2023.2.28
What will be asked at the interview in Japan? List of questions that will definitely be asked at interviews in Japan
In Japan, there is a set of questions to be asked in the interview process.
Knowing in advance what kind of questions you will be asked will help you prepare for the interview and get you one step closer to a job offer.
In this article, we will teach you all the questions that you will inevitably be asked in a job interview in Japan.
If you do not read this article, you will not pass the interview, so please be sure to read it if you are a foreigner who is applying for an interview at a Japanese company for the first time, or if you are a foreigner who wants to work in Japan in the future.
At the end of this article, I will give you the only way to pass the interview.
Basic question that will inevitably be asked
①Self-introduction
In the self-introduction section, please tell them your name, where you are from, what kind of work you did in your home country, and what kind of work in Japan.
It is not necessary to give detailed job descriptions in the self-introduction.
Later, you will be asked questions about your job, to which you should respond in detail.
Answer only the following questions.
Where, in what position, what did you do, and how did you do it?
In India, I developed a smartphone application as a front-end engineer.
The length of the shortest possible time is about 30 seconds to 1 minute.
自己紹介をお願いします。
Please introduce yourself.
②Career history
You will provide them with detailed information about what it is like to work in your home country and what kind of work you will be doing in Japan.
In the self-introduction, you did not mention much about your work, so you will explain it in detail here.
Give your message in an easy-to-understand manner between one and two minutes.
これまでの経歴を教えてください。
Please tell us about your career path to date.
この会社の業務内容を教えてください。
Please tell me about the responsibilities of this company.
これまでどういうお仕事をしてきましたか？
What kind of work have you done so far?
③reasons for joining and reasons for leaving previous companies
Please give brief answers to the following questions regarding your reasons for joining and resigning from your previous employers.
For example, if you have experience working for three different companies, you may want to briefly summarize your reasons for joining and your reasons for leaving each of the three companies.
It is not uncommon for employers to be asked about reasons for joining and reasons for leaving all companies, and mostly the companies ask about reasons for joining a current company and reasons for leaving previous jobs.
The way to answer the question about the reason for resignation is to convey a positive reason.
Negative reasons such as too much overtime work or abusive language are not acceptable.
This is because the interviewer may think that even if you join a new company, if you have to work a lot of overtime, you will probably change jobs again.
Here is a simple and easy way to give you positive and good examples of reasons for changing jobs, as well as negative and bad examples.
〇GOOD
前職で学んだことを、もっと活かしてスキルアップしたいと思ったからです。
I want to improve my skills by making better use of what I had learned at my previous job.
×BAD
残業が多いし、仕事がつまらなかったからです。
There was a lot of overtime work, and the work was boring.
Even if you had a bad experience at your previous job, never say anything bad about the company.
Please be aware that the moment you speak ill of the company, you will be rejected.
なぜこの会社に入社しましたか？
Why did you join this company?
なぜこの会社を退職した（辞めた）のでしょうか？
Why did you resign from this company?
④Reason for changing jobs
Please logically explain why you want to quit your current company and join a new company.
The reason for changing jobs should be short and to the point, lasting no more than one minute.
Again, be sure to convey positive reasons and never use negative expressions or speak ill of your former employer.
転職理由を教えてください。
Please tell us why you want to chang jobs.
⑤Reason for applying.
Please tell them why you chose this company over others.
It is a good idea to create a motivation for applying for a job by visiting the company’s website.
Please refer to this section when creating a motivation.
What are the strengths of the company you are applying for?
What can the company I am applying for do for me?
How can I contribute to the company I am applying for?
What kind of work will you do if you join the company you are applying for, and how will you make the company better?
志望動機を教えてください。
Please tell us why you are interested in this project.
なぜ当社を応募しましたか？
Why did you apply for our company?
Questions about conditions that will be asked
⑥About annual income
The market rate of annual salary increase in Japan is 105% or 110% of the current salary in Japan.
If you convey a large increase in annual income that has no basis in fact, such as an increase of 1 million yen from your current annual income, you will be rejected due to a mismatch in conditions.
When using a recruitment agent, you should also leave it to the agent to negotiate your annual salary.
They are professionals who can help you succeed in your new job, so it is best to leave the difficult negotiations to the professionals.
希望年収を教えてください。
Please tell us your desired annual income.
⑦Workplace
This question is mainly asked when interviewing for a position in a large company with branches all over Japan.
It is not common to hear of companies that have no branch offices, or that operate only in the Kanto area.
You can tell them where you want to work, but applicants who the companies are looking for have no restrictions on where they work, and those who can work all over Japan are welcome to apply.
If you have family, you may limit your work area, but if you want to work quickly, you should not limit your work location.
希望の勤務地はどこですか？
Where is your preferred work location?
⑧Transfers
This question, as well as the desired place of work, is asked when interviewing for a job at a large company with branches all over Japan.
It is not common to hear of companies that have no branch offices, or that operate only in the Kanto area.
Whenever possible, answer “yes” to questions about the transfer.
This is because companies are looking for people who can be transferred to other companies.
If you want to work for this company, let them know that you are available for a transfer, and make it a priority to get in.
転勤はできますか？
Can you transfer to another branches?
Question that could be asked
➈Reason for coming to Japan
They would like to know why you decided to come to Japan.
The reason they ask these questions is that the interviewers are only checking your Japanese level, so please feel free to answer as you wish.
なぜ日本に来ましたか？
Why did you come to Japan?
⑩Career plan
This question asks if you already have a concrete image of what kind of work you would like to do after joining the company and how you would like to improve the company in the future, even before you join.
If you can answer this question, you will receive a high evaluation.
入社後のキャリアプランを教えてください。
Please tell us about your career plans after joining the company.
当社に入社したらどういう業務（お仕事）に携わりたいですか？
If you were to join our company, what type of work would you like to be involved in?
⑪Practical qualification
Please provide them with any qualifications that can be applied to your job.
Having a qualification of some kind will show that you are hardworking and motivated.
資格は持っていますか？
Do you have the qualifications?
⑫Visas
This question is to check your Japanese level, so it has no particular meaning.
Please answer correctly about the type of visa and its expiration date.
ビザは何ですか？
What is your visa?
⑬Family
You will be asked questions about your family, but these questions do not have any deep meaning, and are intended to assess your communication skills, so you are free to answer freely.
日本では一人暮らしですか、それとも家族と一緒に住んでいますか？
Do you live alone in Japan or with your family?
奥様/旦那様は日本で働いていますか？
Does your wife/husband work in Japan?
奥様/旦那様はいつ日本に来ますか？
When is your wife/husband coming to Japan?
These are the questions you will be asked in the interview process.
In the interview, you will be asked to answer these questions in depth.
What kind of work have you done so far?
Why do you want to change jobs?
Please conduct research on your own self, such as
It is a big mistake to think that you can answer the question without doing research on your own.
This is because people do not remember the past or this unexpectedly, and they have forgotten the details.
How did you contribute to the company in your previous job? What kind of projects did you work on and how did you make your customers happy?
Finally, I will give you the only way to pass the interview.
The best way to do this is to practice the interview over and over and over again.
The more practice sessions you have, the higher your chances of getting a job offer, so it is recommended that you practice at least 10 times before the interview.
