Studying for Bachelor’s Degree in Japan

I live in the US and am working on my A.S. degree. I read that a B.S. is required for a work visa/teaching position. Ideally, I want to move to and live in Japan as soon as possible. I have considered studying overseas after I obtain my A.S. However, I am having a hard time planning this out. I would like to teach ,translate, etc... English or Japanese.

The only US based school I can find is Temple University in Tokyo. As far as I know this would be the only way to obtain an actual B.S. degree in Japan. The big problems with this school is it's very expensive and I don't like some of the details in their programs. I have looked into Japanese schools but it's just not possible to raise my Japanese proficiency high enough to enroll in 2 years.

I have considered a Japanese language school but most of them don't offer any kind of "degree." Therefore, I don't think I would be allowed to stay in Japan on a work visa as an English or Japanese teacher.

I'm at a loss on how to proceed. I have scoured the net for hours upon hours but I can't seem to find anything worthwhile. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Finish your degree in the US then come to Japan on with a work visa teaching english or whatever, though looking at the state of NOVA right now, teaching english in Japan is not what it used to be like back in the 80s or 1990s, more markets are now opening up in other parts of Asia such as Korea or even China.

Your best option really is to stay in the US until you complete your Bachelor's degree. As John said, if Nova implodes (seems very likely) there will be several thousand unemployed teachers on the market for the next 6 months or so and finding a job will be much harder than usual due to the competition from those ex-Nova teachers who already have visas and some Japan experience.

I have heard that right now there are often more than a thousand applicants for each job advertised on the net due to all the Nova teachers wanting to jump ship.

Once you have your BS it should have settled down a bit in the job market here. I know you want to get here as soon as possible, I was exactly the same at your age, but I finished my degree and it was the best possible thing I could have done.

Of course if you do have the opportunity to complete your degree here then go for it, but your options are fairly limited I believe.

I have considered a Japanese language school but most of them don't offer any kind of "degree." Therefore, I don't think I would be allowed to stay in Japan on a work visa as an English or Japanese teacher.

Japanese language schools are really language schools, nothing you get any degree for. Those are for people who want to come for a year or two to Japan solely for the purpose of studying the language, some of them might plan to enroll in a Japanese university later.

If you come to attend one of those language schools, you will be coming under "pre-college" or "student visa," under which (with some restrictions) you can work part-time, but not full time.

So... the best thing for you is to finish your degree in the US (possibly go for a university that provides a degree course in Japanese after your A. S.?), then come to Japan. Because either a bachelor's degree or 5, 10 years of work experience in a relevant field is an immigration requirement for an employer to sponsor you for your work-permitting visa, there is no way getting around it if you want to find full-time work in Japan.