ESL Jobs in Japan - Tokyo

When it comes to finding ESL jobs in Japan or more specifically in the belly of the biggest beast, Tokyo, a university degree and ESL teaching certification makes finding work much easier. Let's take a look at shear scale. Just consider this ... just for starters mind you.

ESL Jobs in Japan - Tokyo
Got Your TEFL Certificate? Okay Let's Get Started With the Most Common First Stop "Eikaiwa".

Let's start sizing up Tokyo by taking a quick peek at the private teaching sector and a common stopping ground for those knocking out a gap year as well as those who just have a scratch that needs to be itched -  teaching ESL in Japan via eikaiwa or private conversations schools.

Next up - ECC
In the Kanto region there are 62 schools and in Tokyo prefecture alone ECC has amassed 32 schools.

Next up - Aeon
The single largest shopping mall developer in Japan. Aeon Group controls 149 schools in the Kanto region. We counted up 41 private English schools in Tokyo on their corporate site.

Next up - Berlitz
Benesse's baby has 28 English language schools in Tokyo alone. A salary comparison of "The Bad Boys of Eikaiwa" here.

Next up - Nova 
Nova is now Nova Holdings - it got gobbled up by G. Communications but claims to have 76 branches in the Kanto / Tokyo area.

Geos is M.I.A . Bankruptcy is a bummer.

NEXT UP - Semi-Big Kids
Yes, that wonderful age when you don't know if you are coming or going. Junior high school. In Tokyo, in the Private sector, they have 180 and a surprising 637 in the public area according to The Ministry of Education.

NEXT UP  - Big Kids
You'd be surprised at what  you can find when you dig around a bit. We dug up 237 private high schools in Tokyo alone. 203 public high schools. So these are typically assistant language teacher jobs or ALT jobs as they are called. More here.

NEXT UP -  Even Bigger Kids
Hmmm.. we are leaving something out I think. Oh.. And then there are the universities. In the  public sector, 12  of them we dug out of Monbushokagakusho's site. All those desks and kids needing education. Then there is the private sector. In there we have 125 private universities in Tokyo.

Hold Your Horses Tony as the Point be a Comin'...

I still feel like I am forgetting something...let me see...  Oh yeah, the raging massive private sector of small & big English schools too many to count probably. These are comprised of medium to smaller size chain schools a little digging and you'll come up with names like Saxony Court, WinBe, KidsDuo, Heart English School, Amity etc. These outfits pretty much recruit throughout the year adding yet more push and allure to the big-time pull power of Tokyo.

I  still feel like a piece of the puzzle is left out. Umm... 51 of the Fortune Global 500 companies set up shop here too. Smells like corporate teaching gigs to me - some of the nicest and highest paying ESL jobs in Japan.

On top of that the hundreds or thousands of individuals  that do not belong to this massive list above that study English. 36 million people. Most of them all conveniently packed into 5,000 square miles. (The Tokyo metropolitan area.)

An ESL teacher's dream. If you are looking for maximized job density per square millimeter and you are thinking of Tokyo, I think you found the right place to start.

Folks...It's tough not to find work here. Provided of course you got the basic requirements met.

They call New York the city that never sleeps, they should call Tokyo the city that never stops re-inventing itself.

From Harajuku the mother of the twisted fashion sense that used to be a defining characteristic of the area 20 years ago or so to the mind-numbing neon electronic gadgetry of Akihabara to a place where piles of ESL teachers  call home - Roppongi, Tokyo has something to offer anyone looking for teaching work in Japan.

Tokyo tourism video. Here is a nice video of 25 super fun, delicious and entertaining things to do in Tokyo covering restaurants, parks, shopping you name it. This video will help you get a pretty good feel about the city and what it offers.

Mixed with more kinds of food to sample and restaurants to dine in then your teacher salary could ever endure, Tokyo is a favorite spot for both seasoned ESL teachers and the never ending flock of  newbies armed with teaching certificates flying into Tokyo International day in and day out.

Salary wise, Tokyo ranks as the highest in Japan. But don't let recruiters blow any smoke up your %#$ with these fancy facts. That number is conveniently off set with a corresponding  higher cost of living to make it all a wash. But definitely outranking other common ESL hot spots like Seoul, China and Hong Kong. Teachers with some teaching qualifications line up work even faster.

Get TEFL Certified. Get Out of the Rut. Get on a Plane.

Your average teacher lives fairly comfortably and can usually save in the neighborhood of $500 to $600 dollars a month. More here.

So if you are looking for ESL jobs in Japan, you might put Tokyo on your short list and give it a shot. We post jobs from all over Japan on our own teaching jobs abroad page as well.

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