Working In Japan

[FlameLordPhoenix 0]

I didn't want to hijack Arasef's thread, so I created this one instead. I need some help--or rather, my girlfriend does. Here's the skinny:

I'm planning to apply for the JET program at the end of this year (to leave next summer). For those unfamiliar, it's a program that, if you get accepted, allows you to be an Assistant Language (English in my case) Teacher in Japan for a year. My girlfriend was interested in tagging along for the year, because she was informed by my Air Force friend that Tokyo apparently has a hospital that is staffed with mostly English-speakers. I'm assuming it's meant for tourists that may get injured, and obviously might not know Japanese too well. Seeing as she's a nursing major, my girlfriend feels this would be a good opportunity for her. Now, JET participants who are married are more than welcome to bring their spouses along--at their own expense of course--and proper paperwork will be provided by the Japanese government. The problem, of course, is that we won't be married by that time--I plan to propose by the end of this year, but marriage is still a few years off; I have a Master's degree to earn first. Now the JET FAQ said that fiancees can get a 90 day work visa if they accompany their partners, but nothing more. So, what I need to know, and hopefully someone here can help me, is this:

What would my girlfriend have to do to get a work visa that would allow her to work in Japan for the whole year? The only thought I've had so far is for her to find out the name of the hospital (my Air Force friend didn't actually mention it, and I haven't heard from him in a while) and somehow contact them about her desire to work there, with the hopes that they'll extend the offer for the temporary visa. I don't know if that would work or not; I really have no idea how these things work. So I'm beseeching anyone with knowledge on how to do this--please help her out. Doumo arigatou gozaimasu!

[ithilienne 2]

Have you tried contacting the relevant Japanese government agencies, or someone from JET? While we're all fans of J-culture, the bureaucratic stuff is a little hairy even for the best of us, and just like over here, the best bet for an accurate answer would be the source.

Also, everyone I know who's dealt with the JET program folks says that they're very pleasant, and happy to answer questions. You might also try contacting the Japanese Embassy in DC.

Good luck!

[kaki 0]

What would my girlfriend have to do to get a work visa that would allow her to work in Japan for the whole year? The only thought I've had so far is for her to find out the name of the hospital (my Air Force friend didn't actually mention it, and I haven't heard from him in a while) and somehow contact them about her desire to work there, with the hopes that they'll extend the offer for the temporary visa. I don't know if that would work or not; I really have no idea how these things work. So I'm beseeching anyone with knowledge on how to do this--please help her out. Doumo arigatou gozaimasu!

[FlameLordPhoenix 0]

So if she did manage to get a full-time job at this hospital within the 90 days allowed by the visa, would she be able to stay for the year? Or, if she was able to contact the hospital and have them agree to let her work their either as a nurse or doing clerical work (depending on where she is in her studies at that time) before heading over there, would that work as well? I never expected anyone from the source to actually be on the boards; this is very helpful and I appreciate you taking your time to answer my questions.

ZGL, thank you as well. I have contacted the JET portion of the Japanese Embassy but have yet to hear a response from them. This is the big time for bringing applicants in for interviews, so I understand why it would take some time. The 2010 applications aren't even up yet, so I have some time to figure things out. I just really don't know what I'll do if there's no way for me to get her over there with me; I'd always imagined us doing this together. I mean, living in Japan has been a dream of mine for quite some time, and I've always wondered what it would be like to teach full-time (as opposed to tutoring like I occasionally do now), so this is a perfect opportunity. I just...never imagined going without my girlfriend.

[kaki 0]

So if she did manage to get a full-time job at this hospital within the 90 days allowed by the visa, would she be able to stay for the year? Or, if she was able to contact the hospital and have them agree to let her work their either as a nurse or doing clerical work (depending on where she is in her studies at that time) before heading over there, would that work as well? I never expected anyone from the source to actually be on the boards; this is very helpful and I appreciate you taking your time to answer my questions.

[FlameLordPhoenix 0]

She does not have a degree. By the time I go to Japan, she should have her RN from the local community college, but I guess that would only count as a 2 year degree. So basically, there's probably not much of a chance she'll be able to come over for the whole year, huh?

So basically, there's probably not much of a chance she'll be able to come over for the whole year unless she can get some kind of allowance through the embassy or the Japanese government, huh? I guess she could apply for dual citizenship, but that would seem rather tedious for a year's tenure...especially considering I have no idea what the Japanese citizenship test is like (I'm assuming they have a test).

[kaki 0]

She does not have a degree. By the time I go to Japan, she should have her RN from the local community college, but I guess that would only count as a 2 year degree. So basically, there's probably not much of a chance she'll be able to come over for the whole year, huh?

So basically, there's probably not much of a chance she'll be able to come over for the whole year unless she can get some kind of allowance through the embassy or the Japanese government, huh? I guess she could apply for dual citizenship, but that would seem rather tedious for a year's tenure...especially considering I have no idea what the Japanese citizenship test is like (I'm assuming they have a test).

[PyronIkari 0]

Basically, you haven't a chance in hell to bring her for the full year.

The "English speaking hospital" from what I know of it(funny thing, because this place came up in conversation in the airport with some military people that were waiting for a flight with me and my girlfriend) is that almost everyone that works there were already locals to the area. As in, yes, they're English speakers, but they are Japanese, or were raised in Japan.

The chances of your girlfriend getting a job there is basically impossible. They only hire people that are already certified(like most hospitals) and there would have to be a list of other requirements.

Things such as, residency, openings, qualifications beyond certification, etc. etc. etc. would all come into play and from what you said, doesn't apply to her.

Getting a work visa, is incredibly hard. By incredibly hard, I mean, damn near impossible. You pretty much need to be scouted out by a Japanese company, referred by a major company, and be extremely qualified to do the job they want you to do. Reasons being, they can hire a local for about 2/3rds the price they can any foreigner. They don't want to deal with the paper work, and especially now with them in a recession, why would they want to pay a foreigner money?

Getting permanent residency is even harder. You need to have lived in the country, for I think it was 5 years(it used to be, this may have changed) minimum straight as the very lowest base requirement. You then need to prove a long list of things including reason why(and "because I want to" doesn't even come close to cutting it) then you have to take multiple proficiency exams. All of which mean diddly squat because they can then just deny you for whatever reason they want.

I have a number of friends living in Japan that aren't citizens, completely fluent in Japan, with the appropriate skills to get a Job. A few of them are Japanese, and they're having trouble maintaining there stay and trying to get citizenship.

Also, good luck with JET... I seriously mean that. It's a lot harder to get into right now, and those that do get in are being treated even worse now than they were before(which was pretty terrible to begin with).

I don't see the appeal really, live in a country where you don't know the language very well, get paid pretty crapilly to get treated even worse.

Honestly unless you're going there, and your absolute main reason is to *teach*, JET is a horrible idea. I know off the top of my head a dozen or so people that did JET, and their stories of racism and just horrible living is amazing.