Hi! I’ve posted here before when I was especially unhappy with my life and desperate to go to Japan. While I still plan to move there, I was curious about what I should consider majoring as I look into 4 year colleges. I’m currently 18 and attending community college with a focus on graphic design. I’m set to graduate next spring with an associates in graphic design and I plan to move on to a 4 year college after that. I’ve been enjoying graphic design a lot and have been considering it as a career so I was wondering on the prospects of it in Japan (as I plan to move there). I understand I’ll get the usual “you should focus on choosing a career that’ll make you happy instead of going to Japan”, but I’ve been deadset on moving there for quite a while and don’t plan to change that. I’m not quite sure if I want to pursue graphic design as a career yet, but I’m considering it which is why I decided to ask. The other options I have considered are international business and international affairs/relations for majors. Any help or suggestions would be appreciated, thank you.
8 comments
>I’ve posted here before when I was especially unhappy with my life and desperate to go to Japan.
I think this is the problem you need to work on, Japan isn’t a magical fairytale anime land that’s magically going to fix your problems. In fact, it’s probably going to make them worse. So work on that first.
>I understand I’ll get the usual “you should focus on choosing a career that’ll make you happy instead of going to Japan”, but
Well, I won’t harp on about it then.
What you’ll need to consider is that your co-workers, management, and clients will all speak Japanese and only Japanese. They’ll be expecting a Japanese sensibility in the work (which is often way more text rich than western sensibilities would like, among other things).
Someone here suggested attending vocational training in Japan which seems like the best idea. Just know that before they’d even accept you you’d need at least JLPT N2 (although even folks with N1 have difficulty keeping up).
So if this is a path you’d like to pursue, you need to double down on your language studies.
Good luck!
Graphic design jobs do exist, and I have met foreigners that do it too.
However these are the exception and not the norm (they all spoke Japanese too).
If you are still thinking about careers, maybe pick one in IT. There’s a huge lack of engineers here.
And if you want to do design, there’s still UI/UX designers/web designer jobs. But if you want a realistic chance you want to be able to code too.
Or you could go the more desparate route by starting out as an English teacher, and hope someone hires you eventually (not recommended).
are you perhaps from sweden? kinda sounds like you are lol but u can try applying to the mext scholarship! i applied to the graphic design specialized training program thingie last year, didn’t get the scholarship because there was a lot of competition but you could try reading up on it and maybe give it a try!
well i ask similar question with different situation
i’ll just copy fellow redditor Benevir answer
>Forgetting Japan for a moment. Imagine HR and you manager interviewing a candidate for the work you’re doing right now. The candidate struggles with basic reading/writing and has difficulty keeping up with the flow of a natural conversation. They’ve spent the last two years working in a convenience store although before that they say they were working in your field in their home country. There is another candidate who has less experience on paper but there are no issues communicating with them and you’d be able to call their references to verify the claims of experience.
That’s your Plan A. Its not a very strong formula for success.
I worked as a graphic designer in Japan for the US government, so it is possible without knowing Japanese. The position doesn’t open very often though and it doesn’t pay well. If you’re curious about the experience you can DM me.
Try making some inroads by getting a job at Dentsu or Hakuhodo. The advertising companies will be hiring the graphic designers. Maybe you could land a job with an agency. Take a class at one of the design colleges in Tokyo and get an internship. Or find a job at a publisher and make connections and build your portfolio. If you have potential to be a model or an on-screen talent, you can start there and build a path to graphic design. If you’re outgoing and willing to get involved in various communities and projects, Japan can be an awesome place to live. I’m saying this from experience and that bringing the right attitude, cultural competency, and showing a willingness to learn often get rewarded there tremendously.
Since you’re set on Japan, look for in your chosen field of graphic design (and related jobs) on sites such as Daijob, Gaijinpot, etc. I say to look at them now (before you actually are job hunting) so you can see what sort of related jobs are out there and what they’re looking for in terms of requirements (language, experience, any tech skills, certifications, etc).
This will help you get a sense of how to direct your studies and future if your goal is graphic design-related work in Japan. If you don’t like the look of those jobs, then consider your other options.
When you get to your 4 year college, make sure to use any resources that may help you find a job in Japan— for example if they have an international center or even the Japanese studies department (even if you’re not part of that department). Sign up for their newsletters, go to any advising they may have. They may bring in people from Japanese companies to talk to students, help you find career fairs, etc. Remember that college is not only for learning, but it allows you to tap into a larger network that can really help launch your career. Go to your professors’ office hours. Let them know what your goals are. If they have connections that can help you they will often try to do that.