Pros
So I chose ECC for 3 main reasons: - to stay as a couple and live with my partner - to live in a city (preferably Tokyo) - to have lots of holiday and not feel like the job would take over my life When I went to the interview, I was very specific that my boyfriend and I wanted to live together. If you are adamant about it, and willing to wait, then ECC won't split you up. We also were very specific about wanting to be in Kanto (Tokyo) and wanted our own apartment (not shared accom.) Eventually the time came, and we got all our 3 wishes. Honestly, if you're fussy like we were, you just have to be very specific about what you want. And be prepared to wait. (We waited 6 months.) It's better to wait until they can provide for you, than settle for something that you're not happy with, and then you end up having a miserable time, quitting early, and it overshadowing your Japan experience. Compared to the job I had before and after Japan, I have never had so much holiday. With almost 7 weeks of holiday, 5 flexi days (to take whenever) + the odd few national holidays, I felt like the job never took over my life because I had SO much free time. I didn't have consecutive days off, so I never felt tired and never had that Monday morning feeling. Which was an advantage and disadvantage at the same time. I also only worked 6 hours a day (old contract sorry guys.) During the week I started at 3pm, so I had the entire morning to do stuff, and on weekends, I finished at 4pm, so I had the whole late afternoon/evening to do stuff. I think if you were wise with your time, and you weren't lazy, you could do SO much. This meant that I had a lot of time to socialise with friends, keep my illustration/sewing hobbies up, go to the gym and generally chill out! So I was on the old contract, so the 6 hour days were a dream. There were classes that I LOVED, and there were classes that were a bit tough to handle. But with the schedule, it's likely that that class would be over in an hour. Teaching the really little children were my favourite. If you like babies and toddlers, it's such a rewarding experience. Then when they get a little older it can become a bit more of a challenge, but ECC teaches you techniques that can help you manage your class. Comparing these ECC kids to school kids the same age in my own country, wow... the ECC kids are angels. The adult classes were also pretty good. Most of my schedules started with kids classes, and ended with adult classes, so I always got a good mix. As an added bonus, I was fortunate enough to be able to utilise my previous job's skills as a Graphic Designer, and help ECC out with their contributor programme. This meant that a few times a week (if there was no subbing needed) I would go to HQ and help with internal Graphic Design/ Social Media projects. Not only was it great to be useful to the company, but this honestly made me feel much more invested in the company and allowed me to see the difficulties HR go through with training/drop outs/re-hiring/sub duty/keeping employees happy....etc. I wish there was more opportunity for more employees to get involved in this programme, but it all depended on how many people quit mid-contract. As soon as people quit, the sub duty people then have to take over their shifts, and so contributor list would get smaller. Also, sub duty really wasn't that bad. You get to be the fun interesting teacher that comes in just for the day! All in all, I had a positive experience. Japan is such a cool place to live. You never run out of things to do in Tokyo. I used my free time well, continued my hobbies and travelled A LOT; in Japan, New Zealand, Vietnam, America (for Christmas) Just be specific on what you want. Be prepared to wait to get it. And use your free time wisely... don't get comfortable and lazy!
Cons
- When starting, its likely you won't have consecutive days off. But it depends how you think of it. You'll never be exhausted... but also you can't take 2 day trips. - You might get placed in a school a little remote, possibly with you being the only Native-English teacher. Its not that bad. Even if you were in a school with lots of teachers, with those busy schedules you won't have time to talk anyway! - Apartments that you are placed in to start with will not live up to the standard you expect. 2 of us were in a tiny box apartment very far away from the centre of Tokyo, but we got used to it, and learned to love it! We stayed there for 1 1/2 years.