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Teaching English in Japan Fact sheet released by the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs U.S. Department of State, June 26, 2000

Teaching conversational English is big business in Japan and employs a number of U.S. citizens. Some teachers work in Japan for 1-2 years, others settle in for extended stays.

Language Schools

The range of language schools in Japan is broad. At one end of the spectrum are rigorous schools that seriously attempt to educate their clients. At the other end are institutions that seem more a part of Japan's leisure industry than academia. Public schools also employ English teachers, mainly through the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) program, described below.

Visas

Obtaining a working visa to teach in Japan is generally available to English speakers with a valid college diploma in any field. The sponsoring employer in Japan must first obtain a "Certificate of Eligibility" from the Japanese Ministry of Justice, Immigration Bureau, for the prospective teacher. With this certificate, the prospective teacher applies for a work visa at the Japanese Embassy (or at a Japanese Consulate) prior to entering Japan. A person who seeks entry into Japan as a tourist under the 90-day visa waiver program in order to work may be denied entry. If a person enters Japan as a tourist and subsequently obtains an offer to teach, the applicant must depart Japan, taking the "Certificate of Eligibility" to a Japanese Embassy/Consulate in the U.S. or a third country, to obtain the work visa, and then re-enter Japan on the correct visa.

Contracts/Salaries

Aspiring teachers should not rely on oral promises made by recruiters in the U.S. - what matters is the written contract with a Japanese employer. Many teachers encounter difficulty when trying to leave the employer who is the original visa sponsor for a different job. After spending a great deal of time and money sponsoring and training a new teacher, employers are reluctant to see them leave for another company. Salaries are usually based on an hourly wage with a guarantee of a certain minimum number of hours per month. Many teachers hold side jobs as private tutors outside of their classroom workplaces. Prospective teachers should realize that the cost of living, especially in cities, is extremely high. Housing, feeding, educating and otherwise supporting a family in Japan, according to middle class American standards, is well beyond the reach of most English teachers. Housing is much smaller, more expensive and complicated to rent than in the U.S. Fringe benefits for private school teachers are minimal at best. Most teachers are covered by the Japanese national health insurance plan, which does not pay for treatment outside of Japan. In some cases, American families have had to pay the full cost of their injured relative's medical evacuation to the U.S. Aspiring teachers should obtain private, supplemental health insurance that includes worldwide medical evacuation and care.

JET Program

One of the best ways to teach English in Japan is through the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) program, which is sponsored by the Japanese Government. The JET program allows recent college graduates from the U.S. and other nations to spend 1-3 years in Japan working as assistant language teachers. In addition to round-trip airfare, participants receive a salary, insurance and help with accomodations. Applications are available from: Office of JET Program, Japanese Embassy, 2520 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20008.

Other References

Those with an accredited English teaching certificate can register with the TESOL/CAL ESOL Placement Service, which provides foreign employers an opportunity to locate qualified U.S. teachers: ESOL Placement Service, Center for Applied Linguistics, 3520 Prospect Street NW, Washington, DC 20007.

Another source of job information is the Japan Association of Language Teachers (JALT), a professional association composed mostly of foreigners teaching English in Japan: Executive Secretary, Japan Association of Language Teachers, Nishi-Uru, Shio-Jo, Karasuma, Shimogyo-Ku, Kyoto 600 Japan.

Further official information is available on the internet from the U.S. Department of State, including links to the U.S. Embassy Tokyo at http://travel.state.gov and from the Japanese Embassy, Washington DC at www.embjapan.org.

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