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Amazing Former JET Interview on Youtube! (Part 3)

Amazing Former JET Interview on Youtube! (Part 2)

Amazing Former JET Interview on Youtube! (Part 1)

Wow! Laura and I just found this amazing interview about the JET Programme on Youtube! Be sure to check out parts 2 and 3 too!

Six pounds and fifty pence...

...is what it cost to send my JET Application. Phew! Finally! I included a postcard of Manchester Town Hall with my application. Now, so say the forums, is when the waiting game begins.

Application Pack... done?

So far i've got...

1 completed and signed JET Programme Application Form	4 copies
1 completed and signed Self Assessment Medical Form	4 copies
1 signed and dated Authorisation and Release Form	4 copies
Statement of Physician Form (if applicable)	N/A
1 Personal Statement (double spaced)	4 copies
2 authenticated, original academic transcripts (stamped and signed)	4 copies of both
2 Proofs of Degree	4 copies
1 Proof of Nationality	4 copies
2 sealed references	1 copy of each
2 proof of study letters from college	4 copies of each

... but I can't be sure. Is that defnitely everything? It is, I know, but I really don't want to make any mistakes. I'll just check it all one more time...

We've bought a printer, just for our JET applications!

Yes, that's right, just to print off our applications. It isn't worth the stress of doing them at the library or at work, we've decided. I wonder if we can ship it to Japan to use once we get accepted.

JET Personal Statement - an extract

I think that my JET Application is going okay. Here's a blast of a chunk of my personal statement so far:

The JET Programme excites me because it offers an unsurpassed opportunity to experience life in Japan whilst working in a demanding and productive position as an ALT. I am fascinated by Japan, its culture, its history and its people. This interest began at University, where I took a module in Post-war Japanese Cinema within my Postgraduate Diploma in International Cinema. I became thoroughly captivated as I found out more about the country during my studies. A placement on the JET Programme would allow me to develop a profound understanding of Japan that a tourist would struggle to attain. My time working on a summer camp in America showed me that the best way to understand an unfamiliar culture is to live as part of it. The JET Programme offers me the chance to discover Japan first-hand.

- what do you think? Any good?

JET Application Form - a first look, first thoughts

It's a long form, but not that long. Most of the questions are straightforward, and most of the answers should be too. The most challenging, I think, is the question about the relationship of the JET Programme to the participant's current career direction or intended future plans. Time to pull on the thinking cap! Maybe I'll not have much not much time to blog* about the application process, so I'll apologise in advance if the posting rate seems slower than normal. I'm applying for JET, so give me a break, okay!?! Hehehehe!

*or I'll just end up backdating a lot of posts, as per usual.

OMG! OMG! OMG!

I’m in the South of France, on holiday, when Laura texts to say that the JET application form is now online! Finally! Unfortunately, as I’m away from my computer and my notes, I’m not in a position to do any work on it. It looks like November’s going to be a busy month!

Just another Manic Thursday

“I’m not sure I’m looking forward to Sean’s teaching style,” said Laura. “He’s kind of manic, and I think that’ll annoy me.”

And it was true. Whirlwind! Speedy speedy speedy! We dashed through lots of information about approaches to English Language Teaching, which was rather confusing for me – we were using linguistic jargon that, whilst probably commonplace in the field, left me feeling like I was outside of the party looking in, rather than a part of it. Is a mechanic expected to know the names of the parts of an engine on his first day? “PPP… blah de blah… lexis… waffle waffle…”

Confusing, but not impossible. We worked in groups. We discussed. We summarised. We shared. We struggled to start with, but we got there. Taxing, but within our capacity. Stretching us. Testing us. Pushing us. A heavy lesson, but a good one too. As I left, my head was spinning, but a smile was on my lips.

Magali

Paying for the course took nearly an hour. We spent part of the session getting to know each other, and part of it finding out more about the course. Magali has a very easy manner, and will – I think – turn out to be a great teacher. She is calm, measured, well-prepared, and soothing. I like her. Our reading list is long, but not all of it is compulsory. TESOL is a thrilling subject, and one with a lot of academic study around it. All three of us realised that the course is going to be a lot of work. I think we’re ready for that.

We shared the bus home with Magali. She shops at my supermarket, and rides past Kath and Laura’s on the way there. What a small world.

Crisis!

MMU are out of parchment paper! Laura can’t get her degree reprint!
Kath didn’t know she needed an academic transcript!
My referees haven’t got back to me to say “yes” yet!

Disaster! Disaster! Disaster!

Well, not exactly a disaster, but a good warning to us all nonetheless. How much of our individual application have we each sorted out? And how much more do we have to do? The application form hasn’t been released yet, but that’s no excuse for slacking.

We met, as normal, for our Tuesday night study group. We started with writing exercises, using some Post-it notes to practice our katakana. We then moved on to the Collins Easy Learning Japanese Audiobook for some speaking and listening practice. We covered:

watashi wa igirisujin desu - I am a British person
Brown-san wa, nujirandojin desu ka? - Mr Brown, are you a New Zealander?
hai, so desu - yes, that’s right
iie, chigiimasu - no, that’s incorrect

Lastly, so went the plan at least, was a session on the personal statement of the application. Unfortunately, that was when the crisis became apparent. And that was when the panic started! Well, not panic exactly… but we were quite concerned.

Hajimemashite Katakana!

The lesson today was partly fun, and partly terrifying.

The fun part came first. We learned hajimemashite! and we learned douzo youroshku! and then we practiced them by introducing ourselves to every single other member of the class. All nineteen of them. It felt like being in a room with a colossal echo, hajimemashite! douzo youroshku! hajimemashite! douzo youroshku! hajimemashite! douzo youroshku! hajimemashite! douzo youroshku! We started to learn bowing too. I wonder how long it will take to be able to do it solemnly, and without wanting to giggle.

The terrifying part came when we wrote out the forty-six katakana characters that make up the basic – basic only – katakana syllablery. Overwhelming? Yes. Humbling? Yes. Challenging? Undoubtedly, yes. Impossible? No. Not much is.

Is "boring" an adjective?

Yes, in the main, I suppose it is. But it could also be a regular verb - "termites are boring through the floorboards" - and subsequently a derived gerund too - "We estimate that boring occupies four-fifths of the termite's waking life."

Kath, Laura and I went through the seven main parts of speech in my classroom bedroom. Noun, Pronoun, Verb, Prepostion, Conjunction, Interjection, Adverb, Adjective. I gave examples, and then invited Kath and Laura to complete a couple of exercises. The lesson went well, but it went on and on too. We stopped for chips.

Hopefully the grammar will equip us well for our TESOL interviews. It's me on Thursday, and then the ladies on Friday. Good luck to us all!

Emi-san! Konbanwa!

Our first Japanese lesson was today. Our teacher, Emi, is very good: lively, enthusiastic, smiley. Is this what Seb meant when he said that most of all we need to be genki? We covered the aims of the course, and learned some phrases - konnichiwa; konbanwa; ohiyo gozaimasu; arigato - and a little bit about grammar - introduction to particles o; wa; ka.

We were given our names in katakana, and asked to learn numbers one to ten as our homework: ichi, ni, san, yon, go, rocku, nana, hachi, cu, jui. Laura's colleague Kris came with us. That makes yon of us. How exciting!

Forty pounds! For two sheets of paper! Outrageous!

I have just paid £40 for two sheets of paper. Yes, that's right. Forty pounds. Forty whole pounds. And what, pray, are these amazing expensive pieces of paper?

Academic Transcripts.

Not a transcript of every word I've ever submitted for my degree. No! Far more modest than that, despite the lofty price.

A list of modules I took at Uni, with grades.

Yup, that's all they are. I know that there's a funding crisis in the education sector. But blimey, what a whack in the pocket!

Still, can't be helped, right - it's part of the JET application process. Bite your tounge Dave, and fork out your cash. you know it's going to be worth it.

Yuzu

Yuzu is a new Japanese restaurant in town. I’d read a couple of reviews (Manchester Confidential here, and Taste of Manchester here), and I was keen to try it. Laura and I popped in after work, and before the cinema.

Sushi and teppanyaki are the glamourous and famous side of Japanese cuisine, but Yuzu offers something else entirely. The menu is short, and focuses on home-style cooking. The food’s presentation, however, was precise and beautiful – very typically Japanese – our meals were laid out with care in understated, harmonious silverware. We had: -

• Teriyaki salmon set meal, with rice and miso soup
• Tempura prawns and vegetables, with udon soup
• Chicken yakitori 

The food was good. My tempura prawns were lovely, in a delicate batter. The udon soup was lightly flavoured. Laura’s salmon tasted bold in comparison. One review had talked about the proprietor’s fears about having to offer “more strong taste” for British mouths. Cultural differences, I suppose. Whilst the subtle flavours were unusual, Laura and I both enjoyed our meal.

“It’s nice, but the menu is too small,” thought Laura. I agree. I really liked the restaurant. I hope it does well.

Two out of three ain't bad

I’ve been offered an interview to get onto the TESOL course! And so has Laura! No news yet for Kath though. Fingers crossed Kath!

My interview is on the 30th of September, which suits me fine. Laura's is scheduled for then too, but she's in London for a conference, so she'll have to rearrange for another day.

Goosebumps!

False Alarm, Real Warning

“Dave, Dave, Dave, the JET application is online!”
“What? Isn’t it from late September that the forms go up?”
“It’s online! Have a look!”

My heart leapt! I rushed on to the JET UK page, as Laura had directed me, and looked around. My forehead creased. I couldn’t see it. Where, I wondered, was I supposed to be looking? I called her back to ask.

“Yeah… erm… turns out it isn’t up there actually. But there is lots of good stuff! Including a checklist of what we need to do for the application.”

Oh no! But Laura’s right about the JET UK site. Full of important information about the application process. Especially about references and academic transcripts.

To prepare your application you will need the following documents:

• 1 completed and signed JET Programme Application Form
• 1 completed and signed Self Assessment Medical Form
• 1 signed and dated Authorisation and Release Form
• 1 Statement of Physician Form (if applicable)
• 1 Personal Statement (double spaced)
• 1 authenticated, original academic transcript (stamped and signed)
• 1 Proof of Degree
• 1 Proof of Nationality
• 2 sealed references

There's a lot to be getting on with, even before the application form comes online. And with so much to sort out, it's time to get started! O-kay, let’s-a go!