A lot of advice on the internet from Japanese people regarding employment seem to be mainly 1. Study programming, become Software Engineer or 2. Study 簿記, get the 2級 license and become an accountant/bookkeeper. I’m currently in university right now in a liberal arts degree and I’ve got no clue what to do when I graduate(besides working at a factory or a supermarket but I’d like a “proper” career working at a desk) so I’d appreciate some advice on this. Is it really that easy to get employed if you have the 簿記2級 license? Also I dunno if you guys remember me but I’m the guy with bad Japanese and mediocre English because I grew up going to an international school. I suppose in my case I’ll have to study Japanese to business level as well(my uni classes are all in English).
4 comments
簿記２級 is hard if your Japanese is mediocre. I tried studying for ３級 but gave up because I couldnt read half of the kanjis. Internationally recognized certs are better IMO if you are fluent in English, like US CPA, that holds some weight here
>A lot of advice on the internet from Japanese people
Well, they probably assume you’re Japanese. 簿記 would help somewhat if you were a Japanese student, but if you need to equip yourself with skills that make up for your lack of Japanese skills (i.e. Jobs that don’t need Japanese, or have some scarce skillset). I mean, would you hire someone that could do book keeping, but can’t talk to your other accountants, sales teams, understand what the bank statement says, etc…?
Your English seems fine, so you should probably get something better than 簿記２級 (US-CPA, JCPA, CFA, etc…), learn software engineering/data science/whatever hot tech skill, or some other useful skill.
That, or you can try for the recruiting industry.
If your university has a reputable name + 簿記2級couldn’t say it would be easier to get a job, but it’s a plus.
Passed the 簿記3級, and i’m exhausted from all of the kanji’s and all ( The introduction to 簿記)
簿記2級 : This part where you have to do some assortment journalizing, 資産、決算 etc, even my Japanese friends failing twice before they passed this exam.
Consider taking a US CPA or English based license, it’ll be easier!
To answer the question * Is it really that easy to get employed if you have the 簿記2級 license? *, the short answer is no.
These days, no certification can guarantee you a job. A 簿記2級 can help to indicate that you have some time practicing with accountant/bookkeeper job and somewhat a business level Japanese. It holds some weight and is definitely a highlight in your resume if you don’t have too much experience, but getting a 簿記2級 does not equal securing a job.
Another thing that doesn’t relate to your question but I have to add is that being a accountant/bookkeeper is not for everyone, especially if you are in so much confusion like now. I have a 簿記3級 since 2nd year of uni ( had no intention of taking it but my mentor encouraged), never used it once, didn’t even put it in my resume either. A close friend of mine got 簿記2級 in her 3rd year of uni, decided that she want to be n accountant after graduation, learned 簿記1級 and now she hates every single minute of her job, but is scared to leave it because she already put too much time and effort in it.