A.L.T. - A Lucky Time OR A Lot of Trouble

Working as an ALT for Interac should only be a short-term endeavor. The quality of your assignment will more or less entirely depend on the school(s) you are placed at, because every school is different. Salary is just enough to survive; you will be most likely breaking even at best at the end of your contract. That being said, my experience as an ALT gave me the opportunity to make a positive impact in the local Japanese community. Teaching English was simply just the medium in which I did it. Although my placement was enjoyable, I know of many coworkers who had terrible assignments due to difficult teachers and/or students. However, as long as you find ways to keep your schools happy, you should have no issues. As far as the actual company goes, do not expect much assistance from most of the staff, as they are very unorganized or busy. Learn as much Japanese as you can before coming here, it will save you. Also do your due diligence on fax pas in Japan beforehand. The Japanese are very non-confrontational people and won't let you know if you do something taboo in their culture. This job is for you if you want to live out your dream of living in Japan for 1-2 years, or if you just want to get your foot into Japan before starting a career with another company. Do NOT do this job if you want to make money. You won't have much to work with at the start, but like any job, it will be what you make of it.