My Changing Professional Wardrobe as an English Teacher in Japan

    I came to Japan in 2008 with a multinational English teaching school that has since gone bankrupt, been bought out and re-branded. In the five years that followed my arrival, I worked for large eikaiwa, or conversational English schools. In general, each of these companies wanted a similar look for their female teachers, including:

- Suits (with knee-length skirts or pants)

- Button-down or knit blouses* (with sleeves and NO cleavage)

- Stockings or tights (knee high under trousers, full length under skirts)

*Knit blouses are not considered okay by all companies, so stick with things that do not look anything like t-shirts if you plan to wear these professionally.

    Since quitting the big scene for motherhood, I've found myself teaching for a small conversational school and select private lessons. As such, I have adapted my wardrobe to suit the current needs of my clientele, none of whom are nearly as strict with dress-code as the larger companies were. Now, my work clothes look like this:

- Jeans (no holes, stains, or raggedy bits)

- T-shirts (no graphics or wordy-bits, only plain or light innocuous print)

- Undershirt/tank-top (to cover any unintended cleavage cause by v-neck)

Included but not picture here:

- Blouses (stretchy, comfortable, and long enough to not have to tuck-in)

- Short Dresses (to be worn as long blouses over pants)

- Cardigans (short-sleeved or cap-sleeved, to cover the shoulders for sleeveless dresses and blouses)

    The only things they seem to have in common that might not be so common abroad are the needs to cover shoulders and cleavage by any means necessary. While it is 2019 and many professional women working in offices across the globe are entitled to sleeveless dresses, Japan in general seems to say no. Even in casual looks, it is not easy to find people who aren't covering their shoulders in public in most of the country. If you see someone in a tank-top on the street in Japan, it is almost always a tourist from another country.

    Cleavage abroad can also be seen as unprofessional or unbecoming, but for the bustier among us, sometimes a shirt shifts in transit and something we didn't mean to show the world may be slightly visible. Here, that is so infrequently seen that I have had old men nearly run into light posts while they sneer and gesticulate at the tiny amount of visible cleavage that happened to peek out from under my otherwise-acceptable shirt. Some people don't mind this reaction or stupid gesticulating old men don't bother them, and that is wonderful. If you're trying to look professional though, make sure to cover up as best you can.