You definitely have the right qualifications to teach in Japan.

I taught for 3 years in Japan on the JET Programme. But I taught in South Korea for a little over a year in a hagwon. This is similar to an eikaiwa so I can give you my experience on that.

If you have the time, I highly recommend that you apply for the JET Programme. There are so many positives about it in comparison to an eikaiwa. Typically, you work in the public school system, get higher pay, subsidized rent (I paid 10,000 yen which is about 100$ Canadian), orientation sessions (once at the start, and once during the year). This may have changed though. The other major benefit as a Canadian is paying taxes. Basically, you can be exempt from Canadian income tax for income earned under the JET Programme. That’s why (if you have the patience) to at least give JET a try. The only bad thing I hear is that they are accepting less people now, so it might harder to get in.

I recommend Japan over South Korea. That’s all that I can really compare with. An eikaiwa is really not a bad second option. I actually applied for Interac and was accepted… But I decided to wait for the JET programme.

Other options are Nova, Aeon, Berlitz, Gaba, ECC. I think Nova might’ve gone bankrupt or Aeon and can’t remember. Now, I didn’t teach in any of these, but my friends did. And a lot of them still enjoyed the experience. I think some of them found side tutoring jobs to make up for the lower pay.

As for the experience, I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world. It was the best decision I’ve ever made. The friends I made (Japanese and international)… The cultural experiences… The travel that I did inside and outside Japan…

Don’t listen to people saying that it’s a waste of 3 years because you can’t get a job coming back to Canada. That’s not true at all. These are transferable skills. I work in a professional office setting now and my co-workers love listening to my stories about Japan.

Please let me know if there’s any other questions. I’d be happy to answer them.