Hey guys,

I realise this topic can be a bit misleading at first so I'll clarify what I mean before I cause mass confusion!

I've accepted a job offer to go to teach in Japan from Interac, and plan on going in March if all goes well. However, with costs looming in the future and the thought of having to take more money there than I'd thought (more loans etc...), I'm probably going to be looking into giving private lessons when and where possible. I hear that there're quite a few opportunities since quite a few people there want to learn English but I'm just wondering what average going rates you should/can (without being extortionate of course!) charge are, and what kind of money you could be making from teaching so many hours a week? 

So to be clear, I'm asking about private lessons ON TOP OF my actual normal working hours, not just opportunities to teach privately in Japan. I know that the prices may vary lots with who you give lessons to, and how many...but if anyone can give me an idea of what you can be expected to make from private teaching then that'd be great!

Thanks all!

Taz

i should point out that with interac, it states in the contract that you can only do private lessons as long as you are not in anyway in competition with them - by this i mean, if interac offer private lessons in your area, you cannot give private lessons in that area... for example interac offer lessons in Hitachi, interac employees can opt for additional hours by doing LC work (teaching interac private lessons) but not teacher their own lessons due to competition over the clients.

so, presuming you end up in an area that is ok - it can vary depending on class size, level and location.

Generally in a big city, for english lessons using a textbook you can expect to charge 3000en an hour for one on one... slightly less if you are teaching 2 people or 3 people at the same time.

if its conversational practice, chances are the other person will be willing to buy you dinner, help you learn japanese, invite you to their house etc - basically their aim is to be a friend and get english practice time for free...it doesnt help you finacially but you will learn a lot about japanese culture etc

the further you are away from a big city, the less you charge... to the extent whereby the local community might already have an english class set up from previous teachers and the community expect you to take over (unpaid...remembering the fact you have to live in that community for a year and the japanese dont usually like to say no)...

in small towns and villages you will find less people to teach, generally they have less money, and there's the poss other teachers want to teach them - so you have to lower the cost to around 1000en an hour.

me and a friend do a group class and we only charge 500en an hour - its more conversational practice with worksheets from a textbook - but we live in iwate (the poorest prefecture before the tsunami), recently had the tsunami and theres many volunteers who want to teach for free (we were here before the tsunami and still only charged 500en because we know a lot of the community)

as for saving money - thats possible... on a good money i send home about 800pounds and still have enough to live off - sometimes you just have to say no to eating out, or buy the second hand stuff instead of the new stuff, dont furnish your place etc - having said that, i have a proper desk, arm chair, bed, sofa, and all the other stuff and still send money home to pay off debt etc

Cool, cheers for that, Paul! That is really useful advice.

I asked because in the seminar at the interview, the recruiter did say that as long as we're doing a good job, then Interac doesn't actually mind you doing private lessons ('turn a blind eye' she said but you don't actually have to tell them). Of course, if it conflicts with their needs (as you stated) then I would in no way do private lessons like that. But I am just exploring ways to make extra money really, given how tight finances can be nowadays. 

Do you know what the going rates for Interac private lessons are? And how many hours do they offer you, or it is highly variable? When you did your private teaching, how many hours on average did you do a week? I realise that it all matters on who your clients are, how many clients you have, their financial demographics and how many lessons they want a week. But I'm just trying to get an idea of what to expect, really. 

I wouldn't mind doing unpaid work for free (meals thrown in make it even better I guess since that's less money you have to spend) but I'd like to do a mix - if I had to travel a bit out of town (depending on cost benefits) then I wouldn't mind doing paid lessons out of town, unpaid in town and in the local community. 

Thanks again for all your help, think I might have to start calling you the 'Human Japan Bible' :)

im not sure about interac - they are quite secretive about pay - even we are not suppose to discuss how much we get paid...

as i said for a city most people will be willing to pay about 3000en... to be competive you could charge 2000en (generally though its best to wait until you get here and ask local teachers) - but as i said, in some areas it will be difficult to get clients.

i have 1 friends who drives 2hours and teaches 4 people for free - he does it every 2 weeks and has done this for about 3 months and there is only just talks of maybe paying him travel money.

for me i had one client i charged 1500en for the first hour - after that we had free talk, she was also a japanese friend...she did also offer to pay for dinner but for me 1500en was enough

my other class was 500en per person for 1.5hours and so varied each week depending how many turned up as this was a group class

my final advice would be not to rely on the extra classes - they can be hard to set up - and sometimes take several months before you get any clients...even in the cities...usually students are looking for extra classes BUT you cannot teach any of your own school students - if you are in a city then university students are good!

Righto! Well, I'll see how it goes when I'm there, I guess. As you say, it depends on a lot of different things and location is one of the biggest problems. May have to resort on trying to give guitar lessons then :) 

i'm not trying to be a downer but i'm trying to point out that you should not rely on extra lessons to cover costs - Japanese are all for having a foreign friend but that friendship can take time... it can be very difficult to give any kind of lesson when you are new to the country...

speaking japanese well, will help a lot if you want to get established fairly quickly and make friends quickly BUT even then it can be hit and miss.

Unfortunately the best way to save money is not to make more but to spend less - eat at home as much as you can, only buy what you really need, only furnish you apartment with what is needed (use a cushion to sit on the floor instead of a chair), buy from daiso (100en shop) or second hand stores

Of course all this can reduce enjoyment - if you go out with japanese people, expect to pay about 3000en, the same with teachers parties (christmas party is about 10,000en), if you dont eat out you can invite people round but thats difficult in small apartments and if its got limited furnishing, also the more you say no to things the less invites you will get and the less chance you have of making friends.

its also best not to surround yourself with too many foreigners if you want to attract japanese friends - there are also language groups in most big cities.

But generally japan pays well to support a good life style but isnt necessarily the best place to save money to pay of debts - unless you never go out or do anything!