Recent Employment History

ADMINISTRATOR
April 2008 to present. Tsukuba International School. Tsukuba, Ibaraki, JAPAN.
Tsukuba International School has been in operation since 1992. I worked for the school as a volunteer for four years, so when the opportunity came up to work as the school’s first full-time administrator, I jumped at the chance. I manage all parts of the school’s office work, including accounting, communications, advertising, personnel management, and project management. It is a challenging and rewarding position at an exciting time in the school’s history.

IN-HOUSE TRANSLATOR
January 2006 to March 2008. National Institute for Environmental Studies. Tsukuba, Ibaraki, JAPAN.
I work for both the Center for Global Environmental Research and the Office for Public Relations and International Coordination. I translate and edit documents, design websites, and welcome international guests to the institute.

FREELANCE TRANSLATOR, PROOFREADER, WEB DESIGNER
April 2002 to December 2005. Tsukuba, Ibaraki, JAPAN.
I did various part-time jobs and worked on a number of freelance projects while completing my master’s degree in Library and Information Science. I had part-time, contractual positions with Tsukuba City Hall (translating and designing the city’s monthly English newsletter and the official English website) and the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) (proofreading and translating).

EXECUTIVE ADMINISTRATOR
August 2000 to February 2002. Japan Society. Toronto, Ontario, CANADA.
The Japan Society serves as a liaison between the executives at Canadian and Japanese companies. It organizes networking opportunities, offers language classes, and strives to be a source of detailed information on the Japanese economic situation. My position combined event co-ordination with the daily duties of running an office. I was responsible for producing newsletters, revitalising our web presence, and keeping accurate and up-to-date accounting records. I also taught Japanese language classes and administered our three email lists (Japan-related jobs, news, and local events).

CO-ORDINATOR FOR INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
August 1997 to August 2000. Aizu Wakamatsu Int’l Association. Aizu Wakamatsu, JAPAN.
Designed library database, created vertical reference files, offered advice and counselling to non-Japanese residents, created network of over 200 members, created monthly newsletter, designed English and Japanese web site, taught English, Japanese, and French language classes, organized events, translated and interpreted in meetings, schools, hospitals, and as a tour guide.

ASSISTANT LANGUAGE TEACHER
August 1995 to July 1997. Tajima Junior High School. Tajima, JAPAN.
Planned lessons, designed work sheets, study sheets and materials for games, undertook new projects to keep English alive in a small rural town in Japan.

Education

Diploma in Library & Information Technology (Currently in progress)
Langara College, Vancouver, Canada
Studying the practical aspects of Library and Information Science.

Master of Library and Information Science (2005)
University of Tsukuba, Japan.
Studying Library and Information Science, focusing on Canadian Library Advocacy. Monbusho Scholarship. Student Award. Thesis Award.

Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Linguistics (1995)
Queen’s University, Kingston, Canada.
Earned Provincial Scholarship and scholarship for high standing in faculty.

Ontario Secondary School Diploma (1990)
Trafalgar Castle School, Whitby, Canada.
Earned Governor General’s Academic Medal for graduating with the highest average in the school (1990) and yearly bursaries.

Skills and Interests

Computers
Highly skilled user of email, word processing, spreadsheet, and database programs. Able to use the internet for research, creating web pages.

Languages
JAPANESE: Japanese proficiency (Level 1), Kanji proficiency (Level 5)
FRENCH: Studied at the university level

Theatre Arts
Performed in high school and university, and in a musical in Japan

Driving
Possess Canadian and Japanese drivers licenses

Leisure
Enjoy photography, reading, watching movies, and listening to music

Travel

Long-term

GREAT BRITAIN
Aug 1990 to Jul 1991, worked in Hertfordshire, travelled to Scotland, Wales, and various parts of England.

JAPAN
Sept 1995 to Aug 2000: worked in Fukushima
April 2002 to present: working and studying in Ibaraki
Visited: Akita, Chiba, Gunma, Hiroshima, Hokkaido, Hyogo, Ishikawa, Kagawa, Kanagawa, Kochi, Kyoto, Miyagi, Nagano, Nara, Niigata, Okayama, Okinawa, Osaka, Saitama, Shiga, Tochigi, Tokyo, Yamagata

Short-term

CANADA: Calgary, Edmonton, Fredericton, Montreal, Ottawa, Quebec City, Saskatoon, Vancouver, Victoria
FRANCE: Paris, Loire Valley
GERMANY: Berlin, Potsdam, Stralsund, Hamburg, Lubeck, Bad Sooden Allendorf, Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Tuebingen, Munich, Dachau
GREAT BRITAIN: Scotland
HONG KONG
INDONESIA: Jakarta
MACAU
MALAWI: Lilongwe
MALAYSIA: Kuala Lumpur
MOZAMBIQUE: Ulongue
SOUTH AFRICA: Johannesburg
SOUTH KOREA: Seoul
THAILAND: Ayuthaya, Chiang Mai, Bangkok, Ko Phi Phi
UNITED STATES: New York, Michigan, Florida
ZAMBIA: Livingstone, Mfuwe