Hi everyone,
I’ve been decided for a while now that I want to spend at least part of my life in Japan, and I was hoping for some advice (on a variety of things).
I’m a 20 yr. old American male about to graduate with a bachelor’s in finance from a T30 university. Now, I’ve read the pinned posts and info and figure the “best” way to migrate for my situation would be to study IT, gain a few years of experience, and use that as leverage to get into a Gaishikei or (more hopefully) an US-based company willing to sponsor my visa.
Here comes my first question – I’ve been accepted into a masters program in information systems, but I still have yet to choose a concentration. The courses and anticipated careers vary greatly between concentrations, so I think I’ve narrowed it down to concentrating in either data science or IT.
If I wanted to maximize income/chances of getting a visa as early in my career as possible, which one should I pick if I have no real preference? It seems like data science preps you for a career as a business analyst, data scientist, etc while IT prepares for you for, well, IT jobs.
A third option here would be to go into a career as a product manager. I have multiple internships with this title already, and it would probably be the career I’m most aligned/suited to. But I feel it would be much harder to get a job in Japan as a PM compared to IT/Data Science, and I’d like to emigrate as early as possible (while I’m still young :)). I’d appreciate if any PMs here have any insight into the job market in Japan/how they found their job, as this is my most preferred “route”.
I’d self-estimate my Japanese at high N5 (I’ve been watching Japanese movies and streamers for a decade now, so I think I have some of it pretty down pat). I’m willing and able to study to get N1 if it would maximize my chances, but would it be worth it if my ultimate goal is to work for a Gaishi-kei or remote for an American company?
To summarize my questions, what would be the fastest method for me to emigrate to Japan? Should I try to find an internship in Japan in between my bachelors and masters? Should I consider a language school, try to gain work experience, or a different strategy entirely?
If any of the assumptions I’ve made are wrong or you have any advice for me, I’d really appreciate hearing it.
2 comments
This is a copy of your post for archive/search purposes.
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**At A Crossroads (What Strategy Should I Choose?)**
Hi everyone,
I’ve been decided for a while now that I want to spend at least part of my life in Japan, and I was hoping for some advice (on a variety of things).
I’m a 20 yr. old American male about to graduate with a bachelor’s in finance from a T30 university. Now, I’ve read the pinned posts and info and figure the “best” way to migrate for my situation would be to study IT, gain a few years of experience, and use that as leverage to get into a Gaishikei or (more hopefully) an US-based company willing to sponsor my visa.
Here comes my first question – I’ve been accepted into a masters program in information systems, but I still have yet to choose a concentration. The courses and anticipated careers vary greatly between concentrations, so I think I’ve narrowed it down to concentrating in either data science or IT.
If I wanted to maximize income/chances of getting a visa as early in my career as possible, which one should I pick if I have no real preference? It seems like data science preps you for a career as a business analyst, data scientist, etc while IT prepares for you for, well, IT jobs.
A third option here would be to go into a career as a product manager. I have multiple internships with this title already, and it would probably be the career I’m most aligned/suited to. But I feel it would be much harder to get a job in Japan as a PM compared to IT/Data Science, and I’d like to emigrate as early as possible (while I’m still young :)). I’d appreciate if any PMs here have any insight into the job market in Japan/how they found their job, as this is my most preferred “route”.
I’d self-estimate my Japanese at high N5 (I’ve been watching Japanese movies and streamers for a decade now, so I think I have some of it pretty down pat). I’m willing and able to study to get N1 if it would maximize my chances, but would it be worth it if my ultimate goal is to work for a Gaishi-kei or remote for an American company?
To summarize my questions, what would be the fastest method for me to emigrate to Japan?
If any of the assumptions I’ve made are wrong or you have any advice for me, I’d really appreciate hearing it.
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>I’m willing and able to study to get N1 if it would maximize my chances, but would it be worth it if my ultimate goal is to work for a Gaishi-kei or remote for an American company?
You are going to live *in Japan*. With Japanese people all around you. Japanese people are not known for their impeccable English. N5 is literally nothing if you want to be a functional grown-up in Japan.
Seriously, consider it the other way around. Question from a Japanese person: “Would it be worth studying English if I want to move to the US, even if I work for a Japanese company?”
**OBVIOUSLY YES.**
Whether or not you take the exam, studying Japanese should be pretty high on your list of things to do.
That aside, I work for a Gaishikei and just because everyone can conduct business in English doesn’t mean that they don’t switch to Japanese at any chance they get. If you’re in a high enough position, it’s not going to matter much, but at a junior level you are going to be excluded from most real connections with your coworkers.
FWIW, my company doesn’t hire new grads, they want someone with work experience. I don’t know if other foreign companies take the risk of hiring new grads from abroad.