How did you study Japanese?

As the international students around me are saying, the Japanese learned from books is different from the Japanese actually used! At first, I couldn’t make myself understood at all. There are two points to improve your Japanese. First, you should have a lot of conversation with Japanese people. For this, I had a part-time job and worked as a volunteer. I worked mainly at restaurants, and I also worked as an interpreter and a translator after my Japanese improved. Secondly I used newspapers and TV. Beyond the Japanese language itself, I was able to deepen my understanding of the Japanese economy and the society in general through newspapers, and the culture and Japanese ways of thinking through TV. After approximately one year, I didn’t feel any inconvenience in shopping here anymore.

What did you use to gather information

I used Japanese newspapers, companies’ joint information sessions, the career center and job hunting sites. Especially, the career center was a great help. First, I visited there to get the information on internship when I was in my third year. But, I visited there often during my job hunting period. There were not many chances of interaction among international students in my university. I felt blessed by the existence of the career center because I was able to consult them freely. Unfortunately, other international students were rarely visiting there. I felt they are wasting a valuable resource.

What were the difficult matters in your job hunting?

One of them was to find a company which would suit myself for what I want to do. I always wanted to contribute both my country and Japan. Through my job hunting, I have found there are not many companies where foreign employees can take an active part even though many Japanese companies approach overseas markets. For example, I have heard the reasons why they employ foreign people, and they mostly say that it would promote diversity which would lead to new developments. However, the vision they have is very ambiguous, and many companies just want foreign employees in the workplace. I couldn’t see any concrete plans how they are going to utilize foreign employees. In fact, the first company I worked for was one of those with this pattern and I resigned eventually. It should be ideal that you could imagine how you could work there from the beginning; but, it is difficult. So, you should try to confirm that how the company makes good use of foreign employees in a concrete manner.

Another one is an interview. Even I knew I should be able to tell my thoughts concisely, I got tense at the beginning. Through many interviews, I got used to it and grew confidence in my speaking. For that, I had mock interviews in the career center and practiced a lot through simulations in front of the mirror by asking myself imaginable questions

What kind of troubles did you have in written tests, entry sheets and interviews?
What did you do to overcome those troubles?

I started studying from books in my third year since I heard written tests are difficult even for Japanese students. When I had some difficulties, I consulted with the teacher for small study groups and reviewed them repeatedly. Regarding an interview, it is the best to get used to it through experiences. In the university, there are some lectures on business manners and Japanese honorific expressions, but it was not required so strictly for foreign students to use right honorific expressions. It is more important that you should be able to clearly tell the other party what you want to say when you are nervous.

You should prepare for writing entry sheets at an early stage by making a template for your self -promotion since you can easily apply it to real ones. Career center personnel will correct it for you. I was involved in an employment process in the previous company, and I would say through my experience that it is the key to make it simple and concise. It would be rated highly if you write it logically in the following order: conclusion→ reasons→ episodes→ conclusion.

Why did you want to work for the company?
What appealing points do you think led the company to give you an unofficial job offer?

The company expanded its business to Vietnam; therefore, I thought I could utilize my strengths. Since it is a trading company with a wide network, I had an expectation that I could challenge various work such as international and domestic sales activities. Regarding the unofficial job offer, the president told me that I looked like a person who always acts positively after I started working there; I might have given that kind of impression in the interview. During the interview, I tried to be myself and talked plainly without embellishment.

Please tell me the benefits and difficulties of working for a Japanese company.

Being an adult is different from being a student. Most international students are busy with their part-time jobs and it was financially difficult time. But, thinking about it now, it was still an easygoing life. (laughter) I now feel more responsible and serious at my work, which means it is mentally hard. But, I feel more deeply involved in Japanese society than when I was a student, which I think is the benefit of working in Japan. Another hard part is the relationship with my boss and colleagues outside of work. It is called “reading the air” which means you must be sensitive enough to respond to the situation, atmosphere, relationships, etc. in various occasions. I still have difficulties in choosing the right timing to speak and deciding whether something should be reported to my boss or not.

Including me, international students who want to work for a Japanese company tend to avoid companies which have a lot of foreign employees. The reason for this trend is that they are thinking that it would be difficult to learn Japanese ways of thinking at the place where a large foreign community exists. But, when I looked into a company with only one foreign employee, I found that there was no career path model for foreign employees. I have chosen a company which has already established its business in Vietnam for more than 40 years, and many foreign employees are working there. I would like to advise you that you should choose a company which suites you since whether it is suitable or not is different depending on you personally.

Please give a message to international students who are trying to get a job in Japan.

In any interview, you will be asked about your reason to work for the company. And, in many cases, as a question for foreigners, you are asked “What do you think you will be doing after 10 years?”, “Why did you choose Japan rather than China or Korea?” The reason for asking about “10 years later” is that I think they want to know how long you intend to stay in the company. So, it is better if you could tell them about a clear view of your future career path.

There is much hard work, but you should act positively rather than being worried. Self-analysis and industry research are quite important. The judgement tools on the internet are very useful for self-analysis, and you can investigate about industry research through joint information sessions and company websites. I really recommend to get support from your career center, and not be troubled alone. Please overcome the difficulties by wisely taking some time to relax and relieve stress. In my case, I took a walk or jog in the park for a change since physical exercise became a good refreshment