Edit: now includes testimonial and offer from recent hire
This call is for full-time / permanent employment positions with Saitama City Board of Education; recruitment starting in May for an April 2024 start. While the following page is for all public teachers, within the recruitment call is for the special designation of Native instructors, who may proceed in the examination even if they do not have a college degree issued by a Japanese institution. It’s tough, long, and typically demands some additional study, but it’s a solid investment for anyone looking to establish themselves in Japan. There are some rare and satisfying experiences to be had. Of note, candidates able to teach high level math and art are in especially high demand.
Check[ this link fo](https://www.city.saitama.jp/003/002/008/101/005/p094776.html)r the official release. Yes, it’s mostly all in Japanese.
[https://www.city.saitama.jp/003/002/008/101/005/p094776.html](https://www.city.saitama.jp/003/002/008/101/005/p094776.html) , and specifically the pamphlet entitled[ Let’s Teach in Saitama City](https://www.city.saitama.jp/003/002/008/101/005/p094776_d/fil/Teach_in_Saitama_City.pdf). More information is provided at the information sessions, which you can attend on the day. There additional unofficial Zoom information sessions with a current teacher within the city, all sessions posted below:
[https://us04web.zoom.us/j/75058482209?pwd=r9Ywe1H7gHzRfX1hpcbwVqUYRbLvzw.1](https://us04web.zoom.us/j/75058482209?pwd=r9Ywe1H7gHzRfX1hpcbwVqUYRbLvzw.1)
750 5848 2209
Passcode Crmv8Y
​
1. 4/9 Sun 13:00\~14:00
2. 4/12 Wed 18:00\~
3. 4/15 Sat 16:00\~
4. 4/19 Wed 18:00\~
5. 4/26 Wed 18:00\~
6. 4/29 13:00\~
—-begin new message—-
Saitama City is recruiting international English teachers for their public secondary schools for the 2024-2025 school year. THIS IS NOT AN ALT POSITION. IF YOU GET THIS JOB, YOU WILL BE A PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER EMPLOYED BY THE CITY, ALONG WITH EVERYTHING THAT ENTAILS. Position, responsibilities, and remuneration are identical to other teachers at the schools.
I will personally support you if you want to apply. I’ll literally help you fill out the application, explain the whole process in detail, coach you for the interviews, etc…
Here is a list of my personal opinions on requirements and pros/cons of the job:
Requirements:
Valid Work Visa
Bachelors degree (any subject)
Native/Completely Fluent English Ability
Minimum 1 year experience teaching English in Japan (realistically, I cannot imagine only 1 year being enough to thrive in this job, but hey, they wrote 1 year in the ad, so, eh?)
Japanese language ability sufficient to work in a standard school environment (meetings, parent-teacher conferences, etc…)
Strong understanding of the national curriculum standards for junior high and high school English
Patience to undergo a nearly year-long selection process with multiple rounds of interviews, filling out the same information in multiple documents, etc…
Pros:
Pay – same scale as the other public teachers. This includes bonuses, consistent yearly raises, etc… My salary is about double what I made as an ALT. Pay is scaled to age. My coworker who is 10 years older than me makes significantly more than I do, despite us both starting at the same time.
Position/Prestige – Same as the other public teachers. You’d be a city employee and public school teacher.
Leave – Same as the other public teachers. 20+ days a year, bereavement, paternity/maternity, childcare, health, etc…
Teaching License – The prefecture will grant you a teaching license that is valid for life, though only usable in Saitama prefecture.
Job Security – Same as the other public teachers. It would be nearly impossible to get fired.
Opportunity for personal/professional growth – This is a young program in a city that values English education.
Extremely good-looking, intelligent, witty, and generally wonderful coworkers (such as me!)
Cons:
Working Hours – Same as the other public teachers. Official working hours are reasonable (8:20-4:50), but, if you know about public school teachers in Japan, you know that teachers regularly work long hours. I generally put in about 30 hours of overtime per month, but it varies by teacher. Some other teachers are in the 10-20 hours/month range, but only a few are below that.
No Overtime Pay – Same as the other public teachers. Public employees get screwed by the law here.
Bureaucracy – Japan is famous for bureaucracy. Imagine how frustrating it would be to work for the government here…
For me, obviously the pros outweigh the cons, and I STRONGLY suggest that anyone even slightly interested let me know. I’ve gone through the whole application process myself (twice!) and I can answer any questions you may have.
11 comments
This is mainly for those who are fluent in Japanese, no?
I don’t think my Japanese level is ready for this quite yet, but I will have to keep an eye for opportunities like this one in the future.
As someone who wants to pursue a teaching career in Japan but doesn’t have any teaching qualifications or experience yet, what do you recommend that I do to prepare and be able to land a job like this one in the future?
I have a Bachelor’s degree but not in education. I’m looking to start teaching English so that I will develop some experience as a teacher doing that. I’m also trying to get my Japanese level to N2. Is there anything else apart from this that I should acquire in order to work as a school teacher in Japan?
Saitama. Brrrr…
If you are not at least N1+, you should not waste your time. You will need to be able to understand contents of meetings perfectly and speak Japanese for parent teacher conferences, meetings, research business trips etc., as many are sensitive in nature. You will also have to read documents, emails, and websites in Japanese.
Japanese teachers do insane amounts of overtime. I would not wish to be a Japanese teacher under any circumstances. Basically say goodbye to your life.
And if you are required to speak Japanese like a native why even employ foreigners? Surely it would be easier just to get a Japanese teacher?
I wonder who this job is for? They want a foreigner with native like English and Japanese language skills and you basically have to work as a Japanese teacher including all the extra work and responsibilities that come with it and to top it all be able to actually teach a subject. All for 460K a month including bonuses? I bet there are ALTs lining up for this job but most of them lack the required skills. So who exactly is it for?
Thank you for this posting! I think I saw it in another ALT-related subreddit and was immediately interested. I’m a 26yo American currently teaching in Japan as an ALT but looking for bigger/better opportunities and challenges. I have two years of teaching experience in Japan as well as a Master’s in East Asian Relations. I plan to join the upcoming informational Zoom call, but if there’s anything else I ought to be doing in the meantime in preparation for this application, please let me know. Thanks again!
Is there an age limit ?
If one has specialist in humanities, do you need to switch to instructor visa ?
I did the interview two years in a row at Hiroshima but I failed. I guess they prefer the Japanese teachers more than me since I was the only gaijin. The worst part was the interviewers were the same on the 2nd year and he was like do you remember me? Your Japanese improved so much and I’m so happy to see you again with smile on his face before I go. I thought I was going to pass until I see my number weren’t on the government website again…..
Hello there.
First of all, thank you for this post, it is obvious you love what you do and also that you have a strong desire to help others.
I used to work in a national school back in my country too I never thought that would be a possibility here so this post makes me very excited.
Here are my questions,
I (28f) am not a native speaker but I hold an English teacher license from my home country as I studied at a national pedagogical university, is it even possible for me to be considered for a position like this? If so, Is my home country’s license any kind of advantage?
Also as you are mentioning the unavoidable amount of overtime, how do you consider your life-work balance to be? Does this job allow you to take care of your family?
And also you mentioned around 20 days of vacation but can you take these days consecutively? For me is important to go visit my family once every 2 or 3 years.
Thanks in advance.