Hello,
Hope everybody is doing well.
I just moved from America a few months ago to japan and am getting my citizenship, bank and all that stuff sorted out.
Yes I know this is one of those posts of me asking about arubaito (sorry it could get annoying LOL but I just wanted people’s two cents)
I can speak pretty fluently speaking Japanese all my life, but the problem is I literally cant read kanji.
I was searching on baitoru and found a lot of nice jobs at like bars and restaurants and stuff.
I made a rirekisho, but should I include that I can speak English Japanese, I’m just studying to read right now?
Would it be awkward?
Thanks, I just would like a job to keep me afloat so any advice is helpful
7 comments
You should be honest about your ability and what you can and can’t do
Hi! Look out the nearest “Hello Work” office in you city.
They have a lot of contacts to find the right job for you.
Tbh you may be better off frequenting local bars and hang out spots (coffee shop, book store, etc) places where you can interact with staff and become a regular and say things like “yeah, looking for baito but I can’t read kanji very well” and get a job that way. It’s a lot more laid back, build rapport and better conversation and gives you time to build up your reading skills. You may find more rejections/obstacles when you blindly apply because they will assume “can’t read” as illiterate or hard to hire, despite acing the interview.
I did this throughout high school and college and worked various service jobs like at coffee, ice cream shops, bookstores, local bars, etc. just my 2 cents. Have fun!
Just say something like xカ月帰国しました。日常会話には問題ないですがまだ日本語を勉強しています。 and they should ask you questions about your Japanese skills in the interview, where you just answer honestly. Make it clear that you don’t know any kanji or they won’t be prepared to support you if you do get hired.
Btw if you’re looking for any pt job asap to pay the bills just go to your nearest supermarket, they always hire. No advanced Japanese required, easy work. Especially if you’re considering applying to conbinis, just go with supermarkets. Conbinis pay way too little for the amount of work they require from you. I also don’t really recommend the restaurant industry here, it’s a crapshoot.
I was/am the same. I am half Japanese, only grew up speaking Japanese with my mother and relatives. Can’t read kanji, but can speak and my pronunciation is native. Never went to a Japanese school. My first job in Japan was at a clothing store as arubaito, then at a global company where English was spoken, but my team was very Japanese. Honestly I still can’t read kanji, but now I work for a domestic Japanese company and have my own business. I write e-Mails too, but I look up most kanjis. I think once you live and work here, you’ll become better. But now with computers, translation apps etc I think you’ll be fine. I never mentioned I don’t read, just played my haafu card when necessary 😉 and am happy. After almost ten years in Japan, my Japanese is better and I can read more kanji than before.
I’m Japanese American and only new a few hundred kanji until HS or so, but I managed to get a part time job at a confectionary factory (Cozy Corner) when I came to Japan for an extended summer vacation. Just like you, I spoke Japanese pretty fluently, but very little kanji skills.
I wore a full body clean suite and just stuffed small packs of madeleine into a bigger bag as the conveyer belt brought them to me. No kanji required. They even had a free bus to move between the nearest train station and the factory.
Also, if your spoken Japanese is good, learning to read kanji is just a matter of trying. I learned to read 2000+ kanji in about 1 ~ 1.5 years while I was working a part time job and attending college (USA). My degree was totally unrelated to Japanese, so I just did my anki reps + read a bunch.
That’s funny because we’re the opposite I grew in Japan and after high school I joined the military.Never learned English but can speak.