Peernovo
Other teachers

How to become a Vocational School Teacher

Also called: Animation College Teacher, Nursing College Teacher, Cooking School Teacher, Design College Teacher, Fashion College Teacher, Automotive Mechanics College Teacher, Japanese Language Teacher, English Conversation School Teacher

Teaches their subjects to students at a senmon gakko (vocational college), an institution that gives specialist technical and practical job training to people who have finished high school, drawing on their own specialist knowledge and skills.

Main tasks

Workers in this job say university is common. From job tag's survey of people in each job, who could give several answers. It shows what workers see as common, not how many workers hold each level.

How to become one

You need to meet the teacher requirements set out in the standards for establishing specialised training colleges. You can meet them by graduating from a senmon gakko (vocational college), tanki daigaku (junior college), university or graduate school and then gaining work or research experience in the subject you will teach. Some people become teachers straight after graduating, while others move into teaching from business or as specialists in a particular field, drawing on their work experience. The skills and knowledge needed differ by field, but many schools aim for their students to gain job qualifications, so you need to keep up with the latest developments in your field and be able to guide students towards those goals.

Ways in

Pay · Job openings · AI and this job

Related jobs

Not sure this is for you? Take the 2-minute career quiz

Questions people ask

How do I become a Vocational School Teacher?

You need to meet the teacher requirements set out in the standards for establishing specialised training colleges. You can meet them by graduating from a senmon gakko (vocational college), tanki daigaku (junior college), university or graduate school and then gaining work or research experience in the subject you will teach. Some people become teachers straight after graduating, while others move into teaching from business or as specialists in a particular field, drawing on their work experience. The skills and knowledge needed differ by field, but many schools aim for their students to gain job qualifications, so you need to keep up with the latest developments in your field and be able to guide students towards those goals.

How much does a Vocational School Teacher earn in Japan?

Average annual income in the private sector, bonus included, is ¥5,025,500 (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare). The figure is for the wage survey group Other teachers, which covers several jobs.

Do you need a degree to become a Vocational School Teacher?

Not always. In this job's census occupation group, 58% of workers are university graduates. Ways in include: Education & Teaching degrees.

Will AI change the work of a Vocational School Teacher?

Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

独立行政法人労働政策研究・研修機構（JILPT）作成 職業情報データベース 解説系ダウンロードデータ（IPD_DL_description_7_01.xlsx）ver.7.01 職業情報提供サイト（job tag）より2026年10月4日にダウンロード（https://shigoto.mhlw.go.jp/User/download）を加工して作成

独立行政法人労働政策研究・研修機構（JILPT）作成 職業情報データベース 簡易版数値系ダウンロードデータ（IPD_DL_numeric_7_00.xlsx）ver.7.00 職業情報提供サイト（job tag）より2026年10月4日にダウンロード（https://shigoto.mhlw.go.jp/User/download）を加工して作成

Sources: JILPT Occupational Information Database download data via job tag (解説系 ver.7.01 and 簡易版数値系 ver.7.00, downloaded 4 October 2026), processed by Peernovo; MHLW, Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2025; Statistics Bureau of Japan, 2020 Population Census; MEXT, School Basic Survey 2025; MHLW, Employment Referrals for General Workers (Hello Work statistics). Figures processed by Peernovo. English job names, translations and the matching of jobs to statistical groups, schools and degree fields by Peernovo.

Updated 4 October 2026