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02-23-2007, 12:44 AM
Yes, the new school year will begin in April so any ALT companies without all their vacancies filled will be scrambling to do so in March. Technically they are not supposed to hire you before you get the work visa, but they will do just that at this point because it could take up to three months to get the visa. As far as training, ALT's do not receive any training before starting at our schools. We attend conferences throughout the year where we share ideas and troubles alike. If you still have that Three Wise Monkey's link in the document I wrote, that will be all you need to get through the first month or year for that matter.
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02-25-2007, 05:28 PM
Hi again Jason, thanks for a great thread!
I am currently working on a cover letter to accompany my applications to a couple of language teaching organisations in Japan, however I feel like I can't think of enough skills and qualities to foucs on in my letter. Most organisations want candidates to demonstrate (according to their websites, anyway) independence, an outgoing and adaptable personality and good communication skills. I assume you yourself have had to go through a similar application process at some point - can you think of any additional qualities (besides those listed) that organisations may be looking for which should be included in a cover letter? ~annelie
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02-26-2007, 12:03 AM
Love working with kids, can adjust to living in a foreign environment, always seeking a way to improve your work and open to suggestions, considering a career in teaching English and see this opportunity as a way to begin (even if this is a lie), and serious interest in experiencing Japan, making Japanese friends and learning some of the language would all be good additions to your cover letter. Love working with kids is a big one because I would say that seventy percent of English learners are children. Of course if you are applying for a job teaching business English, this is not going to work so you want to custom tailor each letter to what you feel the employer is seeking.
Also if you are applying to an eikaiwa versus an ALT position, the letter may need to adjust as well. For an eikaiwa you will want to promote yourself as seeking to work with all levels of ability and maybe being flexible to changes in your schedule to adjust to the different needs of your students. As an ALT you want to emphasize creativity, wanting to see how kids in Japan grow up and learn, working closely with Japanese and willing to eat less than delicious Japanese food for lunch everyday. I would save the last one for the interview. Some schools have a kitchen and fix their food there, but others like mine have their food trucked in from a factory that churns out lunch for a bunch of different schools each day.
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02-27-2007, 03:46 PM
Your thread is right here. It was never erased. You just had to dig for it.
Now it's back up top on the first page.  That is why I cleaned stuff out. To find stuff easier, and to make space....
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02-27-2007, 04:03 PM
Quote:
~annelie
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02-27-2007, 11:54 PM
Quote:
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Making Yen -
02-28-2007, 12:28 AM
This is a little bit about money. Earnings for different types of teachers and a little something on living expenses.
JET ALT's get 300,000 yen a month, private ALT’s range from 210,000 to 300,000 with average being 250,000 and eikaiwas usually start in the 210,000 to 230,000 range for big name companies but you can move through the ranks fairly quick if you dedicate yourself. Small eikaiwas often offer better pay like 250,000 to 300,000 and you will be a lot more important to them. Contract completion bonuses, most private ALT's and eikaiwa teachers, range from 50,000 to 100,000 on average for one year, but I once saw one for 600,000 on completion of two years. JET ALT's I believe have their return flight paid for and take home the money they paid into the pension program as a bonus. Extra work taken outside your company will earn you around 2,000 to 5,000 an hour. Sometimes you can get special gigs or group lessons that earn you a flat fee like 10,000 for two or three hours. These are your average rates too for freelance teachers who give lessons legal or illegally on their own. Think of GABA who pay 2,000 to 3,000 an hour to their instructors who do one on one lessons. University and upper tier high schools pay 400,000 to 500,000 per month to start out. The best postions go to those who are published. I don't know what sort of bonus they receive, but consider that standard Japanese yearly bonuses average two months pay. Out of your pay, unless you are freelancing illegally, comes income tax which seems to be a flat 10 percent. JET ALT's pay into the pension program which you will get back something like 60 to 70%. This usually adds up to 40,000 Yen out of your pay in taxes. Bills- Keitai (cell phone) 5,000 to 3,000 Gas 5,000 to 3,000 Water 1,000 Electricity 5,000 to 3,000 Of course all of these are based on usage and vary a lot with the time of year. Rent is one thing that varies on location but average small apartment is 40,000 to 55,000 a month. The closer to Tokyo the more expensive your apartment will be. Also there is key money. Sometimes you get key money back but never all of it if you go through a realtor because they have to eat just like everyone else and have fees that they charge. Some companies provide you with a housing supplement, but this is rare. Also you need to think about internet and appliances. A lot of Japanese homes and apartments are not wired for the net so be sure to ask your employer if your place will be. And try to get the minimums provided by your employer like a futon and pillow, a bike, some pots and pans, fridge, washer and a microwave or toaster oven. A car is probably one of the most expensive things you can own in Japan. There are businesses that will lease you a vehicle if you plan on only doing a year or two. Car expenses include 1) the cost of your car 2) the gas you spend driving around 3) driving on toll roads 4) vehicle tax 5) shaken which is an inspection and repair service done every two years 6) getting rid of your car when you leave or it breaks down 7) parking (you pay like 3,000 to 5,000 a month to park at your own apartment). If you want a car and find a job that says you are going to be driving around a lot, take it because this means they will give you a car and pay for half of this stuff. To get an idea of car costs check out the infozone on jetsetjapan.com in the links I will post below.
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The Internet is your Friend -
02-28-2007, 12:40 AM
Here are the websites I visit the most, other than JF.
Info on Yen Exchange and which way it is looking to go Bloomberg.com: Benchmark Currency Rates Job Searches O-Hayo Sensei Gaijinpot ALT/Living in Japan Info Jetset Japan - Serving JET Programme Participants Teaching Materials/Lesson Ideas Genki English MES-English.com Three Wise Monkeys "Greatest Resource for ALT's Ever!!" Welcome to DiscoverySchool.com! Free Clipart Language Tae Kim's Japanese guide to Japanese grammar JEES Japanese Language Procifiency Test Home JLPT Kanji Project - Japanese study tool Trains Welcome to Jorudan Co.,Ltd. Snowboarding Snow Japan Tokyo Happenings Metropolis Art Exhibitions 東京アートビート - Tokyo Art Beat - 東京のアート・デザイン展カレンダー
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Not teaching related, but very important -
03-08-2007, 12:48 AM
When you start looking for a job teaching English here, you will want to think a lot about location. Japan is an expensive place, and one of the biggest expenses you will have to budget for is your travel. You want to think about the area you will be living in and what you will be able to access from that area. This was my primary reason for not applying to the JET program. You can make your preferences known, but where they place you is where you go.
Now here is a question that was sent to me and my page long reply because I had two hours to kill before any lessons. Quote:
I'll start with the least obvious place, Tokyo. From Shinjuku station in Tokyo you could probably take a bus to just about anywhere in Japan. Especially all the major ski-jo's as they are known in Japan. For example, Hakuba in Nagano (one of the sites for the Olympics way back when) would cost you about 3500 yen. Compare that to taking a train to get to the shinkansen to get to the bus in Nagano city for me would cost around 6000 yen. For me right now the cheapest and most accessible option is Kusatsu. Nice hot springs town but they receive less snow because it is surrounding by the mountains in Hakuba and Niigata. One way to Kusatsu costs 2200 yen. The method I actually used to choose my location, I looked at a map of Japan finding the company that was interested in hiring me and simply compared the distance to the nearest ski resort. At the time, I couldn't find anything in Nagano or Niigata so I came here to Gunma. Now Gunma is not all that bad, during a good season. This season was not good. The trouble is though, I live at the very southern tip of Gunma. The best places in my prefecture, are actually almost inaccessible by train. This region is called Katashina-mura. The nearest train station is a one hour bus ride from the hills which will cost you 2200 on top of the 1500 fare to get to the station. If you had a car, a whole world of opportunities would open up in Gunma. But again, owning a car is expensive. The only time I think it is worth owning one is in the winter. Now concerning that first question about getting to the rest of Japan, places like Niigata, Nagano and especially Hokkaido and northern Honshu are far, far away from places like Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima and the bajillion other places you will want to visit while in Japan. Niigata's mountains may be a bit closer to Tokyo than the others. Also you would find more cities in Niigata from what I have been told. Nagano would be a bit more barren as far as getting to big cities and a little more difficult getting outside the prefecture, but the northern end of Nagano is the Japanese Alps. The southern tip of Niigata I guess may be considered part of that as well, who knows? Hokkaido and northern Honshu will definitely provide you with the most snow, but the mountains are smaller and to get away from there is going to cost you an arm and a leg. Well there you have it. My take on the options Japan has to offer snowboarders. Next year, you can either look for me in Nagano or Tokyo. I have yet to decide if I want to be a hermit or not. If the winter was anything like this year, I may even consider Hokkaido. Check out Snow Japan and you can look at all the maps of resorts by prefecture. When you do start looking for positions, feel free to send me the details and I will give you my two yen on it. Also I will tell you if I am applying for the same position, because I am watching every position that comes up in Nagano and Niigata like a hawk in preparation for when my contract ends in August.
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