using that time to work in schools in your country or EU for about 5 years. This should be a subject other than English but should probably be taught in English. Apply for international schools using that information. I’m not wholly familiar with this path, but I’d imagine it could work based on the visa requirements. Anyone else please chime in if this is complete nonsense.
https://www.japanvisa.com/visas/japan-instructor-visa
You ought to know that ALT is not a teaching position. It’s named “assistant language teacher” but the job isn’t much more than being a pronunciation model, making worksheets and playing games. You won’t learn any lesson planning, curriculum design, or be required to understand or carry out any particular methodological approaches, there are no observations, workshops, or any real ESL training. And to get out of that job into a real teaching job requires you to get a Japanese teaching license, which is very difficult to obtain.
If you want to teach as a lifelong profession, I would recommend staying in Poland to teach, as I hear they take ESL much more seriously than does Japan.
You simply won’t learn teaching by being an ALT in Japan.
[deleted]
Japan and Poland have a working holiday visa scheme.
https://www.gov.pl/web/family/working-holiday-scheme-poland-japan
Whether you’d get jobs or not depends on the employer and your Japanese language ability.
Have you thought about coming here for a language school? I know many Eastern Europeans who came here to study Japanese and picked up some part time Eikawa work
Italian here teaching English in an Ekaiwa. As far as I know every public school requires 12+ years of education in English, so your best bet is probably an Ekaiwa. A lot of them teach only kids, some of them mix kids and adults! Which age would you prefer teaching?
Have tbh here.
First thing.
Saw your post history
You have never Been to Japan, so at least come here for your trip first before deciding to move here. Also, be aware that living here is a completely different beast than visiting. Many people cant take it. Your anime interest or whatever your fascination is, is not Going to be enough.
As far as Jobs go. You can work at an eikawa If You dont have a thick accent.
ALT the rules are different because the requirements of the BoE.
I do know a korean friend who got an ALT job, tired directly by the school No idea How She made that happen and Youre not Going to get that kind of job.
That youve Been communicating online for ”most of my life” is just drivel that No one Will care about.
Reading your other comments, you said that you want to live in Japan and teach children. I think your best bet would be an eikaiwa, although it sounds like you might be over-qualified lol. Depending on the location and company you might get adult classes as well. There are plenty of threads here about places to look out for.
If you really want to work at a school in Japan, I guess you could also try learning Japanese and then getting a teaching license here, but that’s a STEEP uphill climb. Not to mention the time and money it would take to accomplish.
I’m seeing some comments that sound like they’re discouraging you from doing this, but take it with a grain of salt. Some of it could be because you’re overqualified and could find better jobs somewhere else. Some of it is experience, people in this sub have either seen, known, or are people who were disappointed in the reality of teaching and living in Japan. If it’s really your dream, you’ll find a way to make it work, but don’t be ashamed to back away if it isn’t for you.
I don’t know why posts like this get downvoted so much and the user in the top comment is trying to discourage you saying you don’t know what it’s like etc…
Take peoples opinions with a pinch of salt. Everyone has different experiences, and it seems you simply want to have an experience in a new country and combine it with teaching and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that!
Go on GaijinPot, and just apply to loads of jobs! If you need some help with your CV or with an application, or if you just want to chat, feel free to DM me. I (29F) work at an Eikaiwa and before I was applying I made similar posts and got downvoted and told similar things. I’m really enjoying my time here. I’m sure you will be fine but there’s no way of knowing until you start applying. Some companies may allow the 12 years not in English speaking country.
I have a polish friend teaching English there in a private English school now. Not like a fancy one, just like a small English school. It’s possible. Salary isn’t that high but she says she’s happy there and I assume she makes enough to enjoy life. So yes, it’s possible.
When I was in eikaiwa a few years ago, teaching kids lessons was the biggest growth market but a lot of the teachers didn’t want to do it since it involved a lot more effort (preparing materials before the class, needing the spend a lot of energy keeping the kid active and awake after their school day was over and speaking etc). So if you can’t get into ALT then eikaiwa will probably want you.
I saw comments about a working holiday visa with Poland so that is 100% something you should do if you can just to try out living here since “dreaming of living in Japan” can become a nightmare based on the half a dozen “I’ve been here two weeks and I’m so sad and alone and I’m running back home” posts I’ve seen on Reddit in the past month. Though ALT companies will want you to sign a one year deal.
Ultimately you need to check with the ALT companies on if you can get the Instructor status to be an ALT, you’ll see a lot of things written by a lot of people on the internet but it’s the companies that will get you the visa.
Hejo! Miałam podobny problem – udało mi się znaleźć prace w przedszkolu gdzie sponsorowali wizy i ogólnie nie bardzo ich interesowało skąd jesteś, ważne, ze angielski dobry. Dostałam posadę wychowawczyni, pełen etat, spędzałam z dziećmi 5-6h dziennie od poniedziałku do piątku. Większość szkół jednak wymaga bycia native’m, ale da się coś znaleźć. Najlepiej w Tokio i okolicach.
1) the grass does seem greener on the other side
2) I think you should spend a year here before deciding to completely up and leave . In my case i was a student for a year. I loved japan before coming and then hated if after being here a year . Some people left suddenly, during the program.
An easier route may be to come over on a working holiday visa.
Berlitz will hire you if you can teach English effectively
Definitely take other opinions with a grain of salt. There are tons of factors that shape each individual’s experiences. If you want to try out being an ALT for a while go for it.
One route might be to work for an eikaiwa at first, and then apply for other opportunities once you’re in country. Around half of the junior high/elementary ALTs in my city are non-native English speakers. Not sure on the exact story for all of them, but most were teaching in other cities before they applied to or received an offer from the city’s BOE. If at all possible try to apply to local BOEs directly.
Another thing to look into is whether your city/province have friendship/sister cities in Japan.
Try Heart. I’ve seen them hire people from all around the word including places like Italy and Ghana.
Try peppy kids club . They hire everybody. Not the best job but it will get you here
If you have a pulse, and you are moderately good-looking, the doors will open for you. It is a plus if you are a female, but that plus also is a negative in certain situations. You gotta navigate your way around certain social situations with poise, and some will even make you uncomfortable.
If you’re wanting to teach, I would honestly consider looking into other countries. The sun has long since set on Japan’s TEFL industry and it has been a race to the bottom since.