Study in Japan - Degree vs. No degree

Hello there! My husband and I want to study Japanese. We have a huge doubt between two schools and we need advice from someone who has experience living in Japan;)

He has 37 years and a university degree. I have 36 years and I have no college degree. Only an international certificate for teaching Spanish and a high level of English. We are from Argentina.

Option 1: Go to the Kansai College, studying for a year both working half-day to see if at least I can pay to study a second year and get the degree. To get a job in the future. But in that case he would not know how to find work in Osaka (he is an industrial designer). Nor do we know how we can work half-day in an academy of that intensity ...

Option 2: Go to Yokohama Design that is lower intensity, a year working and studying and having chances of finding work in Tokyo. We were told that maybe we could find something in Latin American embassies for being Latino or for the Olympic Games 2020 because of the language ... But in this case I have fear of never getting to work in Japan without a title and only having my certificate for Spanish teaching.

What do you say? Any thoughts or advice? We like Osaka better as a city to live but we are afraid of not finding work there.

Thanks a lot! And happy beginning of 2016 !!!!

So you're planning to study Japanese only? I assume you'll be applying for student visas, in which case you are, I believe, only allowed to work up to 28 hours per week (i.e., part-time). You're also expected to pay your tuition costs upfront and prove to Immigration that you have the funds to support yourself without working.

Have either of you tried learning a second language before, or do you have an prior Japanese education? It may take longer than a year to become fluent/reach JLPT 2, which I believe is what most employers would look for if they required Japanese ability.

Hi (its me Melina, I posted the question without my user by mistake).

Yes, we know. We are studying japanese already, basic still. I speak English fluid and will look to take the TOEIC so I can have a certification of that. Also we know we need to work no more than 28hrs a week (we look to study hard so that is fine) and we have money and know all about the needs to the student visa.

We saw many jobs you dont need N2. Although we want to work in Japan and at some point get to N2 because we want to learn japanese for real not just have fun.

What we need to know is witch of these two options is better for after the study. If studying in Osaka 2 years for an associates degree will change my chances of getting a job THAT much. Because we think we can have more chances of getting a job near Tokyo but maybe we are wrong...

Any help anyone? ;)

Sorry to say, but I wouldn't call your level of English "high". Although you can make yourself understood, "I have 36 years" is the kind of word-for-word translation that indicates you are not fluent.

A degree in Japanese should help you only marginally to get a job, unless perhaps Japanese competency is a core skill for the job (rather than just something you need in order to be able to communicate with others). As in any other place, the number 1 thing you need to get a job in Japan is a marketable skill.

Well, you are absolutely right. I am a bit rusty with my English, I am sorry if I offended you. I am writing very fast and I wrote I have 36 years instead of I am 36 years old. I am so sorry. I do not intend to teach English so this is not my concern. I just need to certify my English level in order to prove how my English is, not to try to intend I am a native speaker or anything. But a TOEIC exam will do that and will need to practice more before that.

Anyways, that was not the question here. But thanks.

I am not familiar with those two colleges and how "intense" those schools are. But schools provide you with at least 4 hour lessons a day (5 days a week) at "full-time" courses, and you will need to do a lot of reviewing outside those lessons to really learn the language. So I wonder if you can really work half day?

Does anyone have a definitive answer on whether non-Japanese people with associate degree (not bachelor's degree) are eligible for work visas in Japan?

Exactly what kind of jobs are you thinking for the Olympics? There will be needs for multi-lingual guides or interpreters possibly, but some of these roles will be occupied by volunteers who are already residents of Japan, and professional guides require certification. And those jobs will be temporary. TOEIC for English is just to show your English language proficiency, so I don't know if you would need that at all...

Yes, I read a lot regarding that. You can have a part-time job but only if the school has the right intensity for it. That is why a school as Akamonkai in Tokyo wont allow you to work even if you get a permission. Because it is so intense...

As for the job. We are just thinking and researching the best place to go to have possibilities for finding a job. We dont have any specific job in mind. Just think maybe our Spanish open some doors but we dont know.

I am trying to understand if Tokyo have more job opportunities than Osaka. Or if it is so overloaded that Osaka is a best choice for a foreigner to find a job...

English... I heard going to find a job in Japan and having a certificate to prove your level of English is a plus. I am thinking about taking an exam for that but I still dont know if TOEIC, IELLTS or Cambridge. Dont know witch one is the best in Japan when you look for a job.

There are more job opportunities in Tokyo than in Osaka simply because it is 3 x larger, in terms of population (sorry for stating the obvious).

A few comments:

1) Start learning Japanese as much as possible while still in Argentina. Money does not seem to be much of an issue for you if I read you well. But knowing Japanese (JLPT N5 at least) will save a lot of time. WITHIN 1 YEAR you may get to JLPT N2. Thousands of foreign students do it every year. Why not you?

2) Why limiting yourself to those 2 colleges (maybe I missed something)? How about this: you choose a smaller school; the quality of teaching will likely be very similar. They will prepare you for the EJU and they will HELP YOU find a higher education institute or look for jobs.

3) I don't mean to discourage you at all but just to prepare for all eventualities: being 36 and 37, the Japanese immigration will look all the more closely at your applications. That's also why showing that you passed JLPT N5 would definitely help. It will be also very important to have a CLEAR PLAN as this will also be scrutinized.

Hi! I cant tell you how much you clear for me already. We are learning Japanese, slow but constant. I dont know if we can get the Noken done before applying for the visa... but we can surely get there with a N5 level if we focus on that goal.

The only thing I dont understand is what you say of going to a smaller school. Smaller in what sense? For what I have seen most schools help you getting a job and passing the Noken. I just need to be able to have a work visa later on and not having a degree it seems hard. The Kansai school can give me at least a degree that I can use after 2 years, but for that my husband needs to find a job in Osaka and I dont know how possible that is for a foreigner designer... that is all the actual problem.

What you mentioned regarding the clear plan for the visa. I read about that and the age. We will possible be a year older even once we get to go ;( Having the plan of studying and then being able to be useful in Japanese business scene is not a clear plan for you? Of course we want to stay living in Japan but I am not sure how much damage you cause stating that so openly...