Become a well-rounded and interesting person who is reasonably self-sufficient. That’s just general advice of course because the JET program is only a job, entry-level, with basically no possibility for advancement, so it doesn’t really make sense to do anything specifically for it.
​
Of course, if you want to use the JET program as a stepping stone to living in Japan long-term, you should work on your Japanese. Without sufficient Japanese skills, there’s basically no way to break out of the low-level ALT jobs.
As I’m sure you’ll be told in the near future by many other JETs. It varies. But, in the grand scheme of things, what you have on your resume is flexible as long as your interests align with the program. The “cover letter” really is huge chunk of your application’s importance and I strongly suggest selling yourself as well as possible there.
That being said a few really good things to have on your application are as follows:
TL;DR: Japanese language, teaching, Japanese(/foreign culture) experience, stressful environment experience. Any combination of one or many of those and a solid cover letter.
-Japanese speaking capability
It helps a lot more than I think they let on as it is extremely important for a positive experience for you, your employers, your coworkers and your students
-Teaching credentials and/or experience (professional or personal notwithstanding)
Kind of self explanatory but having some sort of experience or show for passion in the field also helps.
-Experience in professional, educational and/or personal sphere regarding Japanese culture/ people.
One of the biggest hurdles many leaving JETs have is that with their peers or simply the environment that they’re put in. Evidence that you have at least a surface level understanding of real Japanese personal/cultural interaction is important.
-Evidence of truly achievement over a truly stressful environment.
Moving to a different country is not comfortable in many ways. In the first few weeks of arriving it can already be expected to have several unexpected and difficult scenarios thrown your way. This can include employers, places to live as well as a lot of your other personal needs, adjusting to a new work environment, etc. Having some sort of show to say you are not only capable in these environments but also can easily keep a level head is very equally important.
All in all it should still be restated that the program places high important on the cover letter and, as a selective program, it takes selection of personalities fairly seriously. So, I would strong suggest polishing up that and really pressing the fact that YOU as a capable individual are right for THIS program. However, that being said, if you have one or several of these things in your resume it should look a lot stronger as a candidate for an interview.
Volunteer, get involved in your community and have social hobbies. You can be a fan of Japanese culture and fluent in the language but if you’re not a social and likable person who participates in their community then you likely wouldn’t be the best candidate.
3 comments
Become a well-rounded and interesting person who is reasonably self-sufficient. That’s just general advice of course because the JET program is only a job, entry-level, with basically no possibility for advancement, so it doesn’t really make sense to do anything specifically for it.
​
Of course, if you want to use the JET program as a stepping stone to living in Japan long-term, you should work on your Japanese. Without sufficient Japanese skills, there’s basically no way to break out of the low-level ALT jobs.
As I’m sure you’ll be told in the near future by many other JETs. It varies. But, in the grand scheme of things, what you have on your resume is flexible as long as your interests align with the program. The “cover letter” really is huge chunk of your application’s importance and I strongly suggest selling yourself as well as possible there.
That being said a few really good things to have on your application are as follows:
TL;DR: Japanese language, teaching, Japanese(/foreign culture) experience, stressful environment experience. Any combination of one or many of those and a solid cover letter.
-Japanese speaking capability
It helps a lot more than I think they let on as it is extremely important for a positive experience for you, your employers, your coworkers and your students
-Teaching credentials and/or experience (professional or personal notwithstanding)
Kind of self explanatory but having some sort of experience or show for passion in the field also helps.
-Experience in professional, educational and/or personal sphere regarding Japanese culture/ people.
One of the biggest hurdles many leaving JETs have is that with their peers or simply the environment that they’re put in. Evidence that you have at least a surface level understanding of real Japanese personal/cultural interaction is important.
-Evidence of truly achievement over a truly stressful environment.
Moving to a different country is not comfortable in many ways. In the first few weeks of arriving it can already be expected to have several unexpected and difficult scenarios thrown your way. This can include employers, places to live as well as a lot of your other personal needs, adjusting to a new work environment, etc. Having some sort of show to say you are not only capable in these environments but also can easily keep a level head is very equally important.
All in all it should still be restated that the program places high important on the cover letter and, as a selective program, it takes selection of personalities fairly seriously. So, I would strong suggest polishing up that and really pressing the fact that YOU as a capable individual are right for THIS program. However, that being said, if you have one or several of these things in your resume it should look a lot stronger as a candidate for an interview.
Volunteer, get involved in your community and have social hobbies. You can be a fan of Japanese culture and fluent in the language but if you’re not a social and likable person who participates in their community then you likely wouldn’t be the best candidate.