I hope a bunch of you are around until the summer...I'm planning on a trip there.

Another quick question. How are job prospects in STEM fields like Engineering in Japan right now? Population decline and all that.

Quote: (02-19-2014 05:57 PM)hwuzhere Wrote:  

Another quick question. How are job prospects in STEM fields like Engineering in Japan right now? Population decline and all that.

How's your Japanese? If you can pass the N1 JLPT, and have STEM credentials and/or experience, you will be able to find opportunities in Japan.

I'm an incoming college student who is planning to take 4 years of Japanese. I'm just trying to find out if I'll be able to find long term prospects there as a future expat. If Japan doesn't have anything yet I might as well learn Russian and go for an oil job there before learning Japanese and visiting Japan.

Quote: (02-19-2014 08:07 PM)hwuzhere Wrote:  

I'm an incoming college student who is planning to take 4 years of Japanese. I'm just trying to find out if I'll be able to find long term prospects there as a future expat. If Japan doesn't have anything yet I might as well learn Russian and go for an oil job there before learning Japanese and visiting Japan.

As you know, Japan's demographics means it isn't one of the top places to go for bright, ambitious people. However, I wouldn't write off Japan, as it is still the No.3 economy in the world, and has enormous social capital. There will always be a place for people who have real-world skills and can act as bridges between Japan and the rest of the world. If you end up loving Japan, and learning the language well, you can build a future there, no question. But as a young guy with options, you would need to have that a love of Japan. Otherwise, if you are determined to be work internationally why not invest yourself in one of the more obviously booming economies, like China.

Still, I'd much rather live in Japan than anywhere else in Asia, for the quality of life and the women. You might end up feeling the same way.

Side note: if you have the English, Japanese and Chinese languages, the world is your oyster. English plus Japanese plus real skills is also good, but in my opinion, you will need to work your way in there if you want to be settle in Japan as more than just an oddball salaryman with white skin.

Nah just being on this forum is enough proof that in not gonna be the average joe. Planning to get a mastery of Russian and Japanese as fast as I can then probably Chinese. But what do you mean by "settle in there"?

Quote: (02-19-2014 08:40 PM)hwuzhere Wrote:  

Planning to get a mastery of Russian and Japanese as fast as I can then probably Chinese.

If you master Russian, Japanese and Chinese as an adult learner, you definitely won't be the average Joe. I'll probably be coming to you for tips. Good luck!

Thanks mate. Wish you luck too in whatever you do. It's a long term investment and I hope I can stick with it.

Quote: (02-19-2014 08:40 PM)hwuzhere Wrote:  

Nah just being on this forum is enough proof that in not gonna be the average joe. Planning to get a mastery of Russian and Japanese as fast as I can then probably Chinese. But what do you mean by "settle in there"?

If by master, you mean professional competency in all three languages, then lol. You'd be far above average to attain that in one. Not trying to be negative here but realistic. Becoming conversational in a few languages is easy but mastery requires years in country.

Well I want mastery in Russian due to family heritage as an obligation(girls are a secondary thought), and Japanese because I am honestly interested in the country. Conversational Chinese is fine by me honestly. The other two are more or less my focus. Personally I think I should PM you guys because I don't want to hijack another dude's game thread.

Quote: (02-19-2014 09:42 PM)hwuzhere Wrote:  

Well I want mastery in Russian due to family heritage as an obligation(girls are a secondary thought), and Japanese because I am honestly interested in the country. Conversational Chinese is fine by me honestly. The other two are more or less my focus. Personally I think I should PM you guys because I don't want to hijack another dude's game thread.

You're good. This is the Travel section. Just keep it vaguely Japan related, I guess.

The other guys are right. Japan is on a long, slow decline, but there are more than enough opportunities for someone with real skills. Japanese companies tend to treat their employees very well, too (though this is apparently changing).

However... I think it takes a special kind of person to be here for a long time. You have to really, really love Japanese culture or you have to be the kind of person who can let a lot of shit roll off their back. It's amazingly livable and great for game, but there's a lot of fucked up shit just beneath the surface.

As a kid in Detroit I understand the seedy underground and my family immigrated to the States so even being half-Turkish I was use to the racism. I've also heard a lot about the darker social parts from a couple of close friends who lived there for a while. I like the culture and vividly remember the one night I stopped over in Tokyo on a plane ride. Kinda been focused on living in Japan since.

Quote: (02-19-2014 08:37 PM)RawGod Wrote:  

As you know, Japan's demographics means it isn't one of the top places to go for bright, ambitious people. However, I wouldn't write off Japan, as it is still the No.3 economy in the world, and has enormous social capital. There will always be a place for people who have real-world skills and can act as bridges between Japan and the rest of the world. If you end up loving Japan, and learning the language well, you can build a future there, no question. But as a young guy with options, you would need to have that a love of Japan. Otherwise, if you are determined to be work internationally why not invest yourself in one of the more obviously booming economies, like China.

Still, I'd much rather live in Japan than anywhere else in Asia, for the quality of life and the women. You might end up feeling the same way.

Side note: if you have the English, Japanese and Chinese languages, the world is your oyster. English plus Japanese plus real skills is also good, but in my opinion, you will need to work your way in there if you want to be settle in Japan as more than just an oddball salaryman with white skin.

I second this. Japan is interesting, no doubt, but challenging to be accepted. You will always be a foreigner and seen with suspicion.

Having lived in both China and Japan I care more for Japan. Cleaner, more civilized, rule of law is more prevalent, women are more feminine. Chinese dames are more practical and blunt, sometimes to the point of curt.
Also, food is cleaner, I got sick in China fairly often (and that is coming from someone that grew up in the 3rd world).

BTW seems that HK has surpassed Tokyo. With the stiff market regulations and lack of capital and trust for entrepreneurs in JP, I am not surprised at all.

And in terms of job opportunities? Mor e in the science field no?

Quote: (02-21-2014 12:27 PM)LEMONed IScream Wrote:  

And in terms of job opportunities? Mor e in the science field no?

Try Gaijinpot, but mostly you'll find ESL teachign jobs, and those STEM jobs require at least business level Japanese.

The one negative point for Japan is its work culture, at least for businessmen staying at the office till evening hours, because you have to be there as long "sensei"/boss is there. Or sleeping at the desk is not unheard of. Afterwork heavy drinking...........

I dont know if this is common in technical fields of employment too.

Quote: (02-22-2014 05:33 AM)Fortitudinal Wrote:  

Quote: (02-21-2014 12:27 PM)LEMONed IScream Wrote:  

And in terms of job opportunities? Mor e in the science field no?

Try Gaijinpot, but mostly you'll find ESL teachign jobs, and those STEM jobs require at least business level Japanese.

A lot of the companies posting job offers on Gaijinpot state explicitly that they will only accept applicants currently living in Japan.

A friend of mine said they even required fluent japanese for the language teaching jobs sometimes!

But anyway, safe to say it's not exactly the best place for opportunities right now.. (and I suppose it hasn't been in the past few years too)

Awesome thread guys! I have always been fascinated by Japan and the culture and later, when I started traveling, J women. I fell totally in love with the pleas when I was in Tokyo. One my dreams is to live in Japan in the near future. I would love to invest 2-3 years there and make Japanese my 7th language.

I'm not looking to teach English there but would rather take a uni course on the language and or culture. Is it easy to get a one year education visa like you would in Thailand by simply enrolling into a Thai language course. Is there such a thing in Japan? How about cultural visas?

From what I heard from people I know who ,I've and or been there and from what I saw and experienced in Tokyo, a base budget of about 5k/month would be required to have a decent lifestyle there. Would you Jan experts agree with that figure? If not, what would you consider to be a good amount to shoot for?

How hairy are Japanese girls around their jade temple these days? Do they groom?

Ahgah Vicious, I think the full bush is still the standard thing, although with time this may decrease, also I think that the "groupie" girls normally chasing the gaijin types do shave because they know we're used to that, while jap guys aren't that much, even so it must be easy to convince them.

Quote: (02-22-2014 03:41 PM)Vicious Wrote:  

How hairy are Japanese girls around their jade temple these days? Do they groom?

Quote: (02-22-2014 12:52 PM)Vacancier Permanent Wrote:  

From what I heard from people I know who ,I've and or been there and from what I saw and experienced in Tokyo, a base budget of about 5k/month would be required to have a decent lifestyle there. Would you Jan experts agree with that figure? If not, what would you consider to be a good amount to shoot for?

5k/month in Japan will enable you with an opulent lifestyle. If you want to be able to go out drinking 4x/week, including decent clubs, and have a basic 1br/studio reasonably close (20 minutes?) to western/southern Tokyo (the more entertainment-oriented parts of Tokyo), 3k/month should be pretty much sufficient.

Guess I should start saving now. Put together a travel fund over 4 of years of college $20 per paycheck should be good enough. Any of you guys have any experiences with slowly building up a travel fund?

Quote: (02-22-2014 03:41 PM)Vicious Wrote:  

How hairy are Japanese girls around their jade temple these days? Do they groom?

All the Japanese girls (as well as Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and any other East Asian nationality) I've been with here have had the full bush. They will practically always shave their legs and armpits, though.

When I mentioned this to the Japanese girl I was seeing the other week, she said shaving your groin is associated with prostitutes (at least that's what I think she said; the word she used was "風俗女fuuzoku-jo", something I couldn't find in the dictionary, but based on the context and references to the redlight district here in Osaka, that's what it sounded like). She said these women all shaved.

What she also mentioned was that nearly all Japanese guys visit prostitutes (around her age, which is 26, she said about 90%). She also mentioned that many of the girls working there were around 15 years old. "Holy shit!" I thought. She just sort of shrugged it off.

Quote: (02-22-2014 11:57 AM)LEMONed IScream Wrote:  

A friend of mine said they even required fluent japanese for the language teaching jobs sometimes!

It's very rare for English schools here to require employees to be fluent in Japanese. Most ads will state that basic Japanese is a plus, but not a requirement.

Quote: (02-19-2014 10:09 PM)Skotch Wrote:  

Quote: (02-19-2014 09:42 PM)hwuzhere Wrote:  

Well I want mastery in Russian due to family heritage as an obligation(girls are a secondary thought), and Japanese because I am honestly interested in the country. Conversational Chinese is fine by me honestly. The other two are more or less my focus. Personally I think I should PM you guys because I don't want to hijack another dude's game thread.

You're good. This is the Travel section. Just keep it vaguely Japan related, I guess.

The other guys are right. Japan is on a long, slow decline, but there are more than enough opportunities for someone with real skills. Japanese companies tend to treat their employees very well, too (though this is apparently changing).

However... I think it takes a special kind of person to be here for a long time. You have to really, really love Japanese culture or you have to be the kind of person who can let a lot of shit roll off their back. It's amazingly livable and great for game, but there's a lot of fucked up shit just beneath the surface.

Pretty much this, You really have to take some time out and travel to SEA during vacations Or else the fucked up parts of the place will eventually get to you.

Quote: (02-22-2014 10:11 PM)Sargon of Akkad Wrote:  

Quote: (02-22-2014 03:41 PM)Vicious Wrote:  

How hairy are Japanese girls around their jade temple these days? Do they groom?

What she also mentioned was that nearly all Japanese guys visit prostitutes (around her age, which is 26, she said about 90%). She also mentioned that many of the girls working there were around 15 years old. "Holy shit!" I thought. She just sort of shrugged it off.

Wow I didnt know that girlls shaving their bush meant prostitues. . .I was with one woman who had her bush LAZERED off! makes me think heh.

I meant one of these women before, she was jsut turning 20, and mentioned to me that she was a "Kabajo" (hostess. . .but of course these women get into the other part of that as well. . .) and she had been doing that for 3-4 years. I mean yeah, the fact that most .. if not All Japanese men see prostitutes regularly is pretty obvious once you've stayed there for any long period of time/gotten to know people

I've never done anythign like that (didn't need to) but I have gotten myself in some pretty crazy/aweosme situations that are pretty unbelievable to pretty much everyone that would hear it, so yeah. . .a LOT of things about Japan are just hidden from the western eye.

They are really good at putting up Facades, and hiding all the real shit that goes on there.

Basically, Japan is one of the most Red Pill countries on Earth, but they just have the face of blue pill, just for show to the international community. Most of that weird stuff you see on youtube, or articles about "omegas" or whatever is just a super small portion of society. definately does not reflect what's really going on there. (except for the population decline, but thats another supre large topic altogether)

Quote: (02-22-2014 08:00 AM)Sargon of Akkad Wrote:  

A lot of the companies posting job offers on Gaijinpot state explicitly that they will only accept applicants currently living in Japan.

http://www.daijob.com/

This site is orders of Magnitude better than Gaijinpot.

Also the large recruitment companies are big there, Like Robert half/ Robert Walters etc. . .SO if you have the skills (IT, Finance) or Language skills, or both, you should be fine.

Quote: (02-22-2014 06:38 AM)void Wrote:  

The one negative point for Japan is its work culture, at least for businessmen staying at the office till evening hours, because you have to be there as long "sensei"/boss is there. Or sleeping at the desk is not unheard of. Afterwork heavy drinking...........

I dont know if this is common in technical fields of employment too.

If you work for a western company there, you don't have to deal with this. But to get those jobs, you need to have some great IT skills or Language skills, or work in Finance with the banks there. (See above)