Hi guys

I'm a Singaporean finishing my degree in electrical engineering in Perth (Aus) and I'm currently in the  process of planning my graduation trip to Japan, after looking through the website I seem to fufill most of the requirements (native english speaker, about 15 years of study in english speaking schools) the only problem seems to be the application of the visa(which I'm trying to get more information about).

So I've thought of going through i-to-i's TEFL 120 hours course and their job placements, however their available contract period and time frame are inflexible and I'm looking for something along the lines of 2 to 3 months starting july/august 2011.

I've look through most of the major ALTs (Interac, ECC....) but they have very little temporary positions and even then, those require a 5 to 6 months commitment at least.

So heres my question :

Are short term contracts easily available if I'm looking for a job independantly (after completing the TEFL course) ?

And where should I look for them ?

Cheers,

Alex

On a side note, I am singaporean chinese, however english has always been my native tongue, but i've noticed that most ALTs prefer caucasians and most of the people going through TEFL seem to be caucasian, so will being asian affect my chances of finding a job even more ?

not that i'm racist or anything, as a friend puts it to me...."learning english from a chinese will be like learning mandarin from a caucasian" :)                                                                                                                                                                     

Generally speaking it depends where in japan and when you want to start.

The main in take for companies, Board or Education and schools is March/april...they usually prefer people to commit to a 12month contract so that it does not affect the children by changing the teacher too often.

However, in Tokyo school prefer to offer short contracts 3-6months because schools are always unsure of the budgets they have and because tokyo is expensive a lot of schools are struggling and have closed down...so by having short contracts if they do run into budget problems they can easily drop the ALT. Having said this Tokyo is one of the most competitive places to teach in japan so without prior teaching experience it will be hard to get a short term contract .

With a lot of companies, such as interac, they like to have a few people on waiting lists...mainly because teaching is not for everyone and some people drop out last minute and so vacancy need filling asap...for this you need to be flexible for location and start dates.

As for your nationality - yes being caucasian is the image that most people associate with someone who is fluent in english but that is like saying on someone old with crazy white hair and a white coat can be a scientist.

In fact if you can speak chinese and are willing to teach it then you are more employable then those of us who can only speak english. mainly because learning chinese is also being more popular in the big cities.

I think you'd probably be best being on a holiday visa for 3months and whilst you travel and see japan offer english lesson...

If you are serious about teaching in japan and want to experience the culture then to be honest you need to be here for a full year, at least. 2-3months is not enough, you will just be getting use to your students, school and location before you have to quit and move on...so maybe think abut what you want to get out of the experience

Thanks for the infomation

While I'd love to spend more time in Japan, I'm also in the process of applying for residency in Aus, therefore I can't leave the country for more then 3 months at a time per the terms of my application, which is why my trip has to be limited to such a duration.

And 2ndly, english is my native langauge, and I not fluent in mandarin, and i'm only capable of basic mandarin conversation and listening skills, is that considered a skill that I can capitalize on ?

Other then finding ad hoc work as per your advice, is there any other ways to get a contract ?

Thanks !

Additionally I'm not particular about location nor pay ( just a small amount to cover basic living expenses will be more then sufficient), but my main concern is duration and timing as I can leave only after end june 2011 and I have to be back in aus by december 2011.

Is this even a feasible option ?

Thanks

Your best bet is to contact companies and language schools in japan directly and speak to them either via email or phone (use skype or something for cheap calls).

The main intake for teachers is March/April and August/September (start of school year and start or second semester) but you do however get people who drop out, get sick, have family problems...So companies like to have standbys, sometimes though you need to be in country or at least be able to get to Japan within a few days.

These positions vary and so can have different requirements. Normally you have to be flexible (such as location, age groups, schools etc), You might be required to move to various locations covering classes and sometimes to have prior experience in teaching (usually min of 2years)

One thing you should know about japan is to move here it is expensive to set up...before even starting teaching you will need to set up accommodation which is normally 3-4months rent plus buying furniture. Also you wont be able to work fulltime and will be very limited if on a holiday visa...you will need a work visa which is normally min of 6months. Visa can also be tricky for the company to get which is why they may ask you to sort it out with it being a short visa.

This is why most people who come to japan come for at least a year and usually stay 3 years because all the start up costs is quite high and its not really affordable to move around on a regular basis...staying in japan long term does make saving easier and you can save a lot but if i am honest you might be best looking at another country or maybe consider doing one-on-one teaching in the cities whilst touring, maybe see if there is a volunteer program or as i said before contacting the companies directly and seeing if they can help...

im sorry its not all good news but i wish you all the best and hopefully something will come up...keep trying and push forward :)