Hi, I was wondering about the schedule for Tokyo Orientation. When do the day’s activities typically end by (especially in recent times with COVID)? Are there usually any evening activities? I was hoping to meet up with my old friends in Tokyo/go out to take care of some stuff at least a few times and am trying to plan in advance since I know the schedule will be tight. Thanks!
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So, I have talked with some of this year’s ED. Those who are boosted can explore Tokyo after daily responsibilities are concluded. There is a schedule out there, although I can’t post it here. It is mostly seminars done over Zoom from within the hotel room. Mental health, ethics, and teaching techniques, to name a few.
The schedule is pretty packed and you only show in person on rare occasions. This is part of the changes due to COVID, but it could be different by July. Again, this is what EDs experienced back in May.
Tl;DR: Based on ED Orientation, if you aren’t boosted, there is no roaming. The schedule is pretty tight, but there is some free time allotted towards the end of the day.
Hello, I would like to recommend a really helpful booklet on the jet programme website named the “JET General Handbook 2022”. There, it gives you a brief overview of their plans for this year’s orientation, and how the schedule will work.
Based on the booklet, it will be extremely tight. However, I cannot give you a concrete answer.
Something to keep in mind is jet lag. I came pre-covid, but I so so exhausted (8 hours of lectures when jet lagged surprisingly does not help you get over jet lag) that I barely made it to dinner. I think I actually skipped dinner one night because I was too sleepy to leave my hotel room. And that’s saying something since I usually get over jet lag super quickly. I do know that other people went out and did things in the evenings though. So if your placement is near enough to Tokyo that you could come back to meet up with friends, then it might be better to come back when you’re less exhausted
I read the guidebook and it says we will have 2-3 roommates in our hotel during orientation. That’s a little odd for COVID times. Did they do this for early arrivals?
I can give you my own experience if that will help. I came in March 2022 from South Africa. Arrived at the hotel close to midnight with all my countrymen and we had to sit through a brief, albeit annoying lecture before being taken up to our rooms. We each had our own room and had to stay in those rooms for the duration of the quarantine period. On the same night we had to sort out our smartphones and sign a bunch of online stuff.
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If you have to quarantine then they will make you use the quarantine app and check your location each day of the quarantine. We were not allowed to leave our rooms at all and the hotel bentos will make you want to kill yourself (I recommend that you get proper hotel room service food once in a while). If anyone near you on the flight tested positive (as happened with me) then you will be designated a close contact and your quarantine will be extended.
In terms of the schedule there was 2 websites filled with online lectures and classes which had to be completed and 3 zoom/ microsoft teams live lectures.
Before COVID? In 2015 we had seminars from 9 to 5 (6?), with an hour of lunch break.
Then there were cocktail parties at the embassy and official JET banquet on the second night.