Any Bachelor’s Degree to move to Japan?

I've read online that to move to Japan, you require a Bachelor's Degree and you also need to be sponsored by a company. My question here is if I need a specific Bachelor's Degree to be able to move. Does it have to be in the field of science or can it be a Bachelor's Degree in any field whatsoever?

It depends on what you plan to do.

If it is something like teaching English - essentially an entry level position, but no Japanese language requirement, and little opportunity for advancement - then any degree will be fine. Provided it's from an accredited university, of course.

If, however, you wish to do something more specific - be an engineer for a company, or work in business - then a more relevant degree will be necessary. Also possibly experience, and language ability.

If your goal is a 3 year adventure teaching English, and then return to your home country, then get the degree you need for your post-Japan career. If you are looking to settle in Japan permanently, then teaching English is hardly a great long-term solution (unless you open your own school), so get a degree in something you would aim to work towards as a career.

Thank-you for your reply Dainichi Heater.

I plan to get a degree in Information Technology (Games and Graphics Programming) while studying Japanese through my University.

I thought experience would be a requirement so I was planning to work a few years in my Degree field back home before looking for a job in Japan. Hopefully by then I will be more experienced with the Japanese language :)

Through my chosen degree, it will be possible to move to Japan if I find a company to sponsor me, etc?

In principle, I don't see why not.

On the other hand, I don't see why a company would hire you specifically either.

There are lots of young people in Japan going to college for those types of fields, and unlike you, none of them need a visa, and the company doesn't need to worry about language barriers, cultural misunderstandings, or whether they will leave to return to their country.

Japanese companies are like other companies around the world - they'll only employ foreigners if there is a skills shortage (there's not, I think), or they stand to gain something from the individual that they cannot find in the local population.

It's not impossible, but I think the video games industry is a pretty tough row to hoe.

If you're willing to go into other areas of computer engineering, then I think there are some skills shortages.

This may be a reasonable guide
https://jobs.gaijinpot.com/job/index/lang/en?keywords=&category=22®...

Dang, I'm not really up for getting a degree in a field other than the video games industry but thank-you for your insight. I'll keep it in mind :)

I can see how language barriers and cultural misunderstandings could pose a threat when trying to find a job. I'll have to keep this in mind too.

Who knows, I might change my mind in the next few upcoming years and end up with a totally different IT degree. Thanks for all your help Dainichi Heater.

No worries.

There are some jobs out there
e.g. https://jobs.gaijinpot.com/job/view/lang/en/category/22/page/2/job_id/...

But there are pretty few of them, so you would need to aim to be really, really good at what you do.

Sponsoring foreigners is always a risk. If you're getting someone fresh off the boat, they may not like Japan, and may go home. Then the company did a lot of work to recruit and sponsor a visa for someone who won't stay.

It will be hard, but probably not impossible. The more experience you can get, the better. Probably also a good idea to study abroad in Japan for some period. I doubt you'll become fluent in Japanese just by studying overseas, so getting some experience in Japan is also important.

You read my mind.

I'm planning to study one semester (six months) in Japan when I enter University. If all goes well and I get my degree then I was thinking of working for a few years (to gather experience and money) and then coming to Japan on a working holiday VISA to truly experience what it's like to live in Japan independently.

This would all be to see if I enjoy Japan or not :)

Thank-you for the resourceful links as well, big help

Apologies for the double post but in that job link I read this "Must currently reside in Japan." Would I have to be living in Japan beforehand?

Would I be able to apply for something like this whole on a tourist or working holidays VISA?

"Must currently reside in Japan" basically means that they want someone who already has a visa, or has demonstrated they can get a visa. Basically, someone who isn't going to need 3 months to go through the CoE process.

However, if you have the required skills, an employer may be willing to put in the hard work. The more qualifications and experience you have, the more employable you become.

Looks like experience is key then. I might find myself working for many years in my home country before I can make the big jump :(

That's alright, thank-you for all the help Dainichi Heater. Do you happen to work in Japan? Do you mind telling your story?

Experience is definitely important. The more experience you have, the fussier you can be about your job. You could come as a fresh graduate and try to find work here, but then you'd have to start trying to build experience here, and you may not get the job you'd ideally like.

For me, I have lived in Japan for about a decade. I work as an academic staff member at a large public university. I initially came to Japan as a researcher, but got a job teaching on an English medium degree program here. I never had any intention of working or settling in Japan, but in academia you take the opportunities that you find.

Oh wow, lucky you! Everything worked out nicely.

I can't wait until I arrive in Japan for the first time. I'm certain I will be in love with the country and atmosphere.

Thank-you for all your responses. Do you mind if I contact you through your profile if I ever have any more questions?

Japan is neither a heaven nor a hell. If you are from a first-world country, then I think you will find it pretty normal in most ways. For every good thing, there is some minor annoyance. I like living here, but not to say it's not without its challenges.

You are more than welcome to contact me, if you wish. I'm not sure I can be much help though - IT isn't my subject area. Really, I can only give general advice about employment, which would be equally true for other countries too.