Hi,

I am leaving my permenent full time job as looking for a career change but am not 100% what to do having only done that since graduating. I need some time out and one thing that I always wanted to do at various points over the last 8 years was to teach English abroad, specifically in Japan.

I covered lingusitics and speech as part of my degree and get a real buzz from helping others, and Japan as a country completely fascinates me so to be able to go and teach over there really appeals to me. As I'm now at a 'cross roads' in my life, so to speak, it seems as though it could be a good time for me to finally pursue my ambition.

I have been on a number of websites to try and find out more information however are some questions I have not been able to have had answered and would be grateful if anyone with any experience of TEFL in Japan could drop a note back with your thoughts.

Applying - better to go with one of the 'big 4' rather than some of the smaller ones? (I have seen the latter advertising on some of the TEFL Japan websites out there, they do seem to offer good salary and benefits though?

Interviewing for a job - how does this happen? My thoughts are if I would need to be in Japan to interview in person for every job this could get quite costly?

Accommodation - some provide some don't, is it advisable to choose a job with one of the schools that find you accommodation, even if it is slightly more expensive?

Japanese language lessons - some provide, some don't; how beneficial is it to learn conversational Japanese?

Working hours - I presumed between 8 - 6pm however some such as GEOS are 12-9 pm is this typical as I would probably prefer to work during the day?

Involvement in activities outside of classroom - typically what sort of things does this involve and how much time would this take up? Is it included in your contracted hours?

Any general advice when looking to apply to a school/job would also be greatly appreciated, things to look out for, take into consideration etc.

Many thanks,

S