Bit of context, I (M28) have years of teaching in China where the pay and cost of living were perfect for getting ahead but that was quite some time ago. I have been working in finance and want to get back into teaching. I recently came across this position (link posted below) on Dave’s ESL Cafe regarding a university instruction position in Japan. There are 4 possible locations, of course including Tokyo which I understand is not a place new teachers should be working if they’re looking to save money which is my biggest concern.
The compensation roughly comes out to $1999.00 at the highest level of compensation, which I more than qualify for with a master’s degree and 2 years of 40-60 hour weeks of teaching. (I worked additional teaching jobs in China aside from my primary position.) I also have a 120 hour TESOL Cert.
The housing is 81k Yen a month. Honestly the biggest thing though is I don’t know if this is worth it. I had one friend live in Japan for school and mentioned even as a student it was ridiculously expensive. I’m not worried about the rac\*sm or anything such as that, I’m quite used to it. I’m just worried about the cost of living and if I’ll be able to get by and save money.
The contract period is by semester which I feel is HIGHLY suspicious. That is BY FAR the shortest contract period I’ve ever seen and that’s concerning. If anyone has any experience in Japan then please let me know if this would be fine.
TL:DR – Sus contract period promises pay I’m uncertain of.
[https://www.eslcafe.com/postajob-detail/university-teaching-in-japan—tokyo-kanagawa-60?koreasearch=&koreapageno=&koreapagesize=&chinasearch=&chinapageno=&chinapagesize=&internationalsearch=&internationalpageno=1&internationalpagesize=60](https://www.eslcafe.com/postajob-detail/university-teaching-in-japan—tokyo-kanagawa-60?koreasearch=&koreapageno=&koreapagesize=&chinasearch=&chinapageno=&chinapagesize=&internationalsearch=&internationalpageno=1&internationalpagesize=60)
12 comments
Westgate is a scummy company that keeps you in an insecure position through short contracts that they can choose not to renew at any time. They are infamous for making you move around. The actually day to day job will depend on your contracting school, but Westgate doesn’t really help you “get your foot in the door” of university teaching because it is basically bottom of the barrel and the universities know it, so when they see that on your resume many won’t consider that real university teaching time.
You’re better off staying in China.
>The compensation roughly comes out to $1999.00 at the highest level of compensation, which I more than qualify for with a master’s degree and 2 years of 40-60 hour weeks of teaching.
That’s not up to you. Assuming you qualify to their standards? The final call on that one comes from whoever is hiring you, please don’t just assume that because of this that and the other and pieces of paper with masters on it that you’re entitled to this plus that. The job market, demand along supply and the actual ability for you to do the job itself would be the detrimental factors in what you’re “compensated” for. End line just don’t expect too much.
Aim high absolutely I recommend it 100 percent and always know your worth but at the same time don’t overestimate the expectations and what the actual reality of the job market is especially in Japan where its very hit and miss. I know someone who’s been here for 10 plus years and has his own school alongside a part time university gig and he only has a BA with no intention of a masters. How? Sheer luck, hard work and the big one….connections. Networking and connections alongside experience are utter winners. That being said, there just isn’t any set formula for how these things go.
It’s great you have the experience in China and i would seriously reinforce that on your profile and applications but try to break out of the mentality of entitlement and try to approach it with more of an open outlook and what you want to work up to in the future, wish you all the best OP!
The pay is exceedingly low for a university position, and you’re more than likely not going to be teaching actual university classes: I’ve seen a few contracted teachers *at* universities, but they function as things akin to tutors or club coaches. (I made more money when I started teaching at a conversation school, and even temporary actual positions at universities will pay about twice as much.)
What’s your MA actually in? If you’ve got an MA related to teaching, you should apply directly for college/universities. It’s a bit tough to find a job that doesn’t require prior uni teaching experience or publications, but not impossible.
It will, however, mean scrabbling together a schedule of part-time jobs at first, while building your resume and making contacts.
But as others have mentioned, the market here is saturated, and it’s very competitive at that level, so it’s likely to take a good long time before you’re able to get full-time work. And even then, contracts often end every five years, so you could find yourself starting all over.
Japan is a tough market these days, and other factors also make it less desirable for people who are looking for good pay and stability.
That’s a low salary but normal for the industry
As you said the contract period is sus. That’s because you’re not working directly for the university, you’re working for a middleman company and their aim is to make as much money as they can and they do that by paying their teachers as little as possible. Westgate receive the full 12 months pay from the university but they’ll only contract their teachers for university term times, so they’ll only have to pay their teachers a fraction of what they charge the university. Not only that, you’ll need to find alternative work during the periods you’re not contracted to Westgate, which could be upwards of 5 months a year.
For reference, university direct hire adjunct positions will usually between ¥25000 and ¥30000 per class, and you are paid for the vacation months you don’t usually teach. You wouldn’t be able to get those kind of positions while outside Japan (both because it’s usually decided by networking and because you couldn’t get a visa for it), but it should give you an idea of how much the middlemen are taking. Full-time, permanent positions are becoming rarer, but they will generally want at least a couple of publications, an MA, university teaching experience, and increasingly Japanese language ability. If the goal is to get into Japan specifically, regular eikaiwa work is comparable in overall salary, and you can still use that then try to find other jobs, including adjunct positions. It’ll be a slog, though.
Apply directly, not through exploitative companies like this. And regardless of not wanting to work for a company like this, you also want to avoid a university that would use such a company. Employees well-being will be firmly bottom of their list of concerns. You’ll be an expendable commodity to everyone involved, and this is not a career option, but a gig job.
With your background I’d apply to universities or schools directly. Check out JACET, JALT or JREC-IN for university job postings but expect to apply a year in advance (ex apply now for a job starting in April 2024). Full time salaries usually are around 4.5 – 6 million yen a year but as others have said are competitive to get. It would be easiest to get a job at a chain eikaiwa or as an ALT to get your visa to get over here, then apply for part time university jobs and work up to full time after a few years. If you really are dedicated to over working, doing a bunch of research and committee meetings during semester breaks, and staying in Japan as a teacher you could consider getting on the MEXT scholarship and applying for a PhD out here. But with an MBA I would rather stick to well paying corporate jobs and trying to find work abroad outside of education. Good luck OP.
I lived in China before coming to Japan to work.. stay in China , I wish i had
Westgate isn’t a real university job, it is a crap dispatch agency with short-term contracts on uni campuses. However, it does get you into the country with a work visa so you can start looking for better jobs if you really want to stay or just enjoy 3 months in Japan.