Hoping to move to Japan

[Dotanbatan]

I am only 18, i have alot of learning to do.
I do NOT have life figured out, and for me to think i do would be stupid.
I am not a genius, life isn't going to magically fall into my lap and make me famous.
The ideas i come up with now are merely ideas i have now, they may change, they may not.
I do not fully understand the world nor do i know everything there is to know (i never will),
The most i can do for myself at the present moment is worry about finishing High School, getting done what i need done and look into ideas for the future.

Yes, you are very young Genevieve, but you are also approaching the planning of your future in the right way ... keep researching for yourself and also keep asking the opinions of others who have experience in areas you are interested in.

A lot of good advice has been given to you by some of the members of the forum, so please think carefully about what they said.

In relation to Japan, I would encourage you to complete your degree in the States and over the next few years visit Japan as often as your finances permit. Try to meet and talk with as many Japanese as you can, to improve your language and get to know the people a little better. Also try to speak personally to non-Japanese who are either living here now or have lived / worked in the country previously.

Good luck!

 

[Dotanbatan]

I then concluded that Japan was not the place for me. After having seen the dark side and possible difficulties, I totally shelved the idea and moved to my next job that had nothing to do with Japan/Japanese.

It was then that I started to miss Japan a little. I had traveled to quite a number of countries for both work and leisure but never felt the same way for the other places.

I made a decision to quit my job, pack up my bags, and bunk in with a friend in Japan. With a tourist visa I went through the terrible job search process here, finally "lived" in Japan and came to gripes with all the shortcomings and the other stuff that I gave up in my home country.

I never imagined that my moving to a different country could have taken so many years in the making. However, this assured me that I at least have the knowledge and experience to make the most informed choice.

It took me more than 12 years and I don't see why you'll need to be thinking that much at your age and stage in life. There is only so much that we can plan ahead for.

Like what many others have suggested, I highly recommend that you make your first literal step to Japan and experience it for yourself. It doesn't matter at this stage if its just a small step like a family holiday or a short solo trip.

All the best.

Hello Aspenx,
I`d like to ask you a personal question but understand if you don`t want to discuss the topic.

You mentioned that you have a Chinese background ... was this a factor in the "dark side of Japan" you saw and the "possible difficulties" you envisaged?

Also, as you decided to come back to live in Japan, what was it that changed your mind about the above?

 

[aspenx]

Hello Aspenx,
I`d like to ask you a personal question but understand if you don`t want to discuss the topic.

You mentioned that you have a Chinese background ... was this a factor in the "dark side of Japan" you saw and the "possible difficulties" you envisaged?

Also, as you decided to come back to live in Japan, what was it that changed your mind about the above?

Hello.

My ethnicity is a little complicated and it is really hard for most Japanese to understand. Fortunately, I look the part of a South-East Asian (where I am a citizen of one of the tinier countries) so it isn't all that related to having Chinese blood. The dark side that I encountered was largely due to my work. I was charged with a seemingly harmless project dealing with a certain potential Japanese client. The problem was simple. The Japanese company needed to outsource manufacturing to cut cost and localise their product to reach a more global client base (for which the non-Japanese company I worked for had the capability to do so). It was clearly a win-win situation for both sides and it was almost a closed deal for the management but the dynamics behind made it impossible. The bigotry and bias was just ridiculous.
This work then took a noticeable toll on my mental and physical health within that 2 months of dispatch in Japan. I realised that in many many ways, Japan was easily one of the most backward "developed countries" as I backed down from the challenge. It was just too much for me then, and the project became somewhat suspended internally. I still had to do "follow ups" whenever the Japanese side probed. Both sides "worked on it" for show. It was just one big nightmare.

Why I'm "back" is simply because I have gained more experience, and confidence. Also, I have come to accept that discrimination and marginalisation happens on a daily basis in every corner of the world. "The world" which we casually speak of is of course much wider than I have seen for myself. However, what mattered to me was finding the right little corner of "the world" for myself. Japan can be anything and everything, but the little corner I place myself out of choice now is fortunately closer to the right balance for me. I also feel that living overseas can only help me to grow only further as an individual and this corner of Japan just happens to look like the most comfortable place for me for now.

There are the other things that keep me attracted to Japan of course (the flora and fauna, great supermarkets, cameras and lenses at lower prices, other gadgets etc) but they'd likely never be strong enough reasons for me to want to stay/live in Japan. Unfortunately we spend so much time of our waking hours working that the job/work we will do in the target geographical location can impact us this much.

 

[tomoni]

hi I'm Genevieve, no this isn't the typical "I love manga and want to skip college to be an anime artist and move to Tokyo, Japan where all my magical dreams will come true". I'm a senior in high school pursuing a career in nuclear engineering/physics, this fall I will be attending Oklahoma University to study chemical energy engineering and Japanese studies. I like Japan as a country, that means history, social norms, traditions, culture and religion, I actually don't like anime very much (i'll read a little manga here and there but that's about it).
I don't plan on studying abroad until my junior year when i intend on study at Tokai University in Tokai, Ibaraki, japan. I have studied Japans social life for like four years and the government a year. I've looked some into getting a visa and ways to move there but i was wanting to know what i could do right now (besides saving money) to get a head start on moving? any tips would be highly welcome!

Hello genevievekogo:

You have an interesting post. I would not worry so much about all the potential negative things that may lurk in the future. If you are really set on going to Japan in your third year and want to prepare, in addition form all the many helpful comments about studying Japanese, etc., I would look into the actual university itself. (There are a few universities that are have "tokai" in their name- do you mean : http://www.u-tokai.ac.jp/international/campus/index.html this one?

I am curious why you chose this one in particular, but anyway, look for summer programs, especially JASSO sponsored internships. Many universities have international program and this is becoming a noes "refocus" for the ministry of ed (actually not formal name) so national universities in particular are offering more in this area.

look for ways you could get over to the university with financial; support from JASSO (use google please) - but form many programs your current university need an MOU/AOC with the university to be eligible (international cooperation agreement).

After you look about, if you have any questions, please post them here and I will see what I can do to help answer them

Cheers