I've been offered a teaching job in Japan .....?

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aiyo

I was a student of Nova for years. It was ok at the beginning and for a while because at that time I really didn't have any opportunity to speak English in Japan. But later I really couldn' t stand their English lessons because the students were asked to introduce themselves each other in each 45 minute class. If you say to Japanese that you are teaching English at a high school in Japan, it sounds good to Japanese. But if you say you are teaching English for adult at Nova, then it might be opposite.

Nova
http://www.jref.com/practical/teaching_at_nova.shtml

Nova etc. (Japanese)
http://www.nova.ne.jp/kids/index.html
http://www5a.biglobe.ne.jp/~vahoo/
http://www.ikaiwa.com/bbs/nova/
http://www.novaunion.com/index.html

Halal Foods and Restaurants in Japan
http://www.islamcenter.or.jp/eng/hallfood.htm
Mosque and Masjids in Japan
http://www.isuramu.com/eng/usefulinfo.htm

In general Japanese people are tolerance toward Muslim. Please take care not to eat pork inadvertently. I wish you will enjoy your life in Japan.

Spider

Go - it will broaden your life

the antibeckham

Nova has had some problems in the past regarding paying teachers. You might want to check The Japan Times website to see if they have anything in the archives.

azteccamera

Go definately! I worked in Japan for a year (not as a teacher) and I loved it. Did nt want to come home! I had friends who were English teachers and they enjoyed their jobs,good salary etc The country is fantastic the people are great. You ll have a brill time!

tiger lou

NOVA has a reputation of being "the McDonalds of language schools." Which is to say, it's popular but it sucks to work there. The management treat their employees like peons. (If anyone loves working at McD's, I apologize). And I am sure there are some gung-ho NOVA employees who think it's awesome too. But most people try to get out of there asap.
Do NOT sign a contract for more than one year. Check the details of the contract carefully. Do they provide for your return airfare? Some co's refuse to pay return airfare if an employee breaks their contract. . .so check what circumstances constitute breaking your contract. Also check out what type of housing is provided. Ask if they can estimate how much rent you'll be expected to pay. If you say, "That sounds kind of high. . . ." then check what sort of response they give. Are they defensive? Authoritative? Or do they sound reasonable and understanding about things like that???
Language school working hours are similar to working at a restaurant. You cannot get evenings or weekends off. Your day off is usually Monday. Check whether you get one day off a week or two. And are those 2 consecutive days? Don't be surprised if they aren't.
That said---if you want to experience Japan, if you want to get over there and get your work visa (a very important point) then do it. And you'll probably enjoy meeting and interacting w your students. After a year you can get another job. Or who knows, maybe you'll become a gung-ho "team player" w your own satin NOVA jacket.

I just reread your question. Another point--do you like working w kids? Have you ever done it? Some folks mistakenly believe that teaching children is an easy job that anyone can do. Wrong!! There are plenty of guys who come to Japan, try to teach kids, and CRASH and BURN. Japanese kids are like kids from any other country on earth -- they misbehave, they smack each other around, they are loud, they get bored. Of course they're cute and wonderful, but don't expect them all to be eager little darlings. And DO expect them to be scared of you initially. It's your job to win them over!

clairekell

English schools in japan are a dime a dozen, Nova would be the biggest in japan and have loads of offices which is a great way to meet other people. I worked in a small school by myself which got a bit depressing at times, dont worry about not knowing much language you can get by, I wouldnt say 90% of japanese can speak english dont expect people to speak english, try your japanese first, When I first arrived I was like I have to learn japanese, but after about a month or two you pick up the phrases that get you by, you'll earn enough to live off and save a bit too.
Teaching can be a bit of hard work, you should have all text books and lessons plans - not 100% on nova though, and you'll have a school manager who'll be under pressure to sign on more students, which can become stressful, some english schools focus on money and not really learning english, they do anything for a new student to sign on.
The culture is great, japanese people are fantastic, food is best i've had anywhere and japanese will go out of their way to help you if you need it.

booyah

go for it. fortune only knock once at your door. i have a sister from kuala lumpur she is teaching english in japan more than 10 years. and she is still teaching.you will love the culture too.

izumi c

Well first off ,are you good with kids, teenagers and adults ?You may be asked to teach all of these . When working for large schools you may be asked to travel to different locations to teach .Where we are in Japan we call NOVA NO LOVE . We call enthusiastic NOVA employees super novas .Try to learn the basic Japanese before coming .Pay is usually fairly good if you are single and can find a cheap place to rent .The culture is in some ways hard to adjust to at first depending on where you are . Be careful with the contracts though .Some of the contracts I have been asked to agree to aren't worth the paper they are written on . Finding a decent employer is difficult . Main thing to concentrate on when teaching is keeping students and parents of those students happy with what you are teaching and how you teach it . You can get some very serious mums here when it comes to scholastic achievement . I've been living and teaching in Japan for the last 13 years .Hope this helped

outtahere

i live in japan and hear that NOVA is a semi-decent language academy. the biggest issue is money, as this is SUCH an incredibly expensive place to live. Do they provide housing? That's your biggest concern. Get online and find some resources for ESL (English and a Second Language Teachers). NOVA will do some training, I imagine. Grab some books on Japanese culture before you come (Learning How to Bow is good). Also fun and funny is Dave Barry Does Japan. It's hysterical. There's also a book called Living and Working in Japan that helped us a great deal. Get into eating like a Japanese person and you can live much more cheaply. If you can't give up your Western eating habits, you'll go broke trying to buy those foods. Japanese food is delicious and healthy, so if you don't already like it, train yourself to. The Japanese people are the most polite and gracious people I have met and I have been all over the place. You are in for a treat. Come, even if the job package isn't great. You won't regret it one minute!

wuzaracer

I am a vegetarian for health reasons, and fish is a very big part of my diet. My colleague is a strict vegetarian and he has trouble when it comes to eating out with a group of people. many foods may have beef or pork mixed in and if you cannot read Japanese, you may have a few mistakes in food orders.

I do not work for a school, but my experience has taught me that location matters. If you will live and work in a major city where you can find or meet people with similar likes and dislikes, you will find that life will be better. Small towns are limited and even more limiting for gaijins.
I live next to Tokyo Jamie, which is a huge very nice Mosque in Tokyo's Yoyogiuehara area. Below is a link for the mosque.

Joriental

The proposition is seen little weired.
Have you been asked to pay any money in advance? then don't trust.
Or you should tell that you are not Christian. If Japan side notice after you entered in Japan. you might be in trouble.
You won't be able to cut off (stop) your class at Salat (worship) time.
Working and religion are absolutely two separate issues in Japan.

marvelous_fabulous

i am Muslim living in japan yes there's Masjid in Nagoya so it means for sure there's one in Tokyo.. u can eat halal beef coz they have it from Australia but the chicken here is Japanese.
be careful from the pork oil coz they use it too much .. just say ( no botaniqu )

I lived there for 18 months and started off by working for NOVA for a year and it wasn't too bad, they are one of the better schools for meeting people and helping you get set up. They let you pay rent a month behind and give you a pay advance when you get there which helps you get set up easily. People say its expensive but it dosent have to be. Use the supermarket and cook yourself and its easy to save. I was saving 75% of my wage once i got settled in.
As for halah meat it will be tough unless you are in a big city.
Go to Japan it is worth it, if you dont like NOVA it is simple to get another job once you have a little experience.

the big black bat

If I were you, I'll go for it. Not many people have the opportunity like your man. It would be an adventure, to live and work in a place like Japan is something I would like to experience. I would like to learn and be proficient in speaking and writing Japanese and I am also interested to learn martial arts such as Aikido, Judo, karate and the use of samurai. I also want to learm something about the Japanese Culture.

The only thing though in your case is as you have mentioned you are a muslim and you have some religious commitments such as prayers in the mosque and eating halal meat and it is a big factor for you.

I have never been to Japan and I have no idea about mosques and halal food. But to me it is a very interesting opportunity.

Steven

Rightly or wrongly, NOVA has a dreadful reputation. Their staff turnover rate is very fast because nobody stays long. People joke that NOVA stands for 'NO VAcations'. Salary is liveable-on but no more (around 2500 -3000 yen an hour). The culture in Japan is rather opaque, so you need lots of time to start feeling at home (say 10 years), and the Japanese are not exactly the warmest people in the world. If you come, it's far better to be in a big city rather than out in the gumbies.

Kaonashi

I actually worked as an English teacher for NOVA's main competitor, AEON. Of course I'm a little biased, but I had heard some negative things about NOVA and how they treat their employees. I also heard that, although NOVA courses are cheaper than AEON's, AEON's teaching methods are more organized.

I worked from Tuesday-Saturday from noon-9pm. This is because I taught adults, who would come to our classes after their work. It was a tough and challenging experience and I hated working on Saturdays, but I would do it all over again if I had the chance.

As far as whether or not you should go- understand that, unless you choose never to go shopping, travel or go out with friends, expect not to save a lot of money. Japan is expensive, and you won't be making much in your first year (that is, if you stay more than a year).

Therefore, don't go to Japan because of the job. Go for the unique and special opportunity of living in another part of the world and experiencing a different culture. You'll have the chance to meet lots of great new people who can teach you many things, and in return you can share your culture with them.

As for your question about mosques in Japan, I really don't know. Understand that you'll be in a severe minority in Japan. I'm Catholic, and I was fortunate to have a Catholic church in the city where I worked. However, I was a half hour from Tokyo so it's not too surprising. If you're placed in the countryside, it's guaranteed that there won't be any mosques or places to get halal meat nearby. You may have to spend as much as two hours (one way) by train to get to the nearest moqsue.

To prepare for your move, start learning Japanese NOW, if you haven't already. Buy some books, check out some websites. Learn to read and pronounce the kanji for important things like train station, men's and ladies' bathroom, hospital, restaurant, post office, police station, taxi, etc. Learn the train system. The trains are the lifeblood of Japan. Also buy some books on Japanese culture and customs.

Good luck!

ono

I think it is worth going, but it can be hard. NOVA is a OK place to work and they help you with accommodation etc, but as you might know, working hours in Japan can be very long ( 45hours+ per week is not unusual) so you might find it tough.
As for halal food, I am afraid that there are not many Muslim people in Japan, so it is very difficult to find it. It is also difficult to find a mosque. I had a teacher from Kuwait, and am not sure how he was coping with this matter, but once he served us kebab, so there must be some halal meat. But you will find plenty of fish, so if you like fish, then it would be OK.
If you don't like it or it is too hard, you can always come back. so personally, I think you should try. Or you'll be thinking about it for a long time. But remember, lots of people really don't know what is it like in other countries and have not got a much idea about Muslim religion, so you may get annoyed, but you have to educate them.
Good luck.

Johnny

Actually I'm going to work for Nova in a few days, its my first time. I think learning Japanese as soon as you get there is the way to go, Most cities and towns actually have free or at least dirt cheap Japanese classes for foreigners, from what my japanese friends have told me. I already found where the classes are held in my town.

About finance, most people talk about how expensive japan is but my friends have told me it depends on how you live.

For food, there are many cheap good places, like Ramen shops, Teriaki places, and cheap sushi, sashimi places that all offer good meals for under 10 dollars.
I was even told that grocery stores have pretty good prepacked food they make there that is really very good.
Don't go for american food too much, I hear Domino's like 35 dollars a pie over there.
Also, in places like Akihabara they sell a lot of new and used electronics, if your willing to settle for last years model, then you can probably save a lot.

got to go, maybe I'll add more later,

goodluck

Adam

Nova is a tough company to work for. I hear some bad things about them. However, if you want to come to work for them, good luck. I've been in Japan for over 2 and a half years and I love it!

Good luck.

If there is a Muslim community, it'll be in Tokyo.

Tired Old Man

Sounds like it would be a good experience,,, if you know how to speak Japanese.

M.O.A.B

First you must learn their culture, langage and eat raw food.
90% of Japanese do no speak english

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