ahochaude wrote:

And even if I do find work in Japan (in which I'm qualified enough for), would it help my resume here in America?

It could help you find work with multinational companies, especially the ones with an office in Japan. Since you are fluent in both Japanese and English, that should be an advantage.

dochira wrote:

It could help you find work with multinational companies, especially the ones with an office in Japan. Since you are fluent in both Japanese and English, that should be an advantage.

One thing I forgot to mention is that I don't have a college degree. A big ' X ' in Japan.
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ahochaude wrote:

One thing I forgot to mention is that I don't have a college degree. A big ' X ' in Japan.

Are there any night classes on the island? Then again, with your busy work schedule, that might not work out.

dochira wrote:

Are there any night classes on the island? Then again, with your busy work schedule, that might not work out.

Night classes, there are. But my schedule won't allow it. And if I quit anymore jobs, it's either back to parents' house or living in a cardboard box in Waikiki..
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ahochaude wrote:

Night classes, there are. But my schedule won't allow it. And if I quit anymore jobs, it's either back to parents' house or living in a cardboard box in Waikiki..

I'd feed you if I saw you on the streets, man.

dochira wrote:

I'd feed you if I saw you on the streets, man.

Anything chicken, please?!
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ahochaude wrote:

Anything chicken, please?!

Did you mean anything but chicken? If so, are you already sprouting feathers?

dochira wrote:

Did you mean anything but chicken? If so, are you already sprouting feathers?

Anything chicken! Or fish!

Yes, I have gills and feathers.
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Rony Oka wrote:

Why would you get an airplane ticket to France? France is full of nothing but little lover boys and cheaters. I would take a ticket to Japan. Because I have never had a spouse or significant other from Japan. So that would be an adventure.

That's pretty rude to say that ...

ahochaude wrote:

She wants me to move to Japan. I wouldn't mind, but my concern is being able to find work there. And even if I do find work in Japan (in which I'm qualified enough for), would it help my resume here in America?

yeah, it's pretty tough to be in jp w/o a college degree, BUT at least you can speak the language. i'm very certain that you could find something being fluent in both languages.

one of my friends' sons surprised her by getting married to a jp national and moving there. it's tough on him right now cuz he doesn't have a college degree AND is unable to speak japanese.

AC, my friends and i have discussed moving to jp and probably the only job we'd qualify for (cuz we're not fluent in jp) is teaching english. but i posed the exact same question as you did (in your last statement). what if i were to ever come back to the u.s. what would i do? teach english? that's a pretty tough decision.

Yep. I was thinking that if I were to go to Japan and come back to the states, my resume would not improve, if at all, slightly. If I teach English there, or even work at Costco, what good will that do me?! I have a lot to think about.... hmmmmmmmmmmm
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ahochaude wrote:

Yep. I was thinking that if I were to go to Japan and come back to the states, my resume would not improve, if at all, slightly. If I teach English there, or even work at Costco, what good will that do me?! I have a lot to think about.... hmmmmmmmmmmm

costco! now, that's not a bad idea. guess you're thinking of living in the tokyo area, right? it surprised me that costco was there, but that's great for them. and you could always come back to work at the ones here in hawaii....

But it's Costco.................... the workers there are mostly "gaijin". They don't even speak Japanese on the job. It's ALL English. Can't learn much nor say much with that. Plus, I don't want to work for Costco all my life...... I want something in sales, as in how I'm doing at Louis Vuitton now.
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when i went on a date with a korean guy and when we held arms and walked down the street, alot of ppl stared at us.
one family looked at us sadly and then the son said "hey what is that black girl doing with that chinese boy?" i wanted to die, he pretended not to hear and when he saw me get embarrased he said "what did they say?"
and i just said "umm..i dont know"
anyway he is adopted (his family is white) and he isnt that close to his family so they dont care what race he dates.
only my older brother and father would be pissed about me dating an asian guy. and that is exactly why they dont know .
but anyway the kid is great and we have fun .

TANG wrote:

but anyway the kid is great and we have fun.

well, that's the most important thing. i'm glad that you are able to look past the color of the skin and find happiness.

TANG wrote:

when i went on a date with a korean guy.... but anyway the kid is great and we have fun .

Kid? You're dating a younger man?
-PCM

ahochaude wrote:

Plus, I don't want to work for Costco all my life......

hm, interesting. i don't hear anything bad about the store from the employees (so that's a plus). and i think since it's national (and going international), it looks like they're expanding and growing. so i've always seen that as promotional opportunities. but i see what you mean about only gaijin there and speaking english.

if you just wanted a job in sales, wouldn't that be a cinch for you to find in jp (especially since you're fluent in both languages?)? i thought the college degree thing was mostly for teaching and stuff, and not really for retail? no?

pcmodem wrote:

Kid? You're dating a younger man? -PCM

I WOULD NEVER DATE A YOUNGER MAN!
He is two years older than me actually, and unlike the only other asian guy that i chilled with, he isn't an insane MUCH OLDER man.
he is silly just like me.

TANG wrote:

when i went on a date with a korean guy and when we held arms and walked down the street, alot of ppl stared at us. one family looked at us sadly and then the son said "hey what is that black girl doing with that chinese boy?" i wanted to die, he pretended not to hear and when he saw me get embarrased he said "what did they say?" and i just said "umm..i dont know" anyway he is adopted (his family is white) and he isnt that close to his family so they dont care what race he dates. only my older brother and father would be pissed about me dating an asian guy. and that is exactly why they dont know . but anyway the kid is great and we have fun .

You're actually a black girl from NYC?
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Ahochaude wrote:

Quote:

Yep. I was thinking that if I were to go to Japan and come back to the states, my resume would not improve, if at all, slightly. If I teach English there, or even work at Costco, what good will that do me?! I have a lot to think about.... hmmmmmmmmmmm

Ahochaude, if you don't mind, let me give you another perspective.

I've worked for some large international companies with offices in the U.S., Asia and Europe. The one thing I can tell you from my personal experience is that yes, a college degree is important, but companies now seem to consistently seek out individuals who stand out from the rest. Despite the fact that a college degree is still very important (I won't deny that), I've seen people get hired without college degrees because they'd done something uniquely different or had an altogether different background than everybody else.

I think you're in that situation. By living in Japan, by being multi-lingual, you have the opportunity to present to future employers your ability to quickly adapt to a totally different environment, to be able to make well thought out decisions, to be independent, to assimilate cultural differences (not necessarily limited to countries but companies as well), and to prove that you're willing to take calculated risks. Living abroad is something not many people (even today) get to do and many employers view it as a "plus". You may have noticed that a lot of fast trackers in a company are often sent on overseas assignments. It's precisely because of what they gain by living overseas that they're sent there.

And working for Costco there? Yeah, probably not the best thing in the world but guess what - it could very well be an opportunity to find out how the Japanese style of management differs from the American style - and be able to incorporate that in your resume.

Granted, truthfully speaking, not every company will overlook your lack of a college degree but I rather doubt many companies would view your living abroad as a negative. The key to selling yourself in the resume is to present all the positives that came from living in Japan and use them to overcome anyone's objections to your lack of a college degree.

So don't sell yourself short. If you really want to go then come back to the States, I don't think it'll hurt your resume at all. In fact, I'd be surprised if it didn't help.