Do I need to know Japanese to be eligible?

Applicants for the ALT (Assistant Language Teacher) position are not required to have prior knowledge of the Japanese language, although it is beneficial and highly recommended to have some speaking ability before going to Japan.

Those applying for the CIR (Coordinator for International Relations) position must have at least a semi-advanced to advanced level of Japanese proficiency. CIR duties usually involve translation and interpretation of official government communication, so as a benchmark applicants should have approximately JLPT level N2 or above Japanese proficiency in order to be considered eligible.