TLDR; This blog post chronicles my decision to quit my job in Singapore at Twitter and move to Japan to study and work in advertising. The post explains why Japan was chosen over other locations, and shows my thought process. The post also highlights the J-Find visa for graduates from top foreign universities who can stay in Japan for an extended period while searching for employment.
👋 Introduction
Welcome to my blog "TOKYO BOUND". I'm Nicole, and I'm embarking on a non-conventional journey to study in Tokyo, Japan. In this introductory post, I'll provide some context for my decision and highlight some considerations for those who are thinking about studying abroad.
I decided to quit my job in Singapore to challenge myself to work in a new environment and learn a new language. In Tokyo, I'll be immersing myself in Japanese culture while studying at a Japanese language school. My goal is to become proficient in the language, gain a unique educational experience, and take a career break.
If you’re planning to intern abroad, there are considerations to take, but overall, an amazing valuable experience as shared by my friend, Nigel.
If you're planning to study abroad, you might be wondering how to choose the right school, location, and curriculum. You might also be thinking about budgeting and reading student reviews to make informed decisions. Through my blog posts, I hope to share my experience and insights on these topics.
So, join me on my journey to Tokyo, and let's explore the challenges and opportunities of studying abroad together!
🥲 Bye Twitter: I quit my job
When I first started working, I never would have imagined that just 2.5 years later, I would be leaving. It was truly the best corporate community I could have asked for.
However, when the company was taken over by Elon Musk, I found myself in a situation where I could no longer recognize the company that had hired me. I was no longer working on the same projects or gaining the necessary skills I needed for my professional growth.
The amazing team i was leaving behind
The hostile takeover also affected my confidence in rebuilding many of the opportunities and relationships I had built with my global stakeholders. Working overseas was very important to me, and the company had previously been open to providing such opportunities. However, I could no longer see this happening.
During my university years, I did not have the opportunity to attend an exchange school, so I wanted to know what it was like to study and work abroad. I was advised by many expat colleagues to do so before turning 30, and I am currently 26, so I still have good health and my family is in good standing. Even if I were to try and fail, I could always head back to Singapore to find another job.
🌸 Hello Tokyo: I chose to study
“Why Japan of all places?”
my first autumn experience @ SHOWA kinen park (昭和記念公園) with my TOKYO TEAM MATES
My other CHOICES
I was considering China, Japan and South Korea. If you work in sales/management related roles in Singapore, the Greater China region is very important and I believe it is best to improve my business Chinese speaking abilities. For the job, I went for additional classes to deliver webinars to Chinese agencies dealing with the Japan market. Sadly, I cut the option as China showed no signs of opening up due to the pandemic.
My choice to head to Korea and Japan were on equal standing as I have interest in both K-pop/K-drama and Anime/J-Pop. Additionally, I have also picked up elementary-levels of both languages in school. My experience with both sales teams from work was also great so I had a tough time narrowing down which I would like to go for.
The final push deciding Japan over Korea was - community.
Colleagues aside, I do not have a lot of friends based out of Singapore. The only friends, who knew my family as well, were based in Tokyo, and that gave me reassurance to go.
If you are also deciding on which country to go, it is always good to go to a place where at least you know one or two people. It is important to have a community in case of emergencies like health reasons.
There were other reasons for Japan as well.
During my work, I had the chance to support the Japan market, where I interacted with a lot of colleagues based in Tokyo. The advertising industry and audience behaviour was interesting and fascinating to me, because it is very different from the SEA market, and China market I was working with.
Japan’s user behaviour and interest is unique from the rest of the world. And is filled with vibrant energy in its advertisements. Being in the industry, it was crucial for me to understand the language since it is the key medium in communicating with the audience.
For me, I HAD to quit and study.
I had some questions if I could find a job there without quitting. Meaning, getting a work visa while studying night classes. I do know of peers who carved an opportunity for themselves with their managers.
So, it is possible.
However, due to my work situation, it was very hard to make it happen. I spoke to many leaders to see if there was a possibility. With work visa option closed, my other options were the new J-Find visa, and the student visa.
NO J-FIND VISA FOR ME
Effective in April 2023, Japan released two new visas “J-Skip” and “J-Find”. Focusing on J-Find, graduates from top foreign universities who can stay in Japan for an extended period of two years while searching for employment. To be eligible for J-Find, applicants must have graduated from an institution within the top 100 of at least two global university rankings within the last five years and have at least ¥200,000 ($1,480) upon arrival in Japan.
If you are from National University of Singapore (NUS) or Nanyang Technological University (NTU), you DO qualify for the J-Find visa.
Unfortunately, Singapore Management University (the university I attended) was not ranked, and thus I was not eligible for the visa. However, it would still be a challenge for me to find a job without the required Japanese proficiency level. Hence, for my one-year, I would be on a student visa.
With a student visa, I am unable to work full-time but only part-time with a limit of 28 hours per week. I’ll detail this more in my later post.
Most jobs require business-level proficiency in Japanese
You might have come across some TikTok videos (like Jervis) showcasing their life as they moved from Singapore to Tokyo. Chances are, they are software engineering or other forms of coding-related jobs.
My interest, evident from my projects, was in advertising and communicating the value of a good/product to the audience. Hence, it was still good for me to learn the language. I have learnt elementary-level in the past, but my current Japanese standing is only about JLPT N5/N4. To work, you generally require a N2 and above.
The only kind of jobs available to foreigners without JLPT is software engineering. Which to me, is still a language. Hence, you either got to know a coding language, or the Japanese language.
I am an experential learner
I went to different language schools in Singapore to pick it up: Bunka Language School (2011), my university course in 2020, Tomo Japanese Language (2021) and Attain Online Japanese Language School (2022).
However, I was still unable to properly and steadily improve due to many distractions around me: my environment, my examinations, my job, etc. So I thought it would be best to take this one year break to just focus on being great at the language.
✨ TOKYO BOUND blog's purpose
When I shared my desires to those around me, I was surprised to have immense support but also points of considerations from concerned friends. This highlighted to me, maybe others do want to do the same, but they just do not dare to. I hope to inspire and provide hope to those who do eventually want to walk down the same path.
Even for myself, I gained strength to continue on after reading Sheyx’s blog. She also quit her full-time job in Singapore and chose to study for a year at Waseda and a language school.
Leaving a stable job to pursue my dreams of studying abroad in Tokyo was not an easy decision.
But I had to consider several factors such as school selection, curriculum, location, planning, and budgeting. While it can be challenging to quit your job and start anew, I believe that investing in yourself and taking a career break to explore new opportunities can be a life-changing decision.
My next post, I aim to detail my selection process and factors to consider when finding a suitable school. At the time of writing, I am still waiting for the results of my application.
See you in the next post!