Want to move to japan where to start

[GoNative]

I don't know, I live in what is probably the snowiest town in the world and work at one of the snowiest ski resorts on the planet up here in Hokkaido. It was always my dream to live where it snowed (and to do a hell of a lot of skiing) and frankly if I believed in such things I might actually believe I've already died and gone to heaven!!

[RickOShay]

Originally Posted by GoNative

I don't know, I live in what is probably the snowiest town in the world and work at one of the snowiest ski resorts on the planet up here in Hokkaido. It was always my dream to live where it snowed (and to do a hell of a lot of skiing) and frankly if I believed in such things I might actually believe I've already died and gone to heaven!!

I am not saying Japan cannot be a wonderful place for people. I am just warning him that his expectations for it are probably too high, and most likely the way he is imagining things will be here, are in fact not at all how they will be.

[CoreyLynn]

I'm sorry to intrude on this thread, but I'm 17 and have also considered working toward and seeing if a life in Japan would be right for me.

All the posts here are so helpful, especially Steven's and willgoestocollege's; thank you!

But I have a question:

I'm going to be a senior this coming year and that means really considering what college I want to pursue and what I want to major in. I'm already planning on taking college courses this fall to start and learn Japanese. And hopefully, I'll be taking a trip there as a High School graduation present after this next year.

But do you guys recommend any colleges that have good Japanese Studies programs?
I'm thumbing through CollegeToolKit.com right now to see which schools offer it as a major, but would like to hear if someone has any suggestions.

I actually really wanted to attend Temple University Japan Campus (An American University in Tokyo), but I'm looking for alternates.

I'd prefer a school on the west coast, since that's where my family is, but will appreciate any help.

And what could I do with a Japanese Studies Major?
Is the only career path going to be an english teacher?
I have nothing against teaching english (I actually think that it could be a nice experience), but I'm just curious if that's the only thing I'll be able to do.

[steven]

Although I don't have any personal experience with it, I'd like to point out one thing. Many people who study abroad come back without really improving their Japanese. A reason for this is because they hang out with a limited amount of Japanese, who can usually speak English fluently, and mostly hang out with native English speakers. That's not to say it won't be a life experience... but it will certainly color your perspective on "Japan". If you go to a university in Japan, chances are you will go to a big city. There's more to Japan than just big cities, and denying yourself experiences of the more country areas would be a shame as they have a lot of things to offer.

CoreyLynn, I actually thought my college was decent for Japanese... but unfortunately some of the teachers that taught while I was there are now gone. I will say that going to a college in southern California would be a good idea. That's simply because there are a lot of exchange students from Japan there. There are really big networks and activities that they put together that you can be a part of. It's immersion without having to go to another country.

To be straight up honest, I don't see the point of majoring in Japanese. If you couple it with something like business, then maybe. Let's face it thoguh... the economy isn't doing too hot. Who knows though? Maybe in 5 or so years from now it will go back to normal. Even if you DO major in Japanese, chances are you won't be close to fluent by the time you're done. Most people I knew could barely hold a conversation (unless they were Japanese themselves). Studying a language isn't about going through a textbook and checking off "grammar points". It's all about real life experience.

Willgoestocollege gave you a book title... that's the type of thing that will help you the most. You need to read up on books about the cultural differences. Some of the books have things that are far fetched or out dated, but for the most part it will give you a good idea of what to expect (as some people in Japan DO do far fetched and out dated things). I can say that the book "Communicative Styles of Japanese and Americans" is a good book. Another one is something like "How to Walk and Talk like a Japanese". One more is called "How to do Business with Japanese Men: A Guide for Women". I remember thinking my teacher was crazy for telling me to read that (not being a woman, for starters... and not being interested in doing business... especially with Japanese men). However, the book turned out to be way more than the title suggested. It's all anecdotal, but it provides many real life experiences (from real people) about things that happened to them while in Japan and how they dealt with them. Go to Amazon and get some of these kinds of books. You can often find these books for less than 25 cents used.

I think you should listen to RickOShay though... if you're not having a good time where you are now chances are you're not gonna have a good time after you've displaced yourself half way around the world in a country that may be hard to relate to. So even if you travel to Japan, chances are you will have a super great time... but living here is a different story. Reality will settle in, and reality is basically whatever you make of it.

[RickOShay]

Originally Posted by CoreyLynn

I'm sorry to intrude on this thread, but I'm 17 and have also considered working toward and seeing if a life in Japan would be right for me.

All the posts here are so helpful, especially Steven's and willgoestocollege's; thank you!

But I have a question:

I'm going to be a senior this coming year and that means really considering what college I want to pursue and what I want to major in. I'm already planning on taking college courses this fall to start and learn Japanese. And hopefully, I'll be taking a trip there as a High School graduation present after this next year.

But do you guys recommend any colleges that have good Japanese Studies programs?
I'm thumbing through CollegeToolKit.com right now to see which schools offer it as a major, but would like to hear if someone has any suggestions.

I actually really wanted to attend Temple University Japan Campus (An American University in Tokyo), but I'm looking for alternates.

I'd prefer a school on the west coast, since that's where my family is, but will appreciate any help.

And what could I do with a Japanese Studies Major?
Is the only career path going to be an english teacher?
I have nothing against teaching english (I actually think that it could be a nice experience), but I'm just curious if that's the only thing I'll be able to do.

Well, the first thing I can tell you is that probably no matter what Japanese Studies program you take you will more than likely not be fluent in Japanese when you graduate from it. I have met a lot of Japanese majors and many of them were not beyond an (old) JLPT level 3. I mean, when it comes to language your progress is mostly up to you I think, but the pressures of other studies will probably water down your language efforts during college.

As a far as what you can do with your degree, well you mentioned west coast so I assume you are from the States, so you could probably work towards being a Japanese language teacher, or possibly a translator or interpreter.

A degree in Japanese studies is one of those degrees that does not give you any specific marketable skills (other than Japanese language perhaps), like a degree in Finances, Engineering, Business Management, Computer Science etc would. But that does not mean it is worthless or that you will not be able to find a job, you just will need to hone your networking skills and learn to sell yourself in another fashion. In a way I think it gives you freedom, but it could be limiting in that many places will probably take the person with a degree in Finances, for example, over you say if you tried to get a job at a bank.

Honestly if I could go back and do things over, I would have got my degree in Business Management, or Human Resources, and then with that degree in hand, I could market my Japanese skills as a secondary bonus to give me that edge of the person with just the basic degree in those fields.

[CoreyLynn]

Originally Posted by steven

I'd like to point out one thing. Many people who study abroad come back without really improving their Japanese. A reason for this is because they hang out with a limited amount of Japanese, who can usually speak English fluently, and mostly hang out with native English speakers.

I'm glad that you pointed this out, because I've read this is on various posts here, as well as on a few others.

The reason why, though, that I was considering Temple University in Japan is because I really wanted to see if I could actually handle living there. I thought that it'd be a good way to really test my own perceptions with what Japan actually is.

Thanks for the suggestions on more books. I buy from Amazon quite often so I'll be sure to look for those books and/or books similar.

: )

Originally Posted by steven

I think you should listen to RickOShay though... if you're not having a good time where you are now chances are you're not gonna have a good time after you've displaced yourself half way around the world in a country that may be hard to relate to. So even if you travel to Japan, chances are you will have a super great time... but living here is a different story. Reality will settle in, and reality is basically whatever you make of it.

I'd really like to make it clear that when I say that I'm considering pursuing a life in Japan, that doesn't mean that I'm miserable here in the States.
I'm content with my life and I adore my family. My parents and my sister along with my older brother and his girlfriend are my best friends. They're the most supportive, loving, and caring people I could ever hope to know.

So, I'm not trying to run away to this place that I perceive as a sort of paradisal and perfect place.

x ]

And, though I know that I'll miss my family if I do decide to pursue Japan, I want to find what'll make me happy; whether that be in Japan, Europe, or still here in the U.S.

^^

More questions:

I would like to ask people who weren't born in Japan and who live there now:

How did you decide on what you wanted to do in college? And how did you decide on a career?
And if you don't mind me asking: What are do you do as a profession overseas?

I'd just really love to hear all of the opinions that I can so I can understand my options, whatever they may be.

Thank you to Steven for answering my questions and thanks to anyone who replies to my new ones, haha.

: )

[CoreyLynn]

Originally Posted by RickOShay

Well, the first thing I can tell you is that probably no matter what Japanese Studies program you take you will more than likely not be fluent in Japanese when you graduate from it. I have met a lot of Japanese majors and many of them were not beyond an (old) JLPT level 3. I mean, when it comes to language your progress is mostly up to you I think, but the pressures of other studies will probably water down your language efforts during college.

As a far as what you can do with your degree, well you mentioned west coast so I assume you are from the States, so you could probably work towards being a Japanese language teacher, or possibly a translator or interpreter.

A degree in Japanese studies is one of those degrees that does not give you any specific marketable skills (other than Japanese language perhaps), like a degree in Finances, Engineering, Business Management, Computer Science etc would. But that does not mean it is worthless or that you will not be able to find a job, you just will need to hone your networking skills and learn to sell yourself in another fashion. In a way I think it gives you freedom, but it could be limiting in that many places will probably take the person with a degree in Finances, for example, over you say if you tried to get a job at a bank.

Honestly if I could go back and do things over, I would have got my degree in Business Management, or Human Resources, and then with that degree in hand, I could market my Japanese skills as a secondary bonus to give me that edge of the person with just the basic degree in those fields.

Thanks for the tips!

x ]

I'm trying to gather all the information and suggestions that I can, so your post definitely helps.

I'm still really ignorant when it comes to college courses and majors, so I have to research a lot more on that.

: )

[RickOShay]

Originally Posted by CoreyLynn

I'm glad that you pointed this out, because I've read this is on various posts here, as well as on a few others.

The reason why, though, that I was considering Temple University in Japan is because I really wanted to see if I could actually handle living there. I thought that it'd be a good way to really test my own perceptions with what Japan actually is.

Thanks for the suggestions on more books. I buy from Amazon quite often so I'll be sure to look for those books and/or books similar.

: )



I'd really like to make it clear that when I say that I'm considering pursuing a life in Japan, that doesn't mean that I'm miserable here in the States.
I'm content with my life and I adore my family. My parents and my sister along with my older brother and his girlfriend are my best friends. They're the most supportive, loving, and caring people I could ever hope to know.

So, I'm not trying to run away to this place that I perceive as a sort of paradisal and perfect place.

x ]

And, though I know that I'll miss my family if I do decide to pursue Japan, I want to find what'll make me happy; whether that be in Japan, Europe, or still here in the U.S.

^^

More questions:

I would like to ask people who weren't born in Japan and who live there now:

How did you decide on what you wanted to do in college? And how did you decide on a career?
And if you don't mind me asking: What are do you do as a profession overseas?

I'd just really love to hear all of the opinions that I can so I can understand my options, whatever they may be.

Thank you to Steven for answering my questions and thanks to anyone who replies to my new ones, haha.

: )

I was a Sociology major, and originally wanted to become a university professor, however, I found out about an opportunity to study abroad in Japan my senior year. I got the scholarship and I loved it here, and decided I wanted to come back. So I have been working at an education center here for 5 years, training Japanese teachers of English, at all school levels, and translating. I have been able to save a lot of money, and I have gotten my Japanese skills to the point where they are usable on a professional level.

I do not plan on staying here forever, I will probably be moving back to the States in about a year or so, and if I can I will hopefully get a job in the Human Resources department of a Japanese company based in the states.

[willgoestocollege]

Hi there CoreyLynn. I don't know much about education in the US but at age 17 you should really be planning on what you want to do. Japanese Studies as a major may not be right for you but maybe do it as a minor. I'm 18 and going to university in September this year and will be studying Computer Science with Japanese or Business Studies with Japanese (depending on my grades). I have many books and websites recommendations for you that I could post on here if you are interested.

[CoreyLynn]

Originally Posted by RickOShay

I was a Sociology major, and originally wanted to become a university professor, however, I found out about an opportunity to study abroad in Japan my senior year. I got the scholarship and I loved it here, and decided I wanted to come back. So I have been working at an education center here for 5 years, training Japanese teachers of English, at all school levels, and translating. I have been able to save a lot of money, and I have gotten my Japanese skills to the point where they are usable on a professional level.

I do not plan on staying here forever, I will probably be moving back to the States in about a year or so, and if I can I will hopefully get a job in the Human Resources department of a Japanese company based in the states.

If you don't mind me asking, how did you get your job working at this education center?
Did you go through a program like JET or do something else?
And,
you had to get your Bachelor's degree to get your working Visa, first, right?

By the way, thanks for the reply.
: )

Originally Posted by willgoestocollege

Hi there CoreyLynn. I don't know much about education in the US but at age 17 you should really be planning on what you want to do. Japanese Studies as a major may not be right for you but maybe do it as a minor. I'm 18 and going to university in September this year and will be studying Computer Science with Japanese or Business Studies with Japanese (depending on my grades). I have many books and websites recommendations for you that I could post on here if you are interested.

Yes, I know.
Haha
I really want to try and figure out what I want to pursue soon, but I don't just want to pick something without feeling confident about it, so thanks for the post.
: )

And I would love for the books and websites recommendations.
I'm actually browsing Amazon.com right now for some cultural and society books, so I'd love for more suggestions.

Whatever help you can give is greatly appreciated!