I was once passed over for a job and tried again 1.5 years later where they picked me.
They were very happy I applied again and sped the interview process to hire me after 2 interviews.
The first time, when I failed, I was told that I would not be a good fit "because I was in for the money only" (nevermind the fact that I specifically said I was less interested in the salary than in the overall atmosphere of the office).
After I joined, I was told that the real reason was that they wanted "a local" because the boss was worried a foreigner would not talk the language well enough (even though I took all the interviews in Japanese and had no issue communicating).
The second time, they took the boss out of the loop and were looking at competence and also that my Japanese was fine.
All that to repeat what's said in the conclusion of the article, don't hesitate applying again ;)
A London Web Developer. A lot of my professional experience is in digital agencies and I enjoy helping new front-end developers learn how to code websites.
It's funny how the law pushes hard for equal opportunities but companies are made of people, and people as individuals have prejudices that they bring to the hiring process. Companies will jump through hoops and use doublespeak to make sure they're not outright dismissing candidates because of their ethnicity or gender, but it's so blatant just by looking at their "our team" page on their website.
I am an enthusiastic front-end developer with more than 8 years of experience in London. I love anything interactive and UX is my top priority when it comes to coding, followed by good practices
Location
London
Education
Electrical and electronics engineering at City university, 2:1
For the job itself, I don't think it would help much.
It would depend on the company and the expected level of communication with the teams.
When I came to Japan, I knew only the very basics (self-introduction, ordering at restaurants, and not much else) and it was fine but now, many companies ask for being at least able to discuss. Many even ask for business level ...
I'd say if you are looking for coming here, don't let the lack of good Japanese stop you from applying and see from there.
However, you may need to be in the country already or your resume will just be skipped.
I also recommend using a recruiting company, there are many you can register online.
I am an enthusiastic front-end developer with more than 8 years of experience in London. I love anything interactive and UX is my top priority when it comes to coding, followed by good practices
Location
London
Education
Electrical and electronics engineering at City university, 2:1
That's great to hear thanks, I had the impression that to work on any Japanese company you had to be fluent and polite in Japanese, I'm not going to Japan any time soon, but is good advice.
As a note, I know many foreigners who've been here a long time (one has been there for 35 years, married to a Japanese woman and with kids) and don't speak Japanese so it's possible to get by without it, at least in Tokyo ;)
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I was once passed over for a job and tried again 1.5 years later where they picked me.
They were very happy I applied again and sped the interview process to hire me after 2 interviews.
The first time, when I failed, I was told that I would not be a good fit "because I was in for the money only" (nevermind the fact that I specifically said I was less interested in the salary than in the overall atmosphere of the office).
After I joined, I was told that the real reason was that they wanted "a local" because the boss was worried a foreigner would not talk the language well enough (even though I took all the interviews in Japanese and had no issue communicating).
The second time, they took the boss out of the loop and were looking at competence and also that my Japanese was fine.
All that to repeat what's said in the conclusion of the article, don't hesitate applying again ;)
It's funny how the law pushes hard for equal opportunities but companies are made of people, and people as individuals have prejudices that they bring to the hiring process. Companies will jump through hoops and use doublespeak to make sure they're not outright dismissing candidates because of their ethnicity or gender, but it's so blatant just by looking at their "our team" page on their website.
do you feel like knowing good Japanese is essential for a programming job in Japan?
For the job itself, I don't think it would help much.
It would depend on the company and the expected level of communication with the teams.
When I came to Japan, I knew only the very basics (self-introduction, ordering at restaurants, and not much else) and it was fine but now, many companies ask for being at least able to discuss. Many even ask for business level ...
I'd say if you are looking for coming here, don't let the lack of good Japanese stop you from applying and see from there.
However, you may need to be in the country already or your resume will just be skipped.
I also recommend using a recruiting company, there are many you can register online.
That's great to hear thanks, I had the impression that to work on any Japanese company you had to be fluent and polite in Japanese, I'm not going to Japan any time soon, but is good advice.
As a note, I know many foreigners who've been here a long time (one has been there for 35 years, married to a Japanese woman and with kids) and don't speak Japanese so it's possible to get by without it, at least in Tokyo ;)