File :-(, x, )
Anonymous
Hello /tr/
I'm eager to go to Japan for about 1 year to work/explore/teach. I'm a 21 year old student from Holland (quitting my current course this summer), male, caucasian, very good with wok / teppanyaki equipment, non-smoker and fluent in english / dutch. My japanese consists of under 10 words :(
What are my chances? My ways in? Any of you done something like this before?
>> Anonymous
lol no friends in holland
>> Anonymous
Have fun having your weeaboo dreams shattered when you end up stranded and homeless in Japan
>> Anonymous
i wish iwas homeless in japanese land
>> Anonymous
read James Clavell's Shogun, you guys have some history
>> Anonymous
>>25333
To prevent that, I'm asking around.
>> Anonymous
>>25487
You're a 21 year old dutch guy who can barely speak japanese and doesn't have a degree...you're not getting a well-paying job champ
>> Anonymous
>>25493
>>You're a 21 year old dutch guy who cannot speak japanese and doesn't have a degree...you're not getting a job, ever gajin.

fix'd for realism. Japan is having a bit of a economic decline and unemployment is very high (for japan) they are not going to hire an illiterate dutch guy for any job in Japan anymore then you could find a job in any country with an over abundence of unskilled labor and lack of jobs.

Enjoy your poverty.
>> Anonymous
Well, I'm pretty sure if you work on your japanese a little bit you could work in some sort of tourism kiosk, japanese people barely speak english, which is a big barrier for tourism (trust me, I spent 2 weeks miming my way around in japan over xmas time)
>> Anonymous
>>25517
It is impossible to work in Japan legally without an university degree. If you get caught working illegally (how the fuck are you even going to find a job like that without knowing Japanese?) you will be deported and denied reentry for quite a while, if not for life. Sad but true.
>> Anonymous
Wait until you've finished your degree - most countries, particularly developed ones like Japan, have stopped hiring whatever TEFL teacher comes along, and specifically ask for a degree. It sounds you're capable of learning and being in an educational environment.
Make sure you take a recognised TEFL course, and if you want it a bit easier go for one that offers automatic work placement - you could ask for a position in Japan.
If you just go for the course, check out websites such as http://www.tefl.com/, who offer loads of postings.

Since you're natively Dutch you're going to have a bit of a problem - countries want a native speaker of the language (in this case English) because it helps with students mastering the correct pronunciation. You'll find plenty of teachers there who speak English but with an accent, which the more elite students, such as in private schools and businessmen, don't want that. I don't know how strong your Dutch accent is, but it'll put you at a disadvantage.
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>> Anonymous
...
Don't worry too much about not speak Japanese. Some of the higher establishments will prefer you to be able to speak a little of it, but most of the time it's really not necessary. Your students are learning English from you, not speaking Japanese. Ask about available resources when applying for jobs. If you're lucky some places will offer to give you free language courses upon your arrival - after all, you're going to be living there for a specified contract time, and if you don't speak the language at all you're going to have a tough time.
To get in, get your university degree (places really don't care what in), get your TEFL qualification, and start applying through websites or agencies. If you're offered a position, your work will sort out Visas and banks for you (the latter only if it's a good place) and help you with all the administrative work. Be careful though - a lot of the time places will offer several people the same job because there's a history of people not turning up at all for various reasons. Worry about it at a later date, you won't be TEFL for a long time yet, but be wary.