Snakes on a JET!! - Useful stuff to know about the JET Program, Part 1

Yup, it’s that time of year again: JET Program interview time!!

In an attempt to counter all the cruft-covered gems and cruft-covered cruft found on JET related forums, I’m going to do a concise, BS-free series of posts on my personal JET application and experience on the JET Program thus far.

First topic: The JET Interview.

Congrats are in order for making it this far already! From what I’ve heard, most people who make it to the interview phase get in the program… they already like you on paper; they just want to make sure you’re equally impressive in real life.

Dress to impress and try to relax

You go to your local JET office, dressed in your business best, and are interviewed by a panel of three (usually including at least one Japanese person and one former JET). Just show up on time (even though I didn’t, ahem) and try to relax.

Predict what questions they may ask

VERY generally speaking, common questions you’ll probably encounter can fall into three types:

1. Questions about your application are very personalized and aimed at making sure you are who you said you were in your application. As I’ve said already, they liked the you they read about, so now they want to know a little more than 2 pages worth. I can’t predict what they’ll ask you, but here’s a common example: If you said you’ve taken Japanese and have always shown an interest in learning about Japan, they may ask how you plan to further that; if you hadn’t really thought about Japan before applying and said so, they may ask you “why Japan?” Also, they may ask why you decided on joining the JET Program and how you feel it might relate to your career.
2. Stressful classroom questions are aimed at making sure you won’t freak out in a classroom, will act appropriately towards students, and can think on your feet. For example, “It’s 10 minutes before class and the Japanese English teacher tells you they haven’t prepared anything. What will you do to keep the kids occupied for 50 minutes?” Another one I’ve heard is “What sort of lesson plan would you suggest to teach [something random]?” They may even ask a tough one like “What do you do if you see bullying among the students?” (Common sense answer here: speak to your supervisor or the students’ home room teacher about it, but do not try to interfere unless there’s a serious altercation going on and you’re the only one around to break it up.)
3. Culture shock questions are just to make sure you don’t break down from the stress and end your contract early because you can’t get used to miso soup. They also want to make sure you don’t upset or insult other Japanese people with your actions. If you’re female, they may ask how you will react in male-dominant situation A. If you’re Asian or look very Japanese (such as myself), they may ask how you would deal with people who are disappointed that they did not get “a real American/[your country]an” (the 2008 Presidential Primaries were just beginning at the time of my interview, so I pointed out that for the first time ever, America was NOT going to be represented by a white male, so it will be important for people to realize how diverse Americans really are). They may also ask you about dealing with coworkers or rules/regulations of the school. Just always err on the side of caution and if you honestly don’t know how to respond, emphasize that you don’t want to insult anyone and will ask your supervisor or another Japanese person about how best to respond to that situation.

Prepare!!

1. Look over your application and see if there are any weak spots or things that might interest the interviewer. For example, things you didn’t explain fully, really unique things you did, stuff that MAY suggest you might drop out of the program if better opportunities arise (like applications to other jobs or programs).
2. Brush up on Japan knowledge, especially if you never had any deep interest in Japan before. I’m not saying go memorize the Wikipedia page for Japan (though it doesn’t hurt to look at it), but at least know about the Japanese writing system and language, that exchanges are often very formalized and respect/politeness is very very important, that people are usually very reserved and private, etc. I’ve heard of people who said they read Japanese news for months to prepare for this… you really do not need to do that, but it doesn’t hurt to look at the top stories of the Asahi Shimbun on the day of your interview to make sure you didn’t miss some breaking news about Japan-[your country here] relations.
3. Imagine yourself in a classroom and think about what you would do. Seriously, just think about how you’d handle a classroom of 40 kids. However, do NOT go in thinking you will revolutionalize teaching— you have very limited power in the classroom (even if you know how to teach, you may not be able to fully exercise those techniques you’ve developed) and usually can only hope to make the kids NOT BORED of English.
4. Think of questions to ask the interviewers. Not only can you find out some first-hand information about your potential new job, but you will seem impressive as well. Keep in mind that interviewers often include people such as the following: Japanese professionals from the local community, Japanese professors/teachers from local educational institutions, representatives of CLAIR (an organization that provides a LOT of support for the JET program, but is not technically a part of it), and former JETs. Think about what you’d like to ask any of these people.

And lastly, remember the purpose of the JET Program!

It is the Japan EXCHANGE and Teaching Program. You are expected to share your culture with those you come in contact with, and you are also expected to experience and take in Japanese culture. It is not about Westernizing Japan, but about bringing the largely homogenous Japanese population a more diverse experience and sharing Japan’s culture with non-Japanese cultures as well. So express a desire to learn about Japan and take it back home with you in some way… but you have to be sincere. You will not have the best experience possible if you expect otherwise.

If you have any more questions on the interview, just post a comment and ask!