No, I mean when you apply they ask you what level of japanese language capabilities you have, they do the same with English when you move to England or Australia.

So that's just one part of the visa, sorry if I didn't make that clear.

You can get a work visa even if you don't speak a word of Japanese. There are a lot of assistant English teachers that came to Japan without knowing the language and got their visas sponsored through their companies.

I didn't realise that, but I figure for Psychology it will be necessary and also I hear they use a lot of English words for medical terms which makes it easier.

I think this link will be useful for you:

MOFA: A Guide to Japanese Visas - Documents to Be Submitted with Visa Applications

Thankyou very much.

Out of interest, how much do you know about placement years for foreign studuents in Japan? And I mean like, 3rd year degree students kinda thing, not studying abroad for the full duration.

It's not important as it'll be two or three years before I get into the situation where I would be doing the placement year anyway.

I don't know about all of that but I'm sure some people in the Teaching English in the JP and I Live in Japan! topics could help you out.

To be quite honest even the nutters in this country are not going to be visiting the doctor if that is what you were intending on doing.

From what I can tell, Japanese don't like visiting the doctor at all because it gives the impression to others that there is something wrong with them.

But then again, maybe in Tokyo it would work out quite well with all the expats living there.

I wouldn't be a doctor, not in the normal sense anyway. I think most of the time people get referred to psychologists rather than go there willingly, it also depends where you work e.g. a private clinic or for a medical company.

Failing that, I could always try to get into forensic pathology.

My Favorite Prefectures
 

If you're not sure if you want inaka or big cities, I would suggest looking at Okayama-ken. It has a good blend of both. Plus it's somewhat off the beaten path, so going there would be unique, but not so much that you would be lost. It sits on the main shinkansen line for west Japan, so you can get up to Oosaka, Kyoto, Nagoya and Tokyo without too much trouble. Hiroshima is also very close and Okayama itself is a good sized city. But you also don't have to go far at all to get out of the city. Shikoku is just over the bridge and Tottori-ken is a few hours north. Personally, Tottori-ken has probably been my personal favorite place that I've lived, but that's because I prefer to be out of the city. If you want easy access to city, Tottori is not the right place. At all. It was not unusual for me to be the first American some of the people up there had ever met.

I also thought the Shizuoka suggestion is a good one. It's more in the middle of things than Okayama, which for me personally is a minus, but it's a nice quiet town with very easy access to both Tokyo and Nagoya. And it's got the best views of Mt. Fuji there is. And the maguro I had at some random fish market there was easily THE BEST sushi I had ever experienced.

Thanks. I'm really stuck in my decision on where I should be looking of going. However, I still have two years until I actually go and the decision on where I may be placed isn't up to me. Perhaps I should look into a location that has cooler temperatures. What I'm afraid of is that if I'm at a location that's cold or snowing that there won't be as many people outside as there would be in warmer cities. The experience wouldn't be as lively.

To be honest starting work in Japan as anything other than a teacher or a whore (entertainer), or being transfered with a international organisation are slim to none. There would be simply very little oppertunity for anyone to sponser a visa for that.

And my vote goes for TOKYO. Shopping, night life, and the most up to date karaoke systems in the country.

Tokyo is out of the question for me. The idea of high rent, overcrowding and high prices in general don't sound like the most appealing place to live. However, I'm really looking forward to visiting Tokyo.

Then avoid any of the majour cities! The cost of Tokyo didn't phase me cos I'm from London so it seems about the same.