English CV Do/Don’ts for Japan?

4 comments

1. This is a copy of your post for archive/search purposes.

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   **English CV Do/Don’ts for Japan?**

   Hello all,
   Wondering if there is guidance somewhere for how to best tailor an English CV for Japan? I know the best would be me speaking Japanese well enough to apply in the language but, not there yet.

   I’m applying to English-speaking jobs but my CV is tailored to expectations here in Switzerland so it includes things like a photo, my marital status, number of children, etc. worried the same things might be off putting in Japan.

   Thanks in advance.

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2. I’m also interested to know. I have only applied for English-speaking jobs thus used a “western” format. Currently happy working for the first company that hired me but it’s good to have options for the future.

3. >my CV is tailored to expectations here in Switzerland so it includes things like a photo, my marital status, number of children, etc. worried the same things might be off putting in Japan.

   No worries. All those things “a photo, my marital status, number of children” are standard for résumés in Japan ^{unlike ^the ^USA} .

   Although not required for an English based job, for *extra points,* you could make a Japanese résumé { blog.gaijinpot.com/write-japanese-resume }. You could just fill out the standard Japanese form with your info in English since the rigid Japanese format could be comforting to Japanese employers. A Japanese résumé can be useful since there may be people in the hiring process who have poor English skills.

4. I used standard European CV (with photo) as the job was posted in English. At least for me, more information can be shown in this format compared to 履歴書 (well, if it is accompanied with 職務経歴書, it will give your employer better understanding).