I’m a former five year JET who left the country just in time for the pandemic to completely scuttle my post-JET plans entirely (I had achieved my goal only for my job to be completely cut), and for some rather unfortunate life circumstances to put me in a hole that took me a while to crawl out of. I’m now looking to further my education as a way to move forward, but finding a job that’s able to provide a livable salary while doing so in the US is…difficult. Inflation, gas prices, and rent are all ridiculous right now. As a result, and since I’m interested in working in Japan in the future again anyway, I’m considering applying to JET again.
I know it used to be fifth years could not do JET again, but I checked their website again and it now says that you can’t do JET again if you’ve done it for six years. This means it is technically possible to apply again. I would like to apply for the CIR position to take advantage of my N2 Japanese, but would be perfectly willing to be an ALT again to take advantage of the livable conditions and free time to further my education. Essentially doing what I probably should have done the first time around in all honesty.
Would you say my chances of getting into JET again are decent, or does being a former fifth year work against me? Would you also say this is a good course of action for my future, or would you recommend against it?
8 comments
I think my new Pred has been a JET over two terms for a total of 9 years, so it’s not impossible.
Just go for it if you want to. We don’t know what your future is, so we can’t really advise on how two runs of being a JET would help or hinder that.
As for your chances, again, depends who you roll at each stage.
As you know JET isn’t going to give you much career movement, but it might be cruisy enough for you to study.
As a potential temporary job it’s not the worst, you’re making hardly any money here and with the weakening Yen if you’re doing further education you’ll have to consider possible student loans as well. The money is liveable but if you’re paying students loans back in the US it could become difficult if the yen gets weaker.
Hey go for it. Apply for the CIR and tick the box that states you’re willing to be an ALT. All the best.
You can also apply to be a regular teacher at some BOEs, although you will probably need to hit N1 plus N2ish writing by hand to get the job. You could do another 2 years of ALT and max out your Japanese then make the transition at 2.5 years into your new term.
I’m a current second timer on JET now – Applied for similar reasons, lost 3 jobs over Covid – Figured I could pick up where I left off even if I was no where near I was previously. The only difference in the application process was being asked in the interview how I’d manage coming in with expectations and being put somewhere completely different.
I wouldn’t say I had a chip on my shoulder, but my first time on JET there was very many inconveniences I had to put up with being an “Inaka” prefectural ALT that wasn’t approved to get a car…. during my time an earthquake caused our Jutaku to not pass inspection and I was faced with having to move 20 years + of predecessor’s things plus my own into a new place six train stops north if I had wanted to stay. I chose to go home and work on my student debt (even at that time before the Yen’s value dropped the JET salary didn’t translate to much in American USD) and I had the lingering feeling I had left too soon.
Applying to JET again in 2020 – I felt like I made the best out of one of the worst placements JET could put me and I enjoyed it – So coming back on could only be a better experience no ?
Welp – I stayed my year and didn’t re-contract. Now I am in a major city but our CO is so hands off that they pay services to take care of us because they don’t have the man power, so we have two days of start up with a paid “gaijin”-helper and have to use a guarantor service to get an apartment that got me nothing I requested and am paying more than what I was quoted, in a part of the area with terrible transportation. The job is much less hands on, so it’s so much less rewarding. My budget is even thinner paying more to live on a first year salary sending money back to the US with the current drop in the yen’s value.
All in all – you may find things you couldn’t even fathom not liking this time, being put back into the JET lotto.
I will say coming back on both older and an ex Jet – Its a bit ostracizing in it’s self. You don’t share the young curious hype that fresh grads – first timers do, and cliques pinch off quickly. You could be as humble as possible but heaven forbid you say anything truthful or out of experience to the rose-colored-glasses brigade and you are just a Debbie downer.
If you have a set plan with coming on that can propel you forward – do it, but if you’re doing it for stability – in my case, applying for that reason – I feel like I moved back in life. The only thing I gained was weight and the closure that my time here is done.
We had a JET arrive last intake that had been for a 5-year period on JET in the past, so it’s definitely doable.
You can do it again, but not anytime soon. I think another criteria is that you can’t have lived in Japan for X(5 or 10?) amount of years prior to applying. If you left right before the pandemic hit, you’re going to have to hang tight for a couple more years before you can apply, I believe.
If you really just want to come back to Japan, you’d be better off applying to AOEN or INTERAC, they snatch people up pretty fast.
But since you have N2, you’re most likely better off waiting for spring to roll around and try to get into a good Japanese company like Rakuten which pays far more than JET, and it would probably be more beneficial for you education wise.
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In any case, all the best!