Senpai Success Story #22: University Professor Monique

Monique tells a story of her intentionally delayed journey to Japan, and introduces us to another way we can teach in Japan – at the university level!

Welcome to the Senpai Success Story, where you can read about others who have walked a unique career path using their Japanese language/cultural skills. (Senpai means “mentor” or “teacher,” and the concept is important to understand for anyone wishing to work in a Japanese business setting.)

A Typical Start

My interest in Japanese started with anime and wanting to watch shows like Sailor Moon and Yu Yu Hakusho in their original language. I took Japanese classes in high school and college, experiencing a tea ceremony and even giving a presentation in a yukata.

After college, I found opportunities to speak Japanese with a private tutor, Japanese staff and students, and fellow attendees of Japan-related events. I don’t watch much anime anymore, but the nuances of Japan’s language and the culture’s duality of modern and traditional has sustained my interest all these years.

Putting Japan on Hold

I’m familiar with the JET Program and know several people who have done it. When I was an undergraduate, it was the main program advertised as a post-graduation option for Japanese Studies students.

As much as I wanted to go back to Japan (I studied abroad in Shizuoka in my junior year), I also knew that would not be the best time to go. There was a graduate school acceptance letter sitting in my inbox, and I had planned to get a master’s degree in TESOL. I knew a master’s degree would open me up to a wider range of opportunities in an industry I had developed an interest in. While working on my degree, I could gain teaching experience (and, of course, income) at a local language school. I knew I wanted to live in Japan someday and also be a university professor at some point, but had no clear plan beyond that.

What do I want to do in Japan?

Fast forward 4 years later, and I not only had experience as a teacher, but also as an international student advisor. I was ready to plan my route to Japan, and naturally JET came to mind. I applied and was invited for an interview for the ALT position, but turned it down. Lack of choice over the location, the salary, and the terms of the contract were among the reasons why the opportunity did not feel right for me.

I wanted to go to Japan, but not badly enough to take a job I was not enthusiastic about. There had to be something else. Working at an eikaiwa was the next option. While this came with more flexibility, I wasn’t keen about going to yet another language school.

Research

During one of my Googling sessions, I came across a blog post about teaching at Japanese universities, a possibility I had not considered or really heard anything about. Finally, an option that excited me: this would combine my interest in TESOL, my goal to become a university professor, and my desire to live in Japan.

With Japanese universities as my focus, I searched for vacancies. I specifically needed to find universities that sponsored visas for overseas applicants, which really narrowed the pool.

After a year of getting rejected then applying again, a university accepted me. I have been in Japan, as of the time of this post, for a year and a half.

Conclusion

You can have a great experience with JET or an eikaiwa. However, neither of those routes interested me. This led to a delay in me getting my career started in Japan, but I don’t regret it.

The time I spent working in the U.S. exposed me to the real working world without the additional stress of differences in culture and language. Also, the business experience I gained as an advisor came in handy for opportunities to teach specialized English courses. Japanese proficiency is not required for my job, but my N3 Japanese level has come through for me personally and professionally.

What do you want to do in Japan? The ways to get there are unlimited. Do your research and find the one that works for you.

Thank you Kasia for the opportunity to write to your audience! Want to see more from me? Come on over to my website, moniquebae.com, to see more of my work. You can also subscribe to my newsletter here: moniquebae.substack.com.