I have recently found out I will be placed in a private school and there will be two Co-Jets! Would love to ask if anyone has any advice or experiences about being a Co-Jet? Or has any tips?
One piece of advice is do not go into this thinking they will or have to be your friends. Working with co-JETs I found is like moving in with your SO. It will be awesome OR you will be on each others nerves constantly.
I don’t work with a co-JET daily but I’ve had periods of having to be with my co-JET for extended periods of time, and being around each other so much for so long, we really got on each others nerves. I’m talking about going to school together, school all day, and going back home together (we lived in the same BoE housing). Even if I didn’t like him I felt pressured to “be his friend” esp as a 1st year JET. Some distance, even occasionally and even if they are super chill, is good for the relationship.
I was with my co-JET in his low points and man the incessant complaining, groans, slow dip to jadedness where I had to do 90% of the work, it as awful. The worst part is no one really knows your pain because everyone else who meets him only meets him at his best (when we’re all in a good mood and go out for drinks and what not). It bled into work stuff (rightfully so because he stopped caring and I hated him). Our relationship improved after I basically ghosted him outside work hours lol.
edit: i typed this before running off to class so i fixed some typos and stuff
I joined my co-JET from April after the shuffle, and we’re actually neighbours, so going to and from school is easy. We get on well, but don’t see each other apart from lunch at school since we’re in different buildings each time. She started at this school way before me, so I feel a bit like an imposter, and some pressure to be as energetic as her. I’m not a naturally energetic person so it can be a struggle. We both have our social batteries and can feel when one of us is just not in the mood to talk all the way home. I’d say this is important if you’ll be spending so much time together. We also don’t tend to meet up outside of work, but there’s no negative feelings, just different friend groups. It’s pretty nice having someone to chat about the same school though.
I have a co-jet and its pretty great personally. They really helped me out majorly when I first got to my placement. Gave me a bunch of lesson plans and introduced me to every one at school. I shadowed her my first week and then shadowed another JET for a day at a different SHS.
She also took me to a bunch of different places to get me familiar with the area and showed me how to take the bus and trains. Though, that might be less of a co-jet thing and more of a neighbor thing. At my city, all the ALTs are in one apartment complex so there’s literally like 20 of us here.
My co-JET and I were our private school’s first JETs. It was really nice having someone there who was having similar experiences. We didn’t hang out together outside of work, but we were able to help each other a lot with navigating the Japanese workplace. When he left and I got a new co-JET, I ended up giving a lot of advice and support like a mentor. As long as the co-JET is a good person, I feel it should be a positive experience.
I’m a private school jet. I’ve been here a year and just got a new ALT. Here’s my two cents:
– Don’t assume you’ll be friends. Sorry to say, but some personalities just don’t mesh well. Or if the work load isn’t balanced, then it can be tough to not feel resentment since you are earning the same amount. Even if you are friends, you’ll be spending a lot of time together so it can be tough at times.
– Please for the love of god, keep in mind anything your co-ALT does for you, is done out of kindness. There’s NO obligation for your co-ALT to do anything for you, so if they help you out or give you advice, please tell them “thank you”. It’s two words, isn’t difficult to do, and would probably mean a lot to them. Additionally, please please use “please” when asking for help. It goes a long way for keeping peace and being friends.
– Try your best to be independent. Of course, if you need help, please ask. But don’t expect your co-ALT to spoon feed you. They have their own work to do (probably), so try to do things on your own. Google translate is your friend.
– Don’t only talk to your co-ALT. Please talk to your JTEs as well. They’re there to help you as well. It’s difficult for everyone if you only talk to one person and never ask anyone else for help. Like, if you need help translating something, maybe ask a JTE or check google before asking your foreign ALT, even if their Japanese is really good.
– Don’t argue with them in front of students about the definition of a word. Be an adult and google it later, yeah? Even if you disagree with them, try to keep it professional.
– Clear communication is important. Your Co-ALT can’t read your mind. If you need help, or are struggling, or want to do more work, or anything else, please use your words to ask them! Don’t except them to know what you want without you saying it.
– Editing in: when people are talking to you, don’t lie down, take your shoes off, close your eyes, be on your phone, or use your wireless headphones. Let’s be respectful & kind, yeah?
– ✨learning people’s names goes a long way
Having a co-JET is like having a sibling. Sometimes you’ll get along and some times you won’t. But the key is being able to have your own work and your space away from each other.
Try to talk out any issues you have & always keep it respectful. I’m sure you’re gonna do great! 😊
I was in a school with another ALT. He didnt like me from the beginning. He didnt like the ALT before me as well. Not friendly at all. If I asked questions he would barely answer and he never ever talked to me. He wanted to be the only foreigner in the school I guess. But he didnt get along with the other teachers and staff. To make things worse, he didnt have a shower everyday, so he smelled pretty bad during the summer.
I was in a different school with another ALT and we talked a lot. Didnt become friends but in school we talked a lot.
I have a co-jet once a week, it’s pretty good especially if you are feeling isolated living in japan but it’s an esid situation. Hopefully you can have a good relationship but it’s not a guarantee so don’t worry too much over it.
I’m also at a private school in Tokyo and have a co-jet. Honestly it has been really nice to have someone else to chat to in between classes and on the bus ride home. They arrived 2 years before me so they were able to answer some general questions about Japan and their experience at the school, and thankfully they were happy to help me out so I appreciated it a lot. At first we didn’t really speak that much – mostly casual work chat, which was totally fine. As time has gone on we have talked more, often have a laugh and sometimes do things together on our days off. Of course it won’t be the same experience everywhere, so it’s not a guarantee that you’ll get along, but I put some effort in to try to get to know them and luckily they reciprocated. I honestly think I got lucky in that my school has quite a lot of foreign teachers, not just us ALTs, and they often organise meals or other fun things so different departments can mingle (including JTEs). It hasn’t been as frequent due to covid, but some of the teachers did hold a small welcome party for me at a yakiniku place after I had settled in a bit so that was really nice. Overall, I’d say just go in there and be your authentic self. You might feel some pressure or nerves if your co-jets have already been there for a while, but everyone starts somewhere and they were both newbies once. If you ultimately don’t get along with your co-jets then just try your best to be civil and get through the work days, then you can meet up with friends and enjoy your time outside of work. On that note, if you ever want to hang out in Tokyo just send me a message! It can be hard to make friends if you don’t push yourself to get out there and socialise (like me lol). I hope you have a great time at your placement school!
I have one co-jet and several other ALTs at my school. We all get along great and it’s a super comfy work environment!
9 comments
One piece of advice is do not go into this thinking they will or have to be your friends. Working with co-JETs I found is like moving in with your SO. It will be awesome OR you will be on each others nerves constantly.
I don’t work with a co-JET daily but I’ve had periods of having to be with my co-JET for extended periods of time, and being around each other so much for so long, we really got on each others nerves. I’m talking about going to school together, school all day, and going back home together (we lived in the same BoE housing). Even if I didn’t like him I felt pressured to “be his friend” esp as a 1st year JET. Some distance, even occasionally and even if they are super chill, is good for the relationship.
I was with my co-JET in his low points and man the incessant complaining, groans, slow dip to jadedness where I had to do 90% of the work, it as awful. The worst part is no one really knows your pain because everyone else who meets him only meets him at his best (when we’re all in a good mood and go out for drinks and what not). It bled into work stuff (rightfully so because he stopped caring and I hated him). Our relationship improved after I basically ghosted him outside work hours lol.
edit: i typed this before running off to class so i fixed some typos and stuff
I joined my co-JET from April after the shuffle, and we’re actually neighbours, so going to and from school is easy. We get on well, but don’t see each other apart from lunch at school since we’re in different buildings each time. She started at this school way before me, so I feel a bit like an imposter, and some pressure to be as energetic as her. I’m not a naturally energetic person so it can be a struggle. We both have our social batteries and can feel when one of us is just not in the mood to talk all the way home. I’d say this is important if you’ll be spending so much time together. We also don’t tend to meet up outside of work, but there’s no negative feelings, just different friend groups. It’s pretty nice having someone to chat about the same school though.
I have a co-jet and its pretty great personally. They really helped me out majorly when I first got to my placement. Gave me a bunch of lesson plans and introduced me to every one at school. I shadowed her my first week and then shadowed another JET for a day at a different SHS.
She also took me to a bunch of different places to get me familiar with the area and showed me how to take the bus and trains. Though, that might be less of a co-jet thing and more of a neighbor thing. At my city, all the ALTs are in one apartment complex so there’s literally like 20 of us here.
My co-JET and I were our private school’s first JETs. It was really nice having someone there who was having similar experiences. We didn’t hang out together outside of work, but we were able to help each other a lot with navigating the Japanese workplace. When he left and I got a new co-JET, I ended up giving a lot of advice and support like a mentor. As long as the co-JET is a good person, I feel it should be a positive experience.
I’m a private school jet. I’ve been here a year and just got a new ALT. Here’s my two cents:
– Don’t assume you’ll be friends. Sorry to say, but some personalities just don’t mesh well. Or if the work load isn’t balanced, then it can be tough to not feel resentment since you are earning the same amount. Even if you are friends, you’ll be spending a lot of time together so it can be tough at times.
– Please for the love of god, keep in mind anything your co-ALT does for you, is done out of kindness. There’s NO obligation for your co-ALT to do anything for you, so if they help you out or give you advice, please tell them “thank you”. It’s two words, isn’t difficult to do, and would probably mean a lot to them. Additionally, please please use “please” when asking for help. It goes a long way for keeping peace and being friends.
– Try your best to be independent. Of course, if you need help, please ask. But don’t expect your co-ALT to spoon feed you. They have their own work to do (probably), so try to do things on your own. Google translate is your friend.
– Don’t only talk to your co-ALT. Please talk to your JTEs as well. They’re there to help you as well. It’s difficult for everyone if you only talk to one person and never ask anyone else for help. Like, if you need help translating something, maybe ask a JTE or check google before asking your foreign ALT, even if their Japanese is really good.
– Don’t argue with them in front of students about the definition of a word. Be an adult and google it later, yeah? Even if you disagree with them, try to keep it professional.
– Clear communication is important. Your Co-ALT can’t read your mind. If you need help, or are struggling, or want to do more work, or anything else, please use your words to ask them! Don’t except them to know what you want without you saying it.
– Editing in: when people are talking to you, don’t lie down, take your shoes off, close your eyes, be on your phone, or use your wireless headphones. Let’s be respectful & kind, yeah?
– ✨learning people’s names goes a long way
Having a co-JET is like having a sibling. Sometimes you’ll get along and some times you won’t. But the key is being able to have your own work and your space away from each other.
Try to talk out any issues you have & always keep it respectful. I’m sure you’re gonna do great! 😊
I was in a school with another ALT. He didnt like me from the beginning. He didnt like the ALT before me as well. Not friendly at all. If I asked questions he would barely answer and he never ever talked to me. He wanted to be the only foreigner in the school I guess. But he didnt get along with the other teachers and staff. To make things worse, he didnt have a shower everyday, so he smelled pretty bad during the summer.
I was in a different school with another ALT and we talked a lot. Didnt become friends but in school we talked a lot.
I have a co-jet once a week, it’s pretty good especially if you are feeling isolated living in japan but it’s an esid situation. Hopefully you can have a good relationship but it’s not a guarantee so don’t worry too much over it.
I’m also at a private school in Tokyo and have a co-jet. Honestly it has been really nice to have someone else to chat to in between classes and on the bus ride home. They arrived 2 years before me so they were able to answer some general questions about Japan and their experience at the school, and thankfully they were happy to help me out so I appreciated it a lot. At first we didn’t really speak that much – mostly casual work chat, which was totally fine. As time has gone on we have talked more, often have a laugh and sometimes do things together on our days off. Of course it won’t be the same experience everywhere, so it’s not a guarantee that you’ll get along, but I put some effort in to try to get to know them and luckily they reciprocated. I honestly think I got lucky in that my school has quite a lot of foreign teachers, not just us ALTs, and they often organise meals or other fun things so different departments can mingle (including JTEs). It hasn’t been as frequent due to covid, but some of the teachers did hold a small welcome party for me at a yakiniku place after I had settled in a bit so that was really nice. Overall, I’d say just go in there and be your authentic self. You might feel some pressure or nerves if your co-jets have already been there for a while, but everyone starts somewhere and they were both newbies once. If you ultimately don’t get along with your co-jets then just try your best to be civil and get through the work days, then you can meet up with friends and enjoy your time outside of work. On that note, if you ever want to hang out in Tokyo just send me a message! It can be hard to make friends if you don’t push yourself to get out there and socialise (like me lol). I hope you have a great time at your placement school!
I have one co-jet and several other ALTs at my school. We all get along great and it’s a super comfy work environment!