1) My name is Sean. I started learning some basic Japanese as far back as middle school, but serious instruction began as a freshman at UVM, due in large part to the support instructor Suzuki-Carlson. I took three full years of Japanese, supplemented with Japanese conversation, at UVM in my course of study in Japanese, which I completed in 2009. During the Fall of my junior year, I spent six months studying abroad at Aoyama University in Tokyo.
2) After graduating from UVM, I was hired by a children’s English conversation school called Amity: a subsidiary company of Aeon. I found the company in looking for a variety of opportunities teaching English in Japan.
3) The interview process was set over a weekend in which the first day was set aside for a group interview, where each candidate had to have a 5 minute lesson based on a lesson plan provided a week earlier. The standard video reels of life with the company (and as a native English speaker) abound. Candidates who passed the group interview were called back for the second day for an individual interview, which included an impromptu lesson where the interviewer played the role of a student.
4) New employees with Amity had to be able to provide their own airfare from the US to Japan, at which point, the company payed for travel expenses within Japan to and from initial training, as well as monthly reimbursement for commuting expenses to a school over a specified distance from the teacher’s residence. Housing was provided in the form of a furnished studio apartment, with subsidized rent.
5) Working environments can vary widely within Japanese companies, generally within a range between strict and oppressive. My position was a split position in which I spent three days at a school within the town I lived, and another school three train stops away for the other two days. each school reflected either end of that spectrum, respectively. There is heavy emphasis on proper behavior in all situations. Cleanliness is a must within the workplace. Full suit was the only sanctioned attire. (Including during the Summer.) With the nature of my position, I was generally prohibited from engaging in conversation in Japanese with any of the clientele. Along with my standard duties as a native English teacher, I was also required to stay on top of a rotating cleaning schedule for all teachers, conduct interviews of potential Japanese teachers, keep student records, and take on administrative tasks as the need arose.
6) Working with Japanese colleagues can be disheartening at times. Expectations for foreign workers will often be much lower than they are for Japanese counterparts; which is to say that they will be very high for both. Within a business setting, there is a lot of pressure on performance. Days are long, and in my case, my Japanese coworkers would spend all night calling students’ homes to follow up with parents, lesson plan, and run numbers/strategize in order to meet revenue and points goals. Most would be there until their last train or bus home: usually a one to two hour commute each way.
7) Be careful about choosing a position in or around the Tokyo area. Similar situations exist in rural areas, but business in the metro Tokyo area can be unnecessarily strenuous.
8-9) As far as teaching English in Japan goes: JET and other positions within Japanese school systems are generally much better positions than those in English conversation schools. I would personally only recommend English conversation schools (particularly children’s English conversation schools) to people who need a particularly high level of stimulation.
10) Make a point of visiting the roads less traveled by internationals in Japan, as well. A lot of daily life in Japan is shrouded in a mystique that’s outwardly portrayed by the country, and perpetuated by the typical tourist areas.
UPDATES: November 2013
Sean-kun is now working at Geek Squad.