Program Reviews

I was placed in a very rural part of Japan. While it's not the most "exciting" place, I have very much enjoyed the slow pace of life and great nature during my soon-to-be three years here.

As for the company (Interac West), my experience has been overall good. They generally respect my time, and provide a lot of freedom both in and out of work, but also provide a lot of optional support. First settling in was a breeze, with thorough help with housing, car rental, setting up bills, taxes, and insurance, etc. Interac also provides a rather large amount of teaching resources and materials, though I personally almost always make my own. The only trouble I've really had is with mistakes made by the (in my opinion understaffed) scheduling team, but even then I'd consider them moderate inconveniences.

Regarding pay, I'm single but I don't imagine it'd be easy to raise a family, especially in a city. There's also virtually no pay progression if you want to stay a teacher (like me) rather than moving up into more managerial roles, assuming you can. That said, my rural town is rather cheap living, and I'm single, so I have no issues living within my paycheck and can save some.

Overall I'd say being an ALT with Interac isn't the best for long-term, "career" teaching, but can be a great way to have an adventure or a stepping stone into office positions or other work in Japan.

I was placed in a very rural part of Japan. While it's not the most "exciting" place, I have very much enjoyed the slow pace of life and great nature during my soon-to-be three years here.

As for the company (Interac West), my experience has been overall good. They generally respect my time, and provide a lot of freedom both in and out of work, but also provide a lot of optional support. First settling in was a breeze, with thorough help with housing, car rental, setting up bills, taxes, and insurance, etc. Interac also provides a rather large amount of teaching resources and materials, though I personally almost always make my own. The only trouble I've really had is with mistakes made by the (in my opinion understaffed) scheduling team, but even then I'd consider them moderate inconveniences.

Regarding pay, I'm single but I don't imagine it'd be easy to raise a family, especially in a city. There's also virtually no pay progression if you want to stay a teacher (like me) rather than moving up into more managerial roles, assuming you can. That said, my rural town is rather cheap living, and I'm single, so I have no issues living within my paycheck and can save some.

Overall I'd say being an ALT with Interac isn't the best for long-term, "career" teaching, but can be a great way to have an adventure or a stepping stone into office positions or other work in Japan.

If you’ve always wanted to experience a piece of another culture, teaching for Interac is a great way to do so!

I have been working for Interac since 2020. I was already living in Japan, and they worked with me to allow me to keep living in the same city with my partner and have been very flexible in making my life work the way I have wanted and needed. Of course, if you can be flexible with where you live in Japan, it is much easier to be hired (and frankly, the potential to be more exciting exists too!)

From my own experiences, and those of the friends I’ve made, Interac offers a ton of assistance that makes getting by in Japan as easy as possible, even if you can’t speak Japanese. My branch even provides resources and training to help you with your career, whether that is continued with Interac, somewhere else in Japan, and of course even back home. This includes training sessions as a company, as well as things like discounts to Japanese language courses and lessons.

I do highly recommend studying in your spare time, as it’s a perfect opportunity to practice. Even better, everyone you work with will be VERY appreciative, and it definitely makes team teaching much easier.

I’ve taught at both a middle school and an elementary school, which are the most common places you can end up. The truth about the schools is that a lot will depend on the school itself, the teachers you work with, and of course on you. My experience has been entirely positive, full of students and teachers that were and are excited to work with me, but I have heard more than a few horror stories. In the end, if you yourself are someone who can go with the flow and improvise well, then you are probably ready for the majority of curve balls that may come your way!

Outside of school and work life, you will luckily have ample time for traveling, exploring wherever you live, and even participating in events around town or in classes or clubs.
Like dancing? Dance schools are often easy to find! Like to play an instrument? Also pretty common to find people to play with and places to practice (some for free, some with a fee, all depending on the place you live and what you’re doing). As with living anywhere, a lot of life outside of work is only as good as you make it, and if you are willing to put yourself out there often, you’re more likely to have a pretty good time.

I’m glad I got to work with my desired company. Working hours vary depending on the BOE. I enjoyed shorter working hours😊
It was a challenge adapting to longer working hours with change in BOE.
Having the staff assist me at the hospital, city office, documentation and getting an apartment has been so much relief for me.
It’s joyful knowing that I’m on holidays (summer/winter) yet get paid.
I was awarded an Instructor motivation certificate which made me realize that hard work doesn’t go unnoticed.

Interac has excellent support for its ALTs and employees, making it a great choice for foreigners who are new to Japan, or newly graduate who love teaching as a job. They are welcoming and accommodating, making it easy for newcoming to settle in. However, the pay rate could be improved. Despite the rising cost of living in the word, and in Japan, salaries do not seem to be increasing over time, which is discouraging.

Despite this, the company strong support system makes it a good choice for those looking to start a new life in Japan.

I have been working with Interac for over a year now and I'm glad to joined Interac. My experience has been a good one given that Interac stands out in terms of pay compared to other ALT dispatched companies.

I came to Japan 4 years ago. Nervous and unaware of what to expect. I asked myself several times if I made the right choice. Those questions were answered immediately after my first interaction with the superb staff who helped me to transition smoothly(both with housing and school affairs). Even after 4 years they assist if an issue should arise.I have been assigned to several schools and they all have their subtle differences. Interac makes it easy for me to have a good work relationship with Japanese staff. I have had minor hiccups with some schools and they were resolved as quickly as possible. Thanks to the amazing team.
For the past two years the dynamics have changed though. The pandemic is upon us, instructors are “leaving” and that means I have to sub at random schools. The reception at these schools are usually good, however its a personal struggle sometimes to do these random subs. Apart from that ,everything is good . I say a 7/10

It was my first time to work abroad 5 years ago. I could still remember the anxiety caused by all the uncertainties for someone who is going to move to another country to live and work. I didn't know where to start or even get my head around how I could possibly survive the next few months in a nation where English is not their first language. Then, I came to Japan in March 2018. We were welcomed at the airport by the company staff, sent to a training in Narita for 5 days, and displaced to diffferent parts of Japan. I was fortunately to be placed in the Kita Kanto Branch where the support is fabulous. I was given assistance from getting an apartment, applying for a bank account, calling for a dental appointment, even tto simple translations like how to fill out a form in the immigration. I also can't help sharing how they got my then boyfriend, now my husband, to work in the same BOE 4 years ago after one year of being here. Of course, he also applied for the ALT position, and Interac let us work in the same city. For me, it was a comfort to know that the company gives value to family and relationships as long as we keep a good exchange of communication with the company.

If you're a person eyeing at an opportunity to land a job in Japan with zero knowledge about everything, Interac can provide just what you need to get your pace and slowly start living life more independently, although with some help from time to time from the branch. They are open to your queries and ready to help in just about anything for as much as they can. I just want take this opportunity to thank the Kita Kanto Branch for doing such a great job in providing the support that I need all these years to do my ALT job very well. Everyone in the branch worked so hard in making our stay in Japan more manageable.

Working for Interac helped me learn new skills while giving me plenty of free time to explore Japan. They gave me sufficient training to prepare myself as an ALT from the beginning. We are also given various resources for teaching and improving ourselves.

Additionally, we have a lot of holidays to explore Japan. Within my first year, I visited Atami, Hakone, Yokohama, Kanazawa, Kamakura, and Karuizawa. Also, working with Japanese people gave me a closer look into Japanese culture. I highly recommend it.

I have been living in Japan for about seven years. Right off the bat, Interac has been amazing. Setting foot into a new country that I barely speak the language is something I thought I could never do, but as soon as I got in and met with the head teachers and staff, I knew then that I was in good hands. I looked at information online and read reviews on Glassdoor beforehand and most of them were positive enough that made my decision to move to Japan that easy. Looking back after seven years, and after meeting a number of other ALTs that came and went from other dispatch companies, Interac is by far one of the best, if not the best ALT dispatch company in existence. I live in an area that I love and the branch I work under is trying to pull all the strings just so I can stay and not move elsewhere because I love the area that I living in right now. The people are amazing! Interac considers the request of its employees and this is extremely rare nowadays. I have taught at three neighboring school districts and I am grateful that I did not have to move. Moving is part of the life of the educators in this country, I'm afraid.
One cannot even begin to imagine the other problems I have heard from other ALTs from other dispatch companies that I am extremely grateful I am with Interac. If you are reading this and is a prospective future ALT. This may sound like textbook marketing but, I implore you to click on that join us now button to learn more!

Pros - will help it's instructors settle in
- will never miss a paycheck
- will provide all the necessary training needed
- has resources online to aid in-class or self improvement
- will have someone personally checking in on its employees' well-being
- considers the employees requests as top priority

Cons - cant list any sorry