I’m 22 years old and will be moving to Osaka as a language school student. I’d love some advice from anyone with experience.
A bit about me:
• I’ve been studying Japanese for 8 years (around N2).
• I’m completing my degree online, which will be finished by graduation.
• I enjoy creating content online.
• I have experience working at an airport and in e-commerce marketing and selling.
• I can also translate mangas from Japanese to English and do voice dubbing for English anime companies that need voice actresses.
I plan to begin as part time (28 hours only) and then gradually switch to full-time (after i graduate)
I’m curious about job opportunities in Japan or Osaka, especially ones where my skills and experience could be useful. Any tips, recommendations, or leads would be really appreciated!
Comments
by Zero_Border on Mar 29, 2026
No tips to give regarding jobs, but welcome to Osaka! What will be your school ?
by AppointmentWooden343 on Mar 29, 2026
Thank you very much! The language school i chose is Seigan Language school!
I am excited yet nervous!!! It will be my first time going alone in a new country
by electrichonu on Mar 29, 2026
How exciting! I was researching doing the same so I live vicariously through your adventures 😭
by AppointmentWooden343 on Mar 29, 2026
I hope it goes well for you 😊
by Reon_____ on Mar 30, 2026
Good choice. It’s a great school. I wanted to attend it too but due to seats getting filled fast I couldn’t and instead went for ISI.
by Zero_Border on Mar 31, 2026
Are you starting in April ? :)
by Reon_____ on Apr 1, 2026
Yep :D
by Zero_Border on Apr 1, 2026
A future colleague then! :D
by Zero_Border on Mar 31, 2026
I am in a different school. Always a mix of excitement and bamboozling when going to live in a new country for the first time.
If that can help ease your mind, I am with someone who has N3 and is like you (passionate since a kid). I can tell you that having N2 and the strong background you described will help you a lot and people will be super nice to you if they can have a conversation in japanese with you.
That has even become my main motivation for learning (I am only N5) seeing her having that.
You'll probably have many more questions once you're here, it is not my first time living abroad and I must state that Japan is challenging (but because we brought in some special challenges also, to be fair to the country), but fun. Feel free to reach out, we got some huge help here from the locals so if I can give back some of that kindness to someone I would be happy to!
by ericroku on Mar 29, 2026
Translation jobs as a future is rough. Focus on a real tangible skill not being dominated by ai an automation will be my advice.
Otherwise for baito, unless you find something online izakayas and conbinis.
Enjoy Osaka!
by AppointmentWooden343 on Mar 29, 2026
Thank you very much! 🥲😭
Can i message you?
by ShadowFire09 on Mar 29, 2026
Man I’m in translation and it’s more than rough now. If you aren’t in a specialized field like finance or medical, you’re basically screwed. And it’ll only get worse as time goes on. Thankfully I’m in finance, but if I was just doing general translation, there’s no way I’d be able to find a job.
by AppointmentWooden343 on Mar 29, 2026
I hope it gets better for you! Thanks for telling your situation realistically!
by ShadowFire09 on Mar 29, 2026
Thankfully I’m doing fine now. Got a really solid job in finance. Was looking for a job for almost a year before finding this one though. And about 6-8 months before finding my last job. It’ll only keep getting worse sadly
by AppointmentWooden343 on Mar 29, 2026
I hope it doesn’t 😭 lets hope for the best!!!
by ShadowFire09 on Mar 29, 2026
Hoping for the best, but realistically speaking, it’s already happening. AI is surprisingly good at non-specialized translation and most Japanese companies don’t care about getting perfect quality. They just need it to be understandable
by ericroku on Mar 29, 2026
It's already happened frankly. Now it's just a matter making what was 85% good before now closer to 95%. I'm in cybersec, selling for early stage startups and localization is 100% llm based now with either marketing or local theatre presence doing the validation or minor changes. I have friends in medical and automotive space and this is the same.
So take it for what it's worth. My impression is if you want to focus on translation it would be better focused on live translation services.
by ShadowFire09 on Mar 29, 2026
Honestly I’d say live translation isn’t even safe. Of course, it’s still a bit behind written translation, but it’s getting better as time goes on.
by Taivasvaeltaja on Mar 30, 2026
Yeah, just with ChatGPT you can already have really smooth speech-to-speech (or speech-to-text) translation that is really accurate. Only demand for live translation in the future will be for some high-end diplomatic meetings where AI/apps won't be used due to security reasons.
by AmbiguousAgitator on Mar 30, 2026
I have friends in manga and video game localization. Run, don't walk, away from this field.
by aokirinn on Mar 30, 2026
First of all, welcome to Osaka.
Here comes the advice and harsh truth:
-While sometimes I do see agencies hiring influencers-to-be to make online content for eg product comparison and travelling, if you’re thinking about doing it like a side hustle, it won’t really help with visa
-KIX is always hiring, could be a nice PT option if you don’t mind the commute
-E-commerce marketing job openings are common too, but I’m not familiar with that so no further comment
-Afaik manga translation usually happens outside Japan, same for voice dubbing, because they’re licensed to the local publishers which handle those parts
-Whereas game translation usually does happen in Japan, but the pay is bad and Osaka has waaaay fewer opportunities than Tokyo
