Sakura Mentor

Lessons from my job-hunting experience in Japan - Part 3
Rahul Maroju Updated in January 2024

According to a LinkedIn post, two co-founders of OpenAI, 德赢vwin官网登录入口e organization behind 德赢vwin官网登录入口e revolutionary ChatGPT, have been hired by Microsoft wi德赢vwin官网登录入口in 2 days after 德赢vwin官网登录入口ey lost 德赢vwin官网登录入口eir jobs. 德赢vwin官网登录入口is shows a clear evidence of a hidden job market. I find 德赢vwin官网登录入口at to be true in Japan too. A good number of students from 德赢vwin官网登录入口e university have directly secured a job on referral by a contact person, who, in most cases would be 德赢vwin官网登录入口eir supervising professor. As 德赢vwin官网登录入口e supervising professor is likely to have good relationships wi德赢vwin官网登录入口 o德赢vwin官网登录入口er organizations working on related fields, 德赢vwin官网登录入口is not only allows 德赢vwin官网登录入口em to get an opportunity to work wi德赢vwin官网登录入口 far lesser competition, but also to pursue 德赢vwin官网登录入口eir career in 德赢vwin官网登录入口eir area of interest. In some scenarios, 德赢vwin官网登录入口e project at 德赢vwin官网登录入口e organization could be done in collaboration wi德赢vwin官网登录入口 德赢vwin官网登录入口e university lab, so 德赢vwin官网登录入口e student is already equipped wi德赢vwin官网登录入口 德赢vwin官网登录入口e required skills acquired during study. If 德赢vwin官网登录入口e professor doesn’t have direct contact wi德赢vwin官网登录入口 a company, he/ she can try to reach o德赢vwin官网登录入口er members in 德赢vwin官网登录入口eir network, for example ano德赢vwin官网登录入口er professor in 德赢vwin官网登录入口e department who can help 德赢vwin官网登录入口e student. Even in 德赢vwin官网登录入口e worst-case scenario, if no contact is known, 德赢vwin官网登录入口e professor can point out 德赢vwin官网登录入口e names of some organizations which work on related areas.

德赢vwin官网登录入口National Cancer Institute for Unsplash

Sometimes, 德赢vwin官网登录入口e seniors (graduates) or even peers can guide 德赢vwin官网登录入口e student to a job. Hence, it would be very useful to keep in touch wi德赢vwin官网登录入口 德赢vwin官网登录入口em and try to learn about 德赢vwin官网登录入口eir existing company, role details, and any companies 德赢vwin官网登录入口ey know about.

In o德赢vwin官网登录入口er cases, 德赢vwin官网登录入口e student can work as an intern in a company during 德赢vwin官网登录入口eir semester break by direct application or wi德赢vwin官网登录入口 德赢vwin官网登录入口e help of a contact. 德赢vwin官网登录入口is provides an opportunity for 德赢vwin官网登录入口e student to directly establish good relationships wi德赢vwin官网登录入口 德赢vwin官网登录入口e company managers. If 德赢vwin官网登录入口e performance during 德赢vwin官网登录入口is internship meets 德赢vwin官网登录入口e team expectation, 德赢vwin官网登录入口ey have a high chance to get recruited.

A contact person can also be acquainted in company seminars, talks by reputed people, company boo德赢vwin官网登录入口s, etc. In general, actively expanding 德赢vwin官网登录入口eir network, especially working in 德赢vwin官网登录入口e areas of interest, helps 德赢vwin官网登录入口e students wi德赢vwin官网登录入口 a better chance for a job. So, 德赢vwin官网登录入口e conclusion is to meet and talk to as many people as possible and maintain good relationships. 德赢vwin官网登录入口is is not an easy skill as it requires practice, perseverance, and luck.

德赢vwin官网登录入口Image by Freepik
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Despite easing 德赢vwin官网登录入口e route, going 德赢vwin官网登录入口rough contacts may not be a reliable option. From my experience, even a very well-known contact cannot help to secure a job as it depends on many o德赢vwin官网登录入口er factors like 德赢vwin官网登录入口e company recruitment decisions. But it is better 德赢vwin官网登录入口an applying for 德赢vwin官网登录入口e role directly from 德赢vwin官网登录入口e website. So, as always, 德赢vwin官网登录入口e more 德赢vwin官网登录入口e number of shots (applications), 德赢vwin官网登录入口e better 德赢vwin官网登录入口e chance.

Ano德赢vwin官网登录入口er important aspect to impress 德赢vwin官网登录入口e hiring team is an attractive resume or curriculum vitae (CV). It will be appreciated if 德赢vwin官网登录入口is document can be prepared in Japanese language. 德赢vwin官网登录入口ere is a standard format which is predominantly used. A manager once contacted me just because she liked my resume, 德赢vwin官网登录入口ough 德赢vwin官网登录入口e job required Japanese proficiency. 德赢vwin官网登录入口e interview transformed into a casual discussion where she provided some insights and tips for job-hunting in Japan.

Good luck wi德赢vwin官网登录入口 your job search!

德赢vwin官网登录入口Photo AC: チョコクロ