Kinds of Jobs



There are three basic venues for teaching English in Japan, each with its own variants: private schools, public junior and high schools, and universities.

Private schools can range from private K-6 schools, private junior and senior high schools, cram schools, vocational schools and the most popular format, conversation schools. Conditions at each of these types may vary. A few chains will hire teachers from outside Japan, but most will only hire from within. Your chances of finding a better job increase dramatically if you go to Japan and look for a job there.

Most such jobs tend to be in the Tokyo area. Check the Monday edition of the Japan Times (bought at newsstands in Japan) for a sampling. I went through a JT Monday edition for early October, and found about 70 job offerings from private language schools, plus a few ads for college positions. About half were full-time, half part-time; more required you to already have a working visa than those offering sponsorship to new people. two or three imposed age limits of about 35 years, and maybe half a dozen also offered jobs in teaching languages other than English. Many required a degree as a school qualification, and a few dozen offered jobs outside the Tokyo area.

Public junior and senior high schools (7-9, 10-12) tend to get most of their teachers through the JET program. Some schools will hire from within Japan, usually part-time, but sometimes full-time for schools very serious about "Communicative" language teaching.

JET, a government program that hires as many as 5000 foreign teachers a year, hires from countries outside Japan, mostly in the U.S., Canada and the U.K. Check with your closest Japanese consulate for applications. Other high schools mostly hire from within Japan. These jobs are not too common, but pay well (sometimes as much as about $40 an hour). Such jobs may be easier to get after teaching at a private school for a year, making contacts during that time.

If you do not want to get a job at a private English school, the private schools may still be a good gateway into the market; work at one of these for a year, establish yourself, make connections, get good info, and then at the end of your contract, leave for the better job.

Universities are the schools that most often hire from outside of Japan, though most jobs are still offered only within Japan, and very often through personal contacts only. Knowing people who work in the university system helps a lot.




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