In Japan, it’s quite common for university students to have one or more part-time jobs. Choosing the right jobs for you is key to having a healthy and happy uni life. Also, knowing your legal rights and taxes is also important. Here’s my brutally honest and very personal review of all the part-time jobs I have done.
- A cafe in the office
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Working at an office cafe was my first experience in a part-time job. My job was to serve coffee, make sandwiches, keep the shelves clean and fill them with snacks and bento boxes. The work hours are flexible, and the wage is around 1200yen. It increases for the early morning shift. The work environment and coworkers are amazing; no scary manager or forced overwork. The customers are people working at the office with security passes, so there’s no worry of rude and scary entitled customers. I started this job in the summer of 2020 when I was a freshman, and I still do. The summer of 2020 was not easy to find a job in the service industry because of the pandemic. I was rejected by 6 restaurants and cafes, and it led me to become sad and devastated. Any form of rejection hits hard, even if it’s just from a restaurant. After applying for many different jobs, I realized it wasn’t my fault for getting rejected. Expressing this in Japanese, it was “shouganai（しょうがない）“. For example, mismatch of work hours with your availability, prior experience required, outdated recruitment fliers, and more. Don’t take rejections too seriously. Everything falls into place eventually. There’s always good “goen(ご縁)” for you.
- gourmet burger restaurant
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This was my second part-time job, and it was hard. My job varies; cashier, taking orders from uber, making burgers, washing dishes, cleaning the nasty grease traps, and more. (They didn’t have a dishwasher…) Weekdays were tolerable, but weekends were nightmares of never-ending lines and constant orders from Uber. The place was super hot and busy, and I was under a lot of pressure with almost no time to even take a sip of water. I eventually lost a few pounds when I worked there and felt like doing endless cardio at maximum speed. I still get anxious whenever I hear the sound of a bell from an Uber order at restaurants. However, this experience taught me how hard it is to earn money and gratitude for those who work for us at restaurants. Trust me, working in the service industry is way harder than it looks. It exhausts you mentally and physically with several mental breakdowns and an empty smile on your face. (I am sure you will become extra nice to workers after you experience working in a service industry. Plus, you will learn that sometimes people can be very stupid and impossible to communicate with.) Also, I found out that I’m not good at working in super busy places but prefer a calm, relaxed, and chill environment. One thing you need to know before you start working at a burger place is the strong smell. After I finished work, I smelled like grilled beef and dirty fry oil since the kitchen was right behind the cash register. The smell was so strong that people on the train would avoid sitting next to me even after changing my whole outfit and making my hair in a bun. It was impossible for me to make any appointments after work unless it was online.
- online tutor
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After I quit my job at the burger place, I started this job with my friend’s recommendation. The amazing part about this job is the wage. They pay me 1600 yen an hour, and the class consists of 90 minutes, so I will earn 2400 yen for each class. If you want to make money in a limited time from home, this might be the best option. However, there is always a reason why they pay more than restaurants, which is the responsibility and your knowledge. With this job, you have the ability to change the path of your students’ lives in both good and bad ways. You are responsible for students’ growth, and you have to have good communication skills. Especially in the case of an online tutor, you have to pay attention to details since it’s impossible to see what your students are doing behind the camera, and some students can’t turn on their video for many reasons. Lastly, if you have a noisy person in your home, you need to keep them quiet while giving a lecture.