Question about IS jobs in Japan

[Zors]

Hi there.
I am interested in trying to find an international school teaching position in Japan.
My subject is math, and I will have two years of experience when I start applying. I know that stateside, finding a math position would be easy, but my question is... are math teachers in demand for international schools as well?
Does anybody have any insights for Japan specifically? I understand that Japan is one of the harder areas to get a job in because of its popularity and ease of living. Would it be realistic to try and find a (preferably high school) teaching job at a good international school with just two years of experience?
Thanks!

[PsyGuy]

Maths has some of the highest demand in IE, especially when paired with hard sciences. Their are some highly esoteric and niche fields with higher demand, but those vacancies are not common.

JP is a very difficult high desire market to get into in IE. Thee are maybe a dozen ISs that are typically pursued and offer OSH packages. There are a lot more in primary and EAP programs that are essentially LH vacancies. Those commonly pursued ISs can get hundreds if not a 1000 applications for one vacancy. You just wont be competitive at any of those ISs as an entry class IT in Japan, even in maths.

You need to ask yourself what your priority is? If its your career youd be better served working your way through the regions and tiers in IE until you are competitive. If the goal is being in JP, then you will want to look into ESOL and waiting to be in the right place at the right time and being local gives you an edge.
JP has a somewhat unique placement route. The growth in IE programs in JP is in the local host DSs with the expansion of IB. As such your finding more and more academies inside JP DSs (this is in addition to the recognized ISs), but those vacancies still recruit essentially through the ET recruiting pathways, and most of those vacancies are for LHs meaning they wont obtain a COE and visa for you, you have to already be in JP and available to interview locally. The easiest way into JP in edu. is ESOL. There are lots of ETs in JP with professional credentials doing Eikaiwa for exactly that reason.

[JVerse]

I can't speak about maths specifically, but having lived in Japan for 4 years now I can say that it does not appear to be as difficult to obtain a position here as Western Europe. It is certainly at the top end of Asian countries in terms of quality of life, however. Try focusing on an area other than Tokyo, which is where any of the elite schools are located. Hiroshima, Kobe, Osaka, Nagoya, and even Hokkaido have schools you might have a shot with. As a little inside tip, Doshisha international school Kyoto may be looking to hire someone on a short term contract, since it will be closing down in the next few years. If you simply want to be in Japan, (and gain IB experience), this might be a good in for you. Can't hurt to drop an application anyway!

[wrldtrvlr123]

Zors wrote:
> Hi there.
> I am interested in trying to find an international school teaching position
> in Japan.
> My subject is math, and I will have two years of experience when I start
> applying. I know that stateside, finding a math position would be easy, but
> my question is... are math teachers in demand for international schools as
> well?
> Does anybody have any insights for Japan specifically? I understand that
> Japan is one of the harder areas to get a job in because of its popularity
> and ease of living. Would it be realistic to try and find a (preferably
> high school) teaching job at a good international school with just two
> years of experience?
> Thanks!
===================
Japan is competitive (and amazing!) but math os a great field to be in and there are a large number of potential schools, especially considering the size of the country:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_i ... s_in_Japan

Start checking out school websites, working on your CV and cover letters. You might also want to join a recruiting organization of some type 9e.g. Search Associates, TIE etc) depending on how much you want to invest in your job hunt.

Certification plus two years of secondary math experience would certainly get you due consideration from a nice chunk of schools here (although the top schools would not likely consider you unless you were truly fortunate, which does happen from time to time).

[Amusing User Name]

@Zors,

There are lots of (domestically) prestigious private schools that are part of Japan's escalator system, children of the well-heeled enter at say Kieo elementary graduate from Kieo University. While not international schools by any stretch of the imagination (more English immersion for certain academic subjects) it would get you into Japan and you'd be teaching math, science etc. in English. It's (extremely) late in the recruiting season for these kinds of gigs term starts from March. Going forward it might be worth periodically checking out < https://gaijinpot.com/ > it's predominately ELT jobs but escalator schools and even the odd (accredited) international school have been known to advertise on there.

[Zors]

Thanks for the replies! I'm not looking for anything in the immediate future, so that doshisha school opportunity, while it sounds great, wouldn't work out for me. Darn. Are the top/tier one schools only in the Tokyo area? Obviously ASIJ is, and I assume Yokohama's is... are the ones in Hiroshima, Nagoya, Sapporo, etc. tier one, or lower grade schools? Are they great to work for anyways?

Also, I am half Japanese and am relatively fluent in the language and am very familiar with the culture. Would that give me bonus points when applying, or do they care about that sort of thing?

thanks for all advice and input!

[PsyGuy]

@Zors

I wouldnt advise a premium agency such as SA or ISS, you are only going to get access to handful of ISs, and few of them attend fairs.

DISK is trying to hang on and the word has been they would be closing for awhile, but their days are on borrowed time.

I would also endorse Gajinpot especially at your level, the tier 1 ISs arent going to give your resume more than a brief glance.

Understand that there are only about 5 tier 1 ISs (theres a unique tier 1 appointment in Kyoto, but its not something you can apply to), and yes they are all in in Tokyo. The ones outside of Tokyo are mostly third tier ISs.
It depends what you mean by "great" to work for. JP ISs know they are high desire locations and there is no shortage of a candaite pool, they tend to demand and get their pound of flesh.

It would certainly make you more marketable, a number of those ISs/DSs in JP want or appreciate a certain degree of NJLPT ability, it makes the work environment easier. The disadvantage is you may find they only offer you a LH package, though at lower tiers many ISs/DSs offer LH packages, the handful of recognised ISs on the circuit are the exception.

[Zors]

@psyguy I don't see how they could offer me a local hire job since I'm not local nor am I a Japanese citizen. Or can they? hmm.

[PsyGuy]

@Zors

Of course they can, there is no rule or regulation that requires an IS/DS to offer you an OSH, or even to have an OSH package. It has less to do with passport, citizenship, nationality, intent, location, etc. then it does with cost efficiency and market/labor strength. Yu can find a brief and recent discussion of it here:

http://internationalschoolsreview.com/v ... 1&start=15

JP is one of those regions (rare in Asia) that can demand/require just about anything. there are long lines of applicants and many of them professional ITs who will happily take salary and travel to move up into an IS or the opportunity to teach outside of ESOL. Even lower tier DSs/ISs will be pretty direct about it with statements such as 'We are not part of the international school circuit. We do not provide allowance or housing, or relocation. We offer our faculty above average salaries for the domestic market". TRhe vast majority of edu. expats are on LH packages.

[JVerse]

Being half Japanese would give you two slight advantages. One is that schools will know that you have some connection to Japan and won't be scared off by the language or culture as some new hires to IS's occasionally are. Another is that Japan loves 'hafu' people and you will likely have few problems in your personal life. Still, I wouldn't expect this point to factor much into a school's decision to hire you over another candidate. It definitely won't hurt you though!

[Zors]

@wrldtrvlr123 and @jverse,
@psyguy seems to have a pretty dim view of the situation in Japan. Curious what your experiences have been there. Would you tend to agree with what he has said, or would you say it's not that bad? My former high school teacher who is an IS teacher and currently in Japan actually gave me a very rosy view of things and said that being young, female, and a math teacher meant I'd have a good chance of landing a job. If I get a masters on top of that, it'd basically be in the bag. I came here for some second opinions since I didn't think it would be THAT easy, but @psyguy, you're making it sound like I have no chance :p I'm guessing it's between those two extremes haha.

[wrldtrvlr123]

Zors wrote:
> @wrldtrvlr123 and @jverse,
> @psyguy seems to have a pretty dim view of the situation in Japan. Curious
> what your experiences have been there. Would you tend to agree with what he
> has said, or would you say it's not that bad? My former high school teacher
> who is an IS teacher and currently in Japan actually gave me a very rosy
> view of things and said that being young, female, and a math teacher meant
> I'd have a good chance of landing a job. If I get a masters on top of that,
> it'd basically be in the bag. I came here for some second opinions since I
> didn't think it would be THAT easy, but @psyguy, you're making it sound
> like I have no chance :p I'm guessing it's between those two extremes haha.
===============
Reality often does lie between the extremes. I am here in Japan now with DoDDS and was here previously with a small international school (and represented my school on the Japan Council of Int'l Schools) so I feel like I have some idea of the situation in Japan.

Getting into the top two schools near Tokyo would certainly require a bit of luck this early in your career but you would have a decent to good chance with pretty much any other school in the country. I do think that there are certainly some good schools outside of those and a number of them could be good to great places to work (and you would be in Japan).

Work on making your candidacy a little more attractive to prospective employers and when you are ready to apply, I would be very surprised if you couldn't land something you would be happy with (and with luck and some good timing maybe even one of the top two).

[JVerse]

My time here in Japan has been excellent, and when I was hired I had only 4 years of experience and no IB training. While some Japanese ISs are not as good as others, very few will be as dodgy or disorganized as those you might find in other parts of Asia, so I would guess that there is little risk in taking a chance on one of the non-elite schools. Worst case scenario would be to end up at one of the "international" programs that is managed by a Japanese business team and caters to local students who want to improve their English and study abroad. Even these can be good experiences, however, especially if you are new to teaching and looking for a bit of adventure.

One of the biggest thing schools look for in inexperienced teachers is overseas experience of any kind, including extensive travel. Because Japanese culture is so different from western culture, they just want to know that you are going to survive here, and hopefully stay for as long as possible. Oh, and this is really stupid, but if you are a white/blonde female, and you are interviewed by a Japanese person for the job, you probably stand a better chance than someone else. Double bonus points if you have red hair! Not kidding, they love unusual complexions and/or hair colours, and they think the parents will love it too.

[Zors]

@Jverse Oh darn, I'm half, and my looks lean towards the Japanese side. I guess no extra points there! That being said, I do have some international travel experience, so I suppose that's good!

@wrldtrvlr123 heyyyy, your situation and your written "voice" sound eerily similar to my teacher I was talking about. You aren't him ARE YOU? Well, either way, thank you for your advice, very helpful!

One last question. Would going initially to a smaller/less elite school in Japan in the beginning be a good option if I want to ultimately end up at one of the higher ranked schools? What I mean is, do the schools look at a teacher at another (lesser) int'l school as a good thing, or a bad thing? Would I be better off waiting, working, and staying in America until I can get a dream job, or would getting an IS job in Japan and then a few years later applying to the top tier schools be fine?

I think that's my last question. Thank you all for being so helpful!

[wrldtrvlr123]

Zors wrote:
> @Jverse Oh darn, I'm half, and my looks lean towards the Japanese side. I guess no
> extra points there! That being said, I do have some international travel experience,
> so I suppose that's good!
>
> @wrldtrvlr123 heyyyy, your situation and your written "voice" sound eerily similar
> to my teacher I was talking about. You aren't him ARE YOU? Well, either way, thank
> you for your advice, very helpful!
>
> One last question. Would going initially to a smaller/less elite school in Japan
> in the beginning be a good option if I want to ultimately end up at one of the higher
> ranked schools? What I mean is, do the schools look at a teacher at another (lesser)
> int'l school as a good thing, or a bad thing? Would I be better off waiting, working,
> and staying in America until I can get a dream job, or would getting an IS job in
> Japan and then a few years later applying to the top tier schools be fine?
>
> I think that's my last question. Thank you all for being so helpful!
========================
I wouldn't worry too much about looking Japanese. The majority of people doing the interviewing/hiring (or at least a big chunk of them) are more likely to be westerners than Japanese. So it's probably a wash.

I don't THINK I know you. I haven't taught in the states since 2010 (and that was elementary) so probably not unless you were on the 8th grade volleyball team that I coached. :D

As for your other question I'm not sure there are any hard and fast rules. In general, the upper tier/elite schools prefer to hire people who have already had successful teaching experience at another upper tier/elite school. There is pretty much a revolving door between the upper schools in Japan and the upper schools in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur etc. and it is quite common for staff to move directly between them due to networking, schools being impressed by people who are coming from schools they compare themselves to, and so on and so forth.

BUT, every situation is unique and it's difficult to predict what is going to impress or jump out at a recruiter. Your background (subject area, language skills etc) could end up being a great selling point for some people. One thing to consider is that some schools may want to hire you from another smaller/lesser school in country, but they may try and get you on the cheap as a local hire if you already in country (generally the same salary but no housing or travel benefits). You can try and negotiate that, or you could attend a job fair and get hired that way to protect yourself.

So, although Japan is the goal, don't be too averse to starting someplace else in Asia (especially if it is a great school), paying your dues for a few years and positioning yourself for a jump right into one of the better schools in Japan. You sound a lot younger than we were when we went overseas and we were still able to work our ways through a few different countries before getting back here in great positions (and having some great adventures along the way).