Career Counseling and Services (CC&S)

Info for Prospective Students

Please follow this link for services offered to Companies and Organizations interested in recruiting IUJ Students.

Services IUJ offer’s IUJ Students in the Job and Internship hunt, and career development

IUJ supports students with internship and job hunting before they even get to campus. With a Facebook support group, email advice, resume critiques, a full career workshops, Career Development classes, and 1-on-1 career coaching with the career counselor, IUJ provides proactive assistance.

Prospective student wishing to learn more, after reading the information below, please contact the Career Counselor 

IUJ Career Counseling and Services assist IUJ full-time* students in their job & internship search in the following ways:

  • Provides guidance and career readiness skills before arriving on campus.
  • Provide Information on Bulletin Boards, IUJ LAN and email messages, in the Career Library, and online on the Web Page
  • Distribute student resumes to key contacts in a Resume Book each October, and online is also available from Nov. to June, and at the request of student or company.
  • Offer workshops and one-on-one counseling for Career Exploration, Resume and Rirekisho Writing, Cover letters, Interview Techniques, Job Search Techniques, Application Writing, etc.
  • 1-on-1 counseling focuses on the development of a job hunt plan that both the student and career counselor commit to.
  • Offer Briefing Sessions to inform students of resources on campus they can utilize, remind them of job/internship hunting strategies, and more.
  • Assist in Networking through such programs as A-CAN (Alumni Career Advisory Network), Mentor Networks and using IUJ staff and faculty connections, Alumni and Industry panels and more.  Introduce effective use of LinkedIn communities.
  • Nurture existing relationships with corporate/organization relationships and create new opportunities for internships and careers based on student interests
  • Track each students interests and activities to be sure they are making progress. Keep in close contact with each student on an individual basis to be sure they are receiving the assistance they need.
  • Provide go-between assistance in working with Japanese companies and companies in Japan.
  • Interest headhunters (executive search firms) around the world in IUJ students to help students look in the region of their choice or outside of the CC&S programs in Tokyo and SE Asia.

* Exchange and Special students may participate in everything except being in the IUJ Resume Books and on-campus interviewing if there are regular IUJ students available for the position. Exchange and Special students must take all necessary steps to obtain a proper work visa or a visa that allows internships after they are no longer an IUJ student. See information on After the Search for Exchange and Special Students or ask CC&S for information.

INTERNSHIPS

IUJ is very proud of our internship program, with a placement rate over 130% again this year (for active hunters). This means that several students had 2 internships, and a few even had 3 different experiences during the 3-month summer break. Diversity remains high with students participating in positions within the UN system and research institutes, in banking and insurance companies like Mizuho Corporate Bank and Aozora Bank, in various consulting firms such as Skylight and KPMG, and in Japanese industry leaders like Hitachi, Mitsui and Nippon Express. The outlook remains as positive with more and more of IUJ’s Global Partners coming on board with exciting projects.

The challenge IUJ students face is time management to ensure they can study hard and have time for their internship and job hunt as well.

FULL REPORT For a full report, including lists of where IUJers were employed and interned, please see the Placement Report at https://www.iuj.ac.jp/career/ The future is bright for IUJ job hunters!

EMPLOYMENT

More companies came to IUJ to give presentations and meet IUJ students than ever before. As a result, 100% of GSIR and 82% of MBA students who were active job hunters had at least 1 offer before graduation. About 0ne-third of the MBA candidates had multiple offers! Of the remaining candidates, most look poised to receive offers within 3 months of graduation. A few are postponing their hunt until they return home.

Difficulties in making employment matches came as a result of over experience for what some of the companies were expecting, or a lack of Japanese language skills in the candidate to fulfill the role available at the company.

Why Go-Between Assistance is Necessary

The Japanese corporate culture is changing fast. However, many still have rigid recruiting policies and do not respond well to direct contact from MA and MBA holders. They prefer for the institution (IUJ) to introduce and recommend candidates.  Most will insist on completing “Entry Forms” online along with their regular employment recruiting cycles.  IUJ staff and faculty can help ease some of these practices to make them more open for IUJ students to penetrate.

We ask our students NOT to contact Japanese companies in Japan directly, unless it is posted otherwise. When you do, the following can occur.

  • The company calls the CC&S to ask why you have contacted them directly (please be sure we know you are contacting them so we can support you when this call comes – ASK us first)
  • The company calls to complain to the CC&S that IUJ students are calling them, and to ask us to stop them
  • You get completely ignored
  • You might be interrupting negotiations between IUJ and the company that we are not at liberty to announce

The CS&S works hard behind the scenes. We are not always able to tell students everything that is going on because the company requests confidentiality. As soon as we are allowed to make information public, we do so. Please ask us about Japanese companies and what we recommend for each one.

IUJ’s Annual Resume Book

Every year, IUJ publishes a Resume Book in October for those seeking an internship or career opportunity. Being in the Resume Book is one way CC&S assists students with the job or internship hunt. Deadlines for submissions are in early October. Workshops and information are provided before the deadlines.

CC&S distributes this Resume Book to companies, organizations, special Executive Search Firms and specific alumni mainly in Japan, but to some extent overseas as well. Resumes must be in IUJ’s Skills Based Resume format for this book. Students are listed in alphabetical order. Cross reference sections allows for other exposure. Students may also be listed on the ONLINE Resume/Job Book as an option (not required for support from IUJ).

Companies wishing to receive a resume book, please ask to be put on our mailing list. Send your name, address and email address to: ccs@iuj.ac.jp — it is free of charge for those recruiting through IUJ services. Ask about access to online or soft copies as well.

To learn more, please see an Overview of Services for Companies and contact us for details.

Students planning to be away during the Fall Term on Exchange Programs are encouraged to submit updated resumes  before they depart for the Summer Vacation if they want to be included in the Resume Book the year they graduate. If you are not in the Resume Book our ability to help you is greatly hampered.