Hi friends!
I’ve just come back from a trip to Japan which has confirmed a long-term dream for me, that I want to live & work in Japan for a year or two.
I’ve been looking into the JET programme but am unsure on a couple of things and would love some advice:
1. I want to be in a city, ideally Tokyo. I’m from London and for me the experience is only worth it if I can be in another big city. I understand that a lot of people want the most authentic experience possible and would love to live in the countryside, but I know that it’s not for me.
2. Ideally, I’d like to start the training process now so that I can head out in around a years time. From researching it seems like if I passed the 2025 applications, I wouldn’t move until Summer 2025.
I’m wondering if anyone has any advice on TEFL options where you can be more specific about where you end up.
Thanks in advance!
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UPDATE: Thanks everyone for your contributions! It’s been really helpful 🙂
I’m just reading through everything and will get back to people individually.
The general takeaway seems to be that Tokyo is very unlikely through JET, but JET provides good stability & is easier to get into the country that way.
Just to reiterate – I would be happy with another smaller city, but for me the most important thing is having a strong expat community around me. Especially since my Japanese isn’t great, I’m a big extrovert and I’ve lived in the countryside before and really struggled with being so isolated.
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Extra context: I have a degree, have been a working professional for a few years now, but no teaching qualifications as of yet. I’m looking into doing a TEFL this year – welcome any comments as to whether this is worth it or not