Nikuraba's Japanese MMA Bible

This refers to lying about your experience or degree status in order to get a job. You must have a degree to get a full working visa, but you don`t need it for a working holiday visa. Therefore you should only even consider this if you are not eligible for the latter (e.g. too old, already had one). You can buy mail-order degrees over the internet. Considering the language and cultural barriers this MAY fool an employer. Some smaller schools have even said that they`ll accept them if they like you (happened to one of my friends). The next hurdle is to fool immigration. I`ve no idea what the chances are, but make sure you get the dates right.

Its easier to fake your experience in teaching, but bear in mind that nearly all the good jobs will actually check your references. Small schools don`t usually bother cos they offer you the job at the end of the interview, so the lying is just a `foot in the door` tactic. If you`re going to lie about teaching in Japan, then make sure you get a new passport so they don`t wonder why you didn`t have a visa stamp from that job (most companies photocopy your passport).

Also, try to make the lie convincing by visualising your imaginary school and classes and the funny stories about those crazy kids!

It`s much easier to fake experience in the UK if you`re applying inside Japan. Get a friend in the UK to agree to be `XYZ English School` when he answers the phone and they`ll give you a sterling reference. That way you`ll hoodwink anyone calling from Japan. There`s so many tiny little English schools around the UK that it won`t matter that they are unheard of.

Free internet

The normal deal in Japan is to use an internet cafe. Usually the internet seats are within a comic / manga cafe. Expect to pay between Y380 - 500 per hour. But there are free alternatives. I use the communications corner in NTT (the big Japanese telecoms company). Most of their branches have one. You are supposed to stay only 20 minutes but when its quiet you get alot longer.

Most Virgin megastores have a cafe with internet access. Its free so long as you buy some sort of food or drink while you`re there. There are big stores in Shinjuku, Ikebukuro and probably alot of other places.

Some gaijin-houses offer free internet with the rent package.

How much money to bring

If you`re coming with your job already organised, the company will give you advice. Expect to spend about 700 pounds if you DON`T have to pay a bunch of rent up front. From then on, Japan is about as expensive as living in central London.

If you`re coming here and then job-hunting you need alot more, depending on your visa status and how high you are pitching yourself for a job. If you come on a working holiday visa and stay in a gaijin house, then you`ll pick up some sort of bill-paying work within a week so you just need enough to get by until pay-day. If you live tight, then maybe 100 pounds a week not including rent.

If you come on a tourist visa then allow for up to six weeks after signing your contract for getting the visa. Finalising your job might take as much as two to 3 weeks from interview to contract signing on top of this.

As a guide, I enjoyed a reasonable standard of living on the following expenditure:

December: Y167,471

January: Y98,657

February: Y10,000 per week average.

If you live tight, your first month should be about Y100,000 not including rent. The longer you stay, the more likely you`ll be picking up a bit of work here and there to pay the bills to sustain you for the real job-hunting.

Okay then everyone, happy hunting and training!

Nick.