On Preparing A Resume To Really Get An English Teaching Job in Japan in 2021!
Introduction
[Updated Note- Times are tough for the English teaching market in Japan. Companies and English teaching jobs are tenuous in many areas at best.
Rules governing entry and exit from Japan changes seemingly on a whim. Due diligence is strongly advised before coming to the country, and signing a contract.]
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You are not that special and neither is your resume.
There are seven billion people on the planet. As for English teacher resumes, there are 100s of those crumpled pieces of paper sitting in trash cans in HR offices all over Japan. But, this does not have to be your resume even during a worldwide pandemic.
The Photograph
There is an expectation of what a “good” native English teacher looks like in Japan. Western-looking foreigners have a distinct advantage in terms of getting an English teaching job. It is reality.
You should make sure that the color photograph you use is passport-sized. It should be at the top of your resume. Men should wear a shirt, tie, and jacket. You can save your character ties for the classroom. And, you can ditch the earrings for one photograph.
Women should make sure their photograph expresses a professional image. This is not the Miss America pageant. You are not a movie star, no skin, and little makeup. You should avoid showing the universe your five inch tongue spike, too.
College Degree
You have a college degree. Every person applying for an English teaching job does too. They give them out like PEZ these days. And, it is a requirement to get an instructor visa.
If you have an English-related degree, you should put that early in your resume and cover letter. That goes double for teaching licenses and ESL certificates, especially CELTA. Advanced degrees should be highlighted in your cover letter. Unless you went to Harvard, Princeton, or Yale, nobody will care where you went to college.
This goes for grade point averages and academic honors. It is fine to include them on your resume. But, your grade point average is not impressive to anyone here. In addition, things like honor societies, clubs, and your 2015 beer pong championship are worthless.
Age
English teaching is a young person’s game in Japan. Sometimes, there are age limits. You should not highlight your age if you are over 30. You do not want your resume chucked in the trash can because you put your date of birth as May 5, 1960 at the top of your resume.
Age discrimination is not illegal here. Don’t lie if you are asked. Your prospective company will know your age once you apply for your visa. But, you do not have to offer in your cover letter, “I’m 38 and looking for work!”
Speaking of visas, if you have a valid visa, you should put that information in your cover letter and early in your resume. In fact, you put that in gold-colored font (James note: don’t actually do this!) if you have a permanent resident or dependent spouse visa. Smaller companies hate the hassle of securing a visa for a new employee. Permanent residents and dependent spouse visas are the golden tickets to getting hired by the smaller English companies.
If you are on a dependent spouse visa, do not be above putting, “daughter/son #years old” on your resume if you have one. Kindergartens love married foreigners with kids. Don’t feel guilty. You are trying to avoid the trash can. Remember?
Hidden Talents
Talent matters. Things like your ability to sing or play the piano should be included in your skills section. You should mention them in your cover letter if the job you are seeking involves young children. Kindergartens love English teachers with music, dance, or art ability.
JLPT certification Level 3 and up should be included near the top portion of your resume. You should mention it in your cover letter. Many English teaching jobs require no Japanese ability. But, the smaller companies/schools prefer English teachers with Japanese ability. Nobody wants to be your babysitter all day.
Work Experience
It is great that you were barista of the month 14 times while working your way through college. It is also swell that you volunteered every Sunday afternoon at the senior living home. My great-grandmother thanks you. But, it is not going to help you land an English teaching job.
Your experience tutoring, mentoring, and interacting with foreigners should be included in your cover letter and on your resume. The experiences should target the school or company that you are applying for here. This is especially true if you are applying to a Japanese company that falls outside of the JET program or the big English teacher dispatch agencies.
Research
“Know thy employer.” Once you target a company/school, you should research it. Many company/schools have webpages. Often the job advertisements are linked on the same page. Recently, many of the websites have English translations.
If they do not, you can copy and paste parts of the webpage into any online translator. You can also copy and paste stuff to a website like Lang-8. A native speaker will translate it for you for free.
Many schools and companies have multiple foreigners working for them. Now, I am not suggesting that you become a stalker. There are laws against that stuff. But, it takes all of five seconds to copy and paste a name into the internet. Every English teacher has a Facebook page or a blog.
You can learn a lot about your future coworker(s) and get the insider view of the company. English teachers vent at two places, the bar after work and on their social media sites. Your goal is to get information that can help you tailor your cover letter and resume for a specific school/company, nothing more.
The information can help you focus your cover letter and resume for better job hunting results. If you learn that a school/company loves music, you love music. If you know that a school enjoys teaching through play, you love playing all day long. You should avoid expressing ideas that do not match the philosophy of the school/company. Get it?
The Reality
Sharon McCutcheon
There are wonderful applications that are overlooked by HR staff. Sometimes, it is “who you know” more than “who you are” that gets the great English teaching job. It is not that different from getting a great job in your home country. Rejection happens to almost everyone.
You should never take it personally. Trust me, it is not. You can create a cover letter and resume that gives you a fighting chance to stay out of the trash can. “Look the part. Be the part. Get the part.”
Grey, Grizzled, and Gaijin
