To JET or Not to JET...

If you're on the fence about applying for the JET Program this fall, maybe I can help answer some of your questions, alleviate fears, or hey, even confirm some of them. If you know for sure you are applying to JET and nothing short of death could possibly stop you, maybe my blog will supply you with helpful tips for the application process and excitement during those four months you're basically chewing your fingers off waiting to hear if you've passed the interview process.

Don't underestimate the application process. It is competitive, and if you're like me, you will second guess everything you have ever done in your entire life every day until you get your final acceptance letter. Applying to JET, for me, was really stressful because I was in my final year of my undergrad at UF and had to juggle a lot of projects, a job, and not-so-spare time. The application itself is of decent length. JET wants to know what you like to do, what activities you've been involved in, what placement you're looking for if you make it to Japan, and if you are of sound mind. Basically, they want to make sure you look good on paper. If you do, congratulations! You have won half the battle! Errr... sort of.

Before you fill out the application, ask yourself if you are ready to live in Japan (most likely by yourself if you are unmarried/unburdened by children like I) for an entire year. Remember: you have NO control over where you are placed. If you aren't ready for the coldest winters in Hokkaido or the hottest summers in Okinawa, maybe you should consider visiting Japan before you apply for JET. I was asked about this in my interview-- how would I feel if I were placed in a prefecture with an extreme climate? I gave them an honest answer, full of confidence: I was born in Washington State. I am no stranger to chipping ice off of the car in the morning or having to trudge up the hill to my house because the road is too slick for the car to drive up. In fact, I told the interviewers, "I MISS that weather." (This got me some very shocked and wide-eyed panelists.) On the flip side, I have lived in Florida for over ten years now. I've adjusted to the heat and the bugs. Okinawa ain't got nothin' on us; Florida invented humidity! (That may or may not be verbatim.)

The point is that you need to convince the interviewers that you are flexible, that you aren't going to get your placement in Hokkaido and freak out that it's too far away from the places you want to vacation to and break your contract. (Speaking of breach of contract, if you do so, you'll be paying not only for your flight back home but also the flight that just flew your happy ass to Japan. So think hard about how your decisions could affect your bank account. Even if you decline the position before you go to Japan, if you wait too long, you could still be stuck with an airline cancellation fee.)

Back to the application. The part that you should be spending the majority of your waking hours on is the statement of purpose. I cannot stress how important it is, and any other blog you read or vlog you watch will tell you the same... hopefully. If not, back away slowly. My statement of purpose took me weeks to get "right." If you are satisfied after your first draft, you are still not done. That is why I recommend you begin the SoP as soon as possible. If you can squeeze out the entire thing in one night, great. Leave it alone for a day and then come back to it. You'll be amazed at how much you'll change. The SoP is two double-spaced pages long with one inch margins on all sides. No exceptions.

If you are an English major like I was, this is probably going to kill you. Two pages seem like a whole lot until you're hardly done explaining how you saved quadriplegic orphans in Africa when you've run out of room to write things that are actually relevant to your prospective job as an ALT. Suddenly, you have to decide if your humanitarian story is more important than talking about those academic awards you won or that community project you led. (Hint: the community project wins.) Maybe you wanted to talk about your career goals more. JET knows the two-page limit is tricky. They want to make sure you are able to effectively condense important information without losing content.

My best advice is to write it, leave it alone, come back to it, write your second draft, have at least two people read AND critique it (I'm talking solid critiques, not "Yeah, oh, this is good. You're definitely getting in." If you're in college, chances are you know an English major or at least someone with decent writing skills), absorb their input, and write another draft. Yes, I said DRAFT. I told you this thing is important. Do you want to go to Japan? Then write this statement of purpose as if you've just heard Jigsaw say he wants to "play a little game." Okay, it's not life and death, but it's pretty up there. Once I'm physically in Japan, I'll think about posting my statement on this blog. I know how frustrating it can be to get a paper off the ground. Thankfully, there are some benevolent souls on the intertubes who have posted their SoPs for the public to plagiarize. It's just a matter of beating the crap out of Google 'til it gives you what you want!

Also on the application is a self-evaluation of your Japanese abilities. If you are advanced, put advanced. If you have never spoken a word of Japanese besides "sushi," that is completely okay. A little weird, but still okay. Keep in mind, they will most likely ask you to speak in Japanese in your interview if you say you have Japanese ability. I put intermediate for mine, was asked a question in Japanese, KNEW what the question was, but completely froze when I tried to answer it. I thought my chances of becoming an ALT were over then and there. That's when interview tip numero uno comes into play: your best assets are your confidence and your SMILE!

In a predominantly English interview, any sudden foreign language can trip up a non-native speaker. Your interviewer is trying to gauge how resourceful you are and if you fold under pressure. I thought about what I wanted to say for a moment, felt my brain turn to absolute slosh, looked at my questioner with a big smile and apologized that I couldn't come up with an answer. Luckily, I was given another chance when they asked me if I could at least introduce myself in Japanese. I looked at them as if to say, "Sir and madams, bind me, gag me, and cut out my tongue, I will give you the best damn Japanese introduction you have ever heard." And then I followed through. (Without the follow-through, I probably would have been screwed. I'm really intermediate, I swear!) It just goes to show you that one choke-up is not the end of the world. Your interviewers have a job to do, but they're all human (I think). They have all been in an interview before and know how stressful it can be. They aren't there to make you feel like a bug. They are there to make sure you are strong enough to survive in a foreign country. Really, they're doing you a favor.

Honestly, at times I felt like an absolute clown in my interview. And, to an extent, if you're not feeling just a little embarrassed for smiling/laughing too much, you're probably not smiling/laughing enough. You don't have to pretend to be cool in your interview. If you are totally geeked about teaching English in Japan, let the interviewers see that! Don't cosplay to your interview or anything, but DO bring your enthusiasm! When they asked me to do an impromptu lesson, I jumped out of my chair and pretty much skipped toward the white board (try to envision this semi-less retarded than it sounds). If they see energy and enthusiasm, your chances of going to Japan increase dramatically. You could be placed in an elementary school (or several) that requires you to be high-energy all day in order to keep the kids entertained enough so that they will pay attention to the lesson. Don't think you'll just be teaching one class a day or in just one school for that matter. If you can't imagine yourself being at a school from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. (and even later if you stay for afterschool activities) every day while simultaneously commuting to other schools with classes for which you are responsible, JET may not be for you.

This isn't to say your time in Japan will be miserable. I can't actually comment on that yet since I haven't shipped out yet, but that part will come in due time. As for most things in life, JET will probably be what you make of it. As this post has seemed to sprout arms and devour the internet, I shall sever it now before it does some real damage. I hope this was somewhat helpful. I'll finish up talking about the interview in another post. A, uh, shorter post. ^_^v

(Should I have a clever sign-off? Those things are rarely really clever. Once I get to Japan, I'll have a daily picture or something.)