Teach English in Japan

One of the largest markets for ESL English teachers is Japan. With it's booming economy, high wages for ESL teachers, beautiful scenery, fashionable modern cities, and it's culturally rich culture, Japan is a favourite of many English teachers.

With so many jobs posted on the internet, you are probably wondering what is the best way to fins a job teaching in Japan, and how to stand out amid the huge competition. The safet way to have an English teaching job in Japan is probably through one of the language institutes. The three largest institutes are NOVA, GEOS and AEON , all teachers teach in fairly good conditions in-house, and the institutions will help you arrange visas, your trip to Japan, and your accomodation once you arrive. These three institutes have there head offices located in Toyko, but have schools all over Japan. If for some reason you would like to avoid the three huge corporate giants you could try one of the smaller institutions which also have schools all over Japan, some of these are: ECC, GABA, Grandom and WinBe.

Alternatives to the private language institutions are the JET programme, which works with the Japanese government to employ English teachers to teach in Junior High and High Schools. When working with JET, teachers assume the position of Assitant Language Teacher, but a down side being that they do not teach in-house, and may need to travel and teach at several different schools. As with the large private institutions, JET hire most teachers from their own home countries, and provide help with accomodation and visas and also reimburse for air flights on the completion of contracts. Another option to look at, especially if you favour short term contract are Westgate.

Once you are in the country and have a working visa, you have completed the hardest part and if you are unhappy with your job for any reason you have the advantage over foreign teachers not in Japan in applying directly to the English colleges in Japan. Apply directly to schools in the areas you have targeted. Also you are free to explore the market for indiviual 1 on 1 classes and private tutoring.

Wages in Japan as with most countries are more in the cities but so too are living expenses. At most schools you would be expected to teach a fairly long week of aroud 25-40 hours. Pay for a month of teaching is around ¥250,000-300-000  ($2000-2400 USD), cost of living is especially high in Tokyo and other major cities but the cost of living per month can be estimated at around ¥150,000 per month. If you live modestly it is definetely possible to save a fair bit while teaching English in Japan.