I'm F31, half Japanese, and I used to have dual citizenship but had to give it up when I joined the US Navy. I separated from the Navy 2 months ago so I am a veteran. I'm JLPT N1 but realistically I think I dropped to about N2 since I took the test a few years ago. My husband (M34) absolutely fell in love with Japan when we visited last year, and he's been learning Japanese diligently since then. He's currently in school for cybersecurity and I just started school for business finance. Now, I have no idea if I actually want to do business, but the topics have been interesting so far. My husband has expressed the desire to move to Japan recently but I'm not sure what I should do. Would the skills from a business fiance degree from a university in the US be able to translate to anything in Japan, or should I pick a different major and go for a different job entirely? I'm very open to ideas EXCEPT I don't want to become an English teacher in Japan. Thanks!
by Backwashed-Applesoda
17 comments
You gave it up? That’s the dumbest thing you ever could’ve done…
First of all, I don’t believe Japan allows or recognizes dual citizenship after the age of 22 so your navy job is not the only reason that forced you to renounce your citizenship.
As for your career path in Japan, moving to a new country without a solid plan can end up in a disaster. Also, working for a Japanese company can be very different from working for an American company culture and pay wise. I’d suggest one of you guys finding a job there first (can also be a transfer from an American office to a Japanese office for a global company) and thinking about the rest.
Do it. Do it and regret it, rather than not doing it, and regretting it. At least you can regret it while living in Japan.
Hell yeah! The best place to get an unbiased opinion about moving the Japan is a sub about traveling to Japan!
We are all biased here. Do it!
US & Japanese Navies have a huge amount of cooperation going on, building interoperability. The Australian, Philippines & Koreans are involved, too.
If you’re a US Navy vet who speaks decent Japanese & understands Japanese culture, I can almost guarantee you’d be able to find meaningful & well paid work at a defence industry contractor.
If you plan on working at a Japanese company, your degree doesn’t matter that much. I have friends who studied psychology but ended up working as normal office workers. As long as you have a bachelor’s degree, know n2 and over, have some job experience (your age might make employers value experience) you’ll find a job. Sometimes companies like to hire young fresh graduates instead of 30+ aged new graduates so that’s the only hurdle I can think of.
Wait i swear I saw this same story posted from the husband perspective earlier today
If you’re at an N1 level (doesn’t matter that you’re N2 now – you got the certification), you can work finance in Japan. There are many international banks and adjacent financial firms that you can work at. Maybe look into accounting and aim to be an international accountant. I have friends that do that type of work, but I am too unfamiliar with what they do to say anything meaningful here. To become a CPA (getting the certification) in Japan is incredibly difficult but becoming one is lucrative.
I think jobs that only work in one language (English or Japanese) would not command the premium you’re realistically worth. Some may disagree, but that was my experience.
I think if you were to get your Japanese citizenship back, you would need to renounce your US citizenship since you technically chose US citizenship over your Japanese one. I don’t think it’s too big of a deal, though. Do you want to live in Japan? It’s repeated often, but visiting is not the same as living/working.
I have a friend who was forced to give up citizenship due to dual citizenship rules, but was able to regain it recently to move over there earlier this year. Japan’s citizenship laws seem to always be in flux for people with Japanese ethnicity. I would recommend asking around the consulate or something
Go for a job in Yokosuka.
Try a long term rental for 3 months. See if it’s something you want to do. Don’t vacation it. Play it like you love there.
My wife is Japanese. We moved to Japan after she lived in the U.S. for a time. She didn’t care for the U.S.
I have been studying Japanese on and off for years. I am still at best N4.
I doubt you’ll have trouble finding a job with N1, your husband on the other hand will find limited opportunities. My brother told me a long time ago, “you have to go where the jobs are.”
He meant that in terms of location and demand. There are more jobs available in IT than business finance. Finance would require a stronger skill set to be competitive, compared to IT. A finance minor and an IT major would set you up well in the short term.
With AI, who really knows? I think your husband will find Japan more challenging than he thinks. It is one thing to visit, another to live. I still love the country. Mostly prefer it, but if I had to compete in the job market here my options would be English teacher, or perhaps English teacher.
My major was liberal arts and later got an MBA. Without N1 or N2, I don’t think it is really possible to compete in the job market here.
A good friend with about 15 years of teaching experience and the same Japanese level as me reached a similar conclusion, he is stuck in teaching/education adjacent options.
I wonder if Waseda would open doors? That would be my guess.
Just make sure he fell in love with Japan and not with Soapland.
being half Japan and another culture language. with business finance, you are perfect for many small and large companies that are involved at world level. in that you cross cultures.
think that & then gives you focus on what you learn, study & jobs to search for
perhaps possible if already begin work, consult, advise. while you continue to study.
as for not perfect Japanese language, who cares, I assume you have perfect English, and they don’t.
be a bridge in everything you do & think
Japan tourist and Japan resident lead very different lives. A visitor isn’t expected to live under the social or business rules that a local is subjected to.
You can always reclaim your Japanese citizenship as far as I’m aware as long as you have heritage or was born there
It would be wise to wait a few more years as the economy here is still recovering slowly from post-Covid. Japan took the longest to reopen. If you change your mind and decide to return to the US, you’ll lose out a lot as the yen currency has plummeted and is weak.
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