Author: Sara Derrick, Graduate Assistant, Career Design Center | March 6th, 2024 | 3 minute read
As you’re getting ready to embark on your professional journey, have you considered the possibility of traveling before delving into your career? Perhaps experience different cultures and destinations before fully immersing yourself in the professional world? If this is something that interests you then you should consider teaching English abroad! In this easy read, I will introduce the JET Program and discuss about my own personal experience of living and working as a high school teacher in Saitama, Japan.
THE JET PROGRAM: The Japanese Exchange and Teaching program (JET) is a government sponsored program that invites English speakers from a multitude of countries to move to Japan and teach English as a full time Assistant Language Teacher (ALT). This position not only allows you to explore and learn more about Japanese culture, but also gives Japanese students the opportunity to learn from a fluent English speaker and to learn more about your culture! This is a fully paid program that includes wonderful benefits like health insurance, flight payments, a very generous salary, and depending on the placement, free housing and free daily transportation.
FAQ:
How Do I Qualify? As the title of this article states, you don’t have to have any sort of English or Education degree to apply for this program! As long as you have a bachelor’s degree, then the subject does not matter!
Do I have to speak or read Japanese? Nope! I attended this program with multiple people who never studied Japanese or had ever been to Japan previously. Of course, picking up a few words is extremely helpful for day-to-day life if you get the position.
How long is the program? You can do as little as one year or up to five years on the program! Every year, you will be evaluated and asked if you want to recontract to stay for another year. A positive of staying longer is that your salary increases with every year you stay.
Do I choose my placement? Yes and No. During your application process, you can put in multiple requests about where you would like to live and what age group you are most comfortable working with. JET will do its best in placing you in a comfortable area where you will thrive however, it’s hard to meet everyone’s requests. Once you are given a placement, you sadly cannot switch. This means that if you aren’t happy with your placement, you sadly must drop from the program entirely. It’s important to note that every placement has its positives and not getting your top choice shouldn’t deter you from having a life changing experience!
About My Experience
1.) What is your educational background and how did it influence you to go into teaching in Japan?
I studied Communication Studies at Ohio University. During my sophomore year of college, I decided to study abroad in Tokyo for a semester which made me fall in love with Japan! I knew I wanted to go back to Japan, but I had no idea how. One day, a former JET Alumni came to promote the program at my school and after discovering it, I knew immediately that I wanted to apply my senior year of college!
2.) Where was your placement? Did you get the placement you asked for?
When applying for the program, I stated how I loved being in big cities and asked if I could be placed near Tokyo if possible. I also stated that I was very happy with working with any age group. My placement ended up being in Saitama prefecture which is located right next to Tokyo! My apartment was quite literally a 20-minute train ride away from the night life of Tokyo. I ended up working for two different schools which can be quite common on the JET program. Four days of the week, I would go to my main school, a very famous all girl’s high school. The other one day of the week, I would go to my visit school which was a mixed gender school, famous for its baseball team.
3.) Did you have any teaching experience? What kind of jobs did you have before hand?
I had very little teaching experience when I originally applied for the program. My previous employment included things like being a Residential Assistant (RA), providing academic tutoring, working as a camp counselor, and holding various retail jobs. When I first arrived in Japan, I was very nervous about teaching because I had never taught a class before. However, my English-speaking coworkers were extremely kind and supported me throughout the entire process. As an Assistant Language Teachers (ALT) you never teach a class alone; for you are always accompanied by the head teacher. This relieves a lot of the pressure off you and allows for a smoother transition into teaching.
4.) Was moving to a new country difficult? Was it hard making friends?
Moving anywhere new is never easy, but the JET program does a really great job in making sure you’re comfortable and have everything you need! My coworkers at my main school found an apartment for me, set up a bank account for me, picked me up from the airport, helped me get all my essentials, took me to doctor appointments and more! I felt extremely welcomed and was never afraid to reach out to them. Another great thing about JET is that there are a lot of other JET members in your prefecture! Every prefecture has a discord and/or Facebook group where you can befriend the other ALTs in your area and attend fun monthly activities with them. I ended up be-friending so many people who I would now consider my best friends! I even persuaded one of my JET friends to move to Buffalo and we are now roommates!
5.) Would you recommend this experience to another person?
100% yes! This was easily the most incredible experience I ever had in my life. I’m so thankful for my time in Japan and would recommend to anyone who wants to try something new or just loves to travel to and would recommend this program to anyone who wants to try something new or just loves to travel! I would also be more than happy to answer any or all questions that one may have about the program or living in Japan. If you have any more questions, feel free to reach me at my email: saraderr@buffalo.edu.
