Elementary School Ensoku and Marathon

I taught no classes at ES this week. It was weird!

On Tuesday I was walking to school when the principal stopped me. He kept asking if I was at ES today and then told me that today was ensoku, or field trip/picnic day!

So I went into the teacher's room and we tried to figure out what to do with me. It was decided that I would join the 4th graders on their trip to Forest Therapy in Ashizu. However, I was completely unprepared and didn't have the right clothes or shoes, let alone a lunch! The vice principal - who is amazing - actually GAVE ME HIS LUNCH. I assume his wife made it. I felt so awkward. And also terrified about what might be inside.

Around 9am we left the school and took about a 1/2 hour bus ride through the valleys and then up the mountains to the Forest Therapy. It isn't much - just a gravel parking lot with a bathroom. We got off the bus and divided into six groups, each headed by a guide. Before we left we did group stretching. Also, it was freaking cold!

We walked up a little ways, following the road. But when the road curved we turned off onto a dirt trail, which ran along the edge of the mountain. Now, the trail was pretty narrow most of the way and I have a nearly disabling fear of heights, so I spent most of the day staring at my feet. To top it off, there wasn't always a fence and the students enjoyed kicking rocks and leaves over the edge, which nearly gave me heart palpitations. We went pretty slowly, with the guide pointing out some random things, like a rock which was cracked by dynamite and a "power spot" waterfall. We crossed over some bridges and a really high dam as well.

We went back onto the road for a bit and followed it to where we would eat lunch. It was a grassy area beside a river. I played tag with the kids for a little while before I ate lunch with some of the ES workers (I think they're classroom helpers). I also got a mandarin orange and a bunch of candies from the students! Oh, and the lunch from the vice principal wasn't bad!

We rested for a while, and then looped back around. We crossed over the river, went up and over the dam, and then were back on the same trail as before.

I had wanted to visit Forest Therapy, but I didn't know it involved being on the edge of a mountain! I also am STILL suffering from sore ankles after walking in entirely inappropriate shoes. To be honest, I enjoy looking at the mountains from afar more than being in them. But anyway, it was a good experience.




On Thursday the entire school had a marathon, which so happened to be during my two class periods of the day (convenient). Every grade ran the marathon, although the younger grades had slightly shorter distances. The marathon started with the 6th and 5th graders, then 1st and 2nd graders, and lastly 4th and 3rd graders. They ran 1 or 2 laps around the school yard and then went down the road. I thought it was interesting that they ran on the road. At one point some cars were coming along, so they had to run single file. Each student was also divided into a colored team - there was red, blue, yellow, and green. So students across every grade made up each team. Blue team won!

What I Actually Do As an ALT

Obviously I knew before I applied for JET that the job entailed teaching English to students. But before arriving and in the first month I felt really nervous and uncertain about what exactly my job would be. Its hard for new JETs to know, since ESID (every situation is different) is the unofficial JET motto.

Here's what I do:

I teach at 2 schools, a junior high school and an elementary school. The only other school in town is an agricultural high school and I am the only ALT (aside from one who apparently visits the high school every now and then, but no one seems to know who he is).

I work at the JHS on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. So Tuesdays and Thursdays are ES days.

My contract hours are something like 8am to 4pm, but I arrive early and leave late every day.

I have anywhere from 2 to 5 classes a day. There are a total of 6 class periods, but I've never had 6 classes in a day - thank goodness! I only ever have 2 classes at ES. So my average is probably around 14 classes a week, give or take. Could be upwards around 18, though. Maximum ever would be 22, but that's likely never going to happen (and would be insane!). The class periods are 50 minutes in JHS and 45 minutes in ES. But often there are special schedules, so classes are shortened.

At school I spend a lot of time "desk warming." I am sometimes busy with classes, yes, but often I have at least a few free periods and there are always special things going on which I am excluded from, either because I have no idea whats happening or because I have been told I don't need to participate/ignored. At my desk I work on lesson ideas, study Japanese, browse the internet, or stare out the window. Sometimes I chat with my coworkers, but often I'm alone or with few others in the teacher's room.

At ES I have a few extra responsibilities outside of class. Every morning (except for two days a month) I read an English book to the 4th-1st graders. I go to a different class each time. I am also expected to play with the kids during recess. Sometimes I play the Japanese version of tag or go see what the pet rabbit will eat. Usually I play with the younger kids, since they're not too cool for me. Plus I don't teach them, so I'm more interesting to them. Once a month there are clubs, so I attend those as well. I went to cooking club most recently, but I want to attend the walking places club (I have no idea what to call it), because it seems like a great way to visit local spots. I also help dish out the teacher's lunches. I admit to an ulterior motive - its the perfect way to control my portions! But I do like to help out.

Sometimes we do random activities at ES, like digging up sweet potatoes that the students planted. Unfortunately I feel like I miss out on a lot, since I'm only there twice a week (or less if theres a holiday).

As far as ES lesson planning goes, I don't have to do much. The lessons are all pre-made. Sometimes the HRT (homeroom teacher) wants to rearrange things, but usually we follow the lessons. I have been trying out some different activities, because I feel like the pre-made lessons are a bit redundant and boring.

I only have 2 co-teachers at Es and I play a larger role in class than at JHS. Every class starts with a greeting (hello, how are you). Then we usually do some awful chant from the interactive textbook (we use these smart computer screen things). Next we review or learn the target vocabulary. We tend to do 2 activities using the target vocabulary and grammar. The teacher usually explains the game, and I join in or walk around and see how they're doing. The activities are things like keyword game (students make pairs and put an eraser between them. When I say the key word, they try to grab the eraser first), pointing game (like hand twister, using the images in their textbook), simon says, bingo, making pairs, etc. At the end of class, students have to write a reflection.

At JHS I have more to do and more classes to attend, but I also have less importance in the classroom. I sometimes help make activities for the students, but since I'm still learning I usually follow the JTE's lead. Its also difficult because I can't attend every class, so I'm never sure of where they are in the textbook when I'm teaching. At ES they only ever have English once a week, so I know exactly where I left off.

I teach with 5 JTEs at the JHS. Two are in charge of a special needs class, which only has 2 students (a 1st grader and a 2nd grader). Because of that we spend a lot of time just drilling the vocabulary and sample dialogue. Its a bit boring, to be honest. I don't have that class often (maybe once a week), but I'm hoping to propose some activities to make things a bit more lively.

My third JTE only teaches 1st graders. She is super nice and is the same age as me! She lets me do the most in class. I do things like greetings, handing out papers, modelling pronunciation, checking written work, and writing answers on the board (quizzes and homework). Sometimes I do things on my own, like explain an activity I made or give a short presentation (I just did one introducing my grandmother and had them take a quiz about it). Usually the classes start with a review quiz of the last section, then they take notes or review grammar, and lastly some kind of worksheets or activities.

The fourth JTE teaches 2nd and 3rd graders. I teach with her most often. I don't do much in her class, but the students write the most English, so I mostly spend time checking their work as I wander around. I don't even get to help write on the board or even hand out papers, but I do model dialogue and vocabulary (of course). Recently I have been making more activities for this grade, though, which is great. I always get to introduce my activities. Usually they just take notes and do 1 or 2 activities - often writing or speaking.

The last JTE is actually the vice principal, and she teaches the 3rd graders. She is the main teacher, and the other JTE mainly walks around and helps the students or models dialogue with me. I don't do much in the 3rd grade classes because they do a lot of listening to grammar lectures and translating into Japanese, which I can't help with too much. I mostly just hand out papers and model vocabulary and dialogue. We don't really do any games or activities aside from pairs saying the dialogue to each other. Sometimes this JTE engages me in conversation (what did you think about the sports festival?), which I guess is good for the students to hear, but its random.

At JHS there are some clubs, and some ALTs join them, but I haven't. No one approached me about it and it seems like its mostly sports and band, so I'm not super interested. There are events like the sports festival and the culture festival which I participate in or attend. I also do things like listen to the students practicing their singing and attend pep rallies. Then there was the demonstration lesson and professional development which I had to take part in. In general, I'm not as involved outside of class. I'm hoping to eventually change that a bit. My first goal is to set up and English board, where students can interact with English informally. Starting small.

Anyway, that's a general overview of what I do at work!

Recent Events

I want to write about some things that have happened recently, but they don't really deserve their own post, so here's a collection of short stories:

Picture Day
Last week I received a phone call literally as I was stepping out the front door. It was the JHS vice principal calling to let me know that it was staff picture day and I needed to wear a suit! It was lucky timing, because normally I would have left home already, but I happened to be running late that day.
The picture was taken after school (of course, so I had all day for my hair to go crazy and frizzy). We all lined up outside in front of the school. The photographers were super meticulous...they were having people stand up so they could smooth out their pants and were rearranging ties, shirt collars, and suit jackets. Even the principal was reprimanded twice for not sitting up straight! Anyway, it was an experience that really solidified my new reality...like, now I am officially a part of Chizu JHS history!

"Pep Rally"
There is a big marathon for students in Yonago, so the day before we had a a cheering ceremony. It was nothing like a North American pep rally, but I guess its the closest translation. The students all stood lined up in the hall (not hallway, but the performance hall). The team members walked into the hall and all the students clapped. Then they sang the school song. After that several team members each gave a short speech. Then there was more singing, more speeches, and a coordinated drumming/clapping which all the teachers and students participated in (I just stood there awkwardly, yay).

Demonstration Lesson
On October 24th I had a demonstration lesson in a 2nd grade JHS class. I didn't quite understand what all it entailed until it happened. My JTE and I had spent some time preparing - she made this survey for the students about smartphones. I helped her make a powerpoint presentation about the results. Then we shared the results with the students and had them write opinion compositions about the topic of smartphones using the target grammar point (I think ~. Because ~.) There were like 20 people standing in the classroom and in the hallway watching, which was really nerve-wracking. Most of them were teachers from the ES, so it wasn't so bad, but I did recognize the head of the entire board of education. Anyway, it seemed to go over well! Directly after the lesson we had several hours of professional development - some guy came in and did a presentation on action research, then my JTE and I talked about how the class went, and finally we got into groups and discussed the lesson. It was really exhausting! I'm so glad its over, but now I have an observation lesson on November 19th, where I am observed by the head of Tottori JETs and English education!

Mount Mitoku Fire Festival
We hemmed and hawed a lot over whether we should go to this festival, since Mt. Mitoku is about 2.5 hours away, including 1 train change and a bus. In the end it looked too cool and I knew I would regret not going (it included walking over fire!). So we set off at 8:30am. We arrived at Mt. Mitoku around 11am. Upon disembarking the bus, Yana burst into tears because she didn't get to give the bus driver money (kids are free). She was inconsolable, but a sweet Japanese man came up to us and gave Yana a bag of candy and cookies. He took her by the hand and showed us the way up to where the festival was being held. The Japanese people here are so kind, especially to Yana.
We looked all around and examined the various buildings on the grounds. We drank some free sake, warmed over a fire and served in bamboo cups with a little salt. There was some kind of rice porridge soup as well, but I'm not super fond of porridge, so I decided not to try it. We met up with our old man friend again, and he gave us another box of chocolates, which he had won at the gambling thing they had going. He was super helpful, and told us where to buy the hachimaki headbands for walking over the fire.
Yana was extremely popular during this whole thing. We had our picture taken several times, like when we were washing our hands. At one point two ladies actually stole her away and were doing an impromptu photoshoot with her. Honestly, going out with her is like attending a celebrity. Sometimes she waves to people as she walks down the street. She'll tell them, "konnichiwa," and they go into fits. Its ridiculous!
The main event began at 1:30, so around 12:45 we took a seat on one of the giant blue tarps laid on the ground. We weren't sure if it was okay to sit there, but some kindly old ladies beckoned us closer and even shared their mat. A lady sitting behind us with her dog got a lot of attention from Yana, but she seemed pretty smitten too, so they played together through most of the ceremony.
The ceremony consisted of a procession, chanting, ritualistic axe moves, lighting the fires, archery, and throwing wooden wish tablets on the fire. Finally they lit the walking fire. When the greenery had mostly burned, they pushed it into a pit. Over the pit they laid a bunch of the logs, dousing them with a little water to cool them. The old ladies sitting beside us helped us tie our headbands and literally pushed us into the line (very forceful old ladies!). To cross the fire we had to first bow to the altar, then rub our feet in salt, cross the fire with our hands together (like prayer), and then bow again. We got a free mochi rice cake as well. It was all very fast, so unfortunately it was difficult to get pictures. The fire was very hot, and a bit painful, but it was like 3 seconds to cross, so not really long enough to hurt too much.
Afterwards we caught the bus back to Kurayoshi station, went and bought some delicious bread from a bakery, and rode the train back to Chizu! It was a long day!

Apartment Tour

Coming to Japan with a family, I was thrilled when my BOE sent me a list of three apartment options to choose from. My predecessor had a 1 bedroom apartment, and while it was new and very nice, 1 bedroom seemed a bit crazy for 3 people. The other 2 options were in a different apartment building and consisted of either 3 bedrooms or 5 bedrooms. 5 bedrooms was obviously way too crazy for only 3 of us (it had 2 floors!), so we went with the 3 bedroom apartment! My BOE sent us photos, which was awesome. Today I want to share some photos of the apartment now that we have been living here for a few months. In the first month we bought a lot of stuff to make the space work for us.

So, on to the tour!

This is the genkan, or entrance. On the left is a door to the sunroom. We have a tall coat closet on the right, as well as a shoe cupboard near the ground, a nice shelf, and another cupboard up top. We keep our shoes here to make sure they don't get the inside of the house dirty. By the way, this is traditionally considered public space. We keep our door locked, but if we didn't, it would be totally acceptable for someone to enter the house up to here. 

Here is a zoomed out view of the genkan, which leads to the living room. You can also see both the doors to the sunroom. No photos of inside the sunroom because it is an embarrassing mess of cardboard boxes and unwanted items right now. Its just a room with a window and some cupboards. My plan is to use it for drying laundry once I get it cleaned out. 

Let's zoom out a little more. This is taken from the hallway. That is my desk in the left corner. The door to the genkan is on the right. The phone there is our buzzer, so when someone rings the doorbell we can use it to shout "HAAAAIIIIII" at them. In the middle of the living room is our kotatsu, a table with a built in electric heater underneath. In the winter we can put a blanket on it to keep the heat in. Right now we just use it as our dining table.

This is the other side of the living room, where Justin's desk is. You can also see the kitchen and the hallway. The door on the left leads to the bathroom/washing area.

Here's a view of the hallway, approaching the kitchen and the bath/washing area. By the way, those garbages are for paper/cardboard, styrofoam trays, and plastic bottle caps.

This is the kitchen in its entirety. There are lots of cupboards, but they are either super high (I can't reach) or really low (killer on the back). So we just use them for storing stuff we don't really use. The sink is on the right and is really huge, which is great, but the whole counter is really low, so its a pain and I always get sprayed with water. Also, the tap pulls down to turn on the water, which I am still getting used to. In the far right corner is our stovetop, which uses induction heat. I actually don't really like it, as its difficult to cook with. The door leads to a very small balcony with our water heater. On the left is a large counter wagon, a small rolling pantry, garbages, and the fridge.

A better view of the sink and stove area. The blue lidded garbage is for plastic and aluminium foil and the brown lidded one is for burnables (food and paper towels mostly). In theory the garbage for cardboard and paper above could go in burnables, but I like to keep it separate to keep extra room in the burnables. And paper doesn't smell, so its kind of nice to separate smelly, decomposing stuff from not nasty stuff. Behind those garbages we also have 2 more for PET bottles (plastic bottles) and bin garbage (glass and tin cans).

This is taken over the half-wall in the living room (you can see the top of the tap). Fridge, counter wagon, rolling pantry. On top of the counter wagon is random stuff, our 10kg rice container, and our little convection/steam oven/microwave (yep, it is an oven and a microwave!). Inside the counter wagon we keep our dishes and cutlery. The rice cooker has a special slide-out space on the right (hidden behind the pantry). The counter wagon stays where is it, but the pantry we move around depending on where we need it, since the kitchen is pretty small.

So to the left of the kitchen is the bathroom/washing area. This is looking to the left of the room. The washing machine is on the far left, then the bathroom, then the toilet room.

And on the right is the sink. The door to the toilet is on the left. 

Here's the view looking out the door towards the kitchen.

Straight down the hallway is our closet room. Yeah...we use an entire room as a closet. Its partly because mold and mildew is a huge problem here, so having the clothes hanging up rather than folded in the closet helps reduce mold. Also its just convenient. There is also a sliding door which leads to the main balcony.

Another view inside the closet room. We use the closet to store blankets, suitcases, and futon.

A view from inside the closet room, looking down the hallway. Kitchen is on the left, past the garbage cans. Bathroom is on the right. Genkan is on the far right. There is also another hallway running perpendicular, which leads to the other 2 bedrooms.

This is a view of the balcony, taken from the closet room. 

You can see a bit of the view from our balcony here. 

 Back inside, this is the hallway leading to the left. 

At the end of the left hallway is the tatami room, a traditional Japanese room that even has rice paper sliding doors. Behind those are glass sliding doors which lead to the same balcony as the closet room. This is also the only room with A/C, but we've done fine without the A/C so far and we don't really use this room at all. It has a big closet which is currently housing our suitcases.

 And lastly, directly to the right of the closet room is the bedroom. We all sleep together because its more economical to share one room - in the summer we can use one fan and in the winter we can use one heater. Justin and I sleep on the mattress and Yana has a futon (which is folded up during the day).

A view of the doorway and the bedroom closet. So turning right out the door will be the closet room and then further straight is the tatami room. 

 And that's the end! Our apartment is cozy, but more than enough space for the three of us, since we don't even use one room. There are some things we dislike about it - there seems to be a lot of mold, the wallpaper is really grungy, the bath isn't too nice, etc. - but overall, its beginning to feel like home.

Applying for the JET Program: The Application

The JET Program application is your first impression, so its important to make sure it counts.
The application is notably long and detailed. You will need to include references and several documents along with it.

Here are some of my tips:

• Make sure you understand what the job entails. Obviously you can't know exactly what its going to be like until you get here, but know that this is not a vacation and it is not a study abroad. This is a job like any other and you should treat it as one. Also, be prepared to deal with things like homesickness, being a foreigner and standing out, language troubles, and struggling to work with JTEs. 
• Read the application instructions very, VERY carefully! Each consulate has different requirements, so don't depend on information from anyone else. If you need help, contact your consulate. They are the only ones who can give you 100% accurate information!
• When filling out the application, include any kind of information which ties you to children, teaching, or other cultures. I included that I was a leader at an English camp and helped in English class when I was a high school exchange student to Japan. Things like summer camps, reading, previous ESL experience, cultural volunteer experience, etc.
• Its not too late to start some of the above mentioned activities. If you start doing some ESL volunteering right now, you can include it on your application. 
• Know what you want to get out of JET and understand that it is a 5 year maximum program, though more often 3 years is the max. JET expects you to leave Japan, so have an idea of what you will learn from JET and how you want to incorporate that into your future goals and career. They will ask you about it.
• Placement requests: make sure you do your research. Check out things that matter to you - climate, local food, activities. It might be a good idea to join prefectural/regional JET groups on Facebook and ask any questions you have about placements. In past years, people always cautioned against picking Tokyo, Osaka, or Kyoto since tons of people request them and hardly any get in. The thing is, with the Olympics there are now hundreds of spots opening in Tokyo! I don't know much about it except that all spots are for high schools, but it means that Tokyo is more of a possibility now than ever before. 

A note for family JET applicants:

• If you have children, try and play that up in your statement of purpose, application, and interview. You have experience dealing with children by default, so it should be a benefit to your application! Also note how your child will truly act upon grassroots internationalisation - there is nothing more grassroots than a foreign child playing with a Japanese child. Just by playing together, the next generation learns English and appreciation of other races and cultures. Children also give you a pretty good "in" with the community. I had a welcome party organized for me by a local mother and I was able to meet other families and children from the area! 
• The other thing to address is how your family will deal with homesickness and troubles. The main deterrent for bringing dependents along is that JET worries how they will fare in a new country. You need to make sure JET knows you are flexible, that you and your family can deal with work trips and absences from home, and that you aren't going to break contract and run home because your dependents are unhappy. JET is a year-long contract at least, so treat that with respect and make sure you can commit to that period of time.
• If you have or are bringing a spouse, make sure you have a rough plan for what they will do. Ditto for children. At the interview you may be asked about this, so just have a general idea of what your spouse will do - stay at home with the kids, find a job, or stay in your home country? Will the kids stay in your home country, be homeschooled, attend local school, or go to a private international school?

Currently, this is what the Canadian JET application consists of:

• 1 JET Programme application
• 1 signed and dated self-assessment medical report
• 1 signed and dated authorization and release form
• 1 statement of physician form (if applicable)
• proof of Canadian citizenship (photocopy of passport, birth certificate, or citizen card)
• official transcripts of ALL college and university courses
• copy of your degree OR a letter from your university stating your specific graduation date
• 2 recent letters of reference (written within 3 months of application deadline)
• proof of teaching qualifications (if you have them)
• statement of purpose/personal statement essay (usually 2 pages)

Keep in mind that none of the submitted documents can be returned, so don't send originals!

Applying for the JET Progam: The Letters of Recommendation

Aside from the statement of purpose, the two required letters of recommendation are the most important part of the application. These letters act as vouchers for your motivations, personality, and suitability to the job.

The letters can be in English or Japanese. In Canada the letter can also be in French.

Letters may not be written by friends, family, colleagues, or classmates. If you are still an undergraduate student while applying, one of your letters MUST be from someone related to your studies and MUST reference your expected graduation date. If you have already graduated, there are no other restrictions about where the letters come from.

Some good sources for letters of recommendation:

• University professor
• Language school/class instructor
• Boss or manager from work
• Someone in charge of a volunteer program you participated in

If you've worked with children (ex. been a camp counsellor), done something cultural (ex. volunteered at a cultural fair), or have teaching experience (ex. been a TA or tutored), I would highly suggest you use someone involved in that as one of your references. You need to ensure that your references portray you as someone who can be a good English teacher for children in Japan and as someone who can adapt to and appreciate other cultures.

Make sure that whoever writes your letter will present you in a good light. You may want to have your Japanese 101 professor write your letter, but if you've never spoken to them and got a 70% in the class, don't bother. 

My recommendation is to think about who you want to write your letters early on. Make sure you either already have or take the time to create a good relationship with them. When you ask them to write the letters, give them plenty of time. Make sure you provide them with a copy of the requirements for the letter, printed from the JET application website. Especially if you're using a university reference, provide them with a CV/resume which shows your accomplishments and qualifications. Try and have them use official stationary.

Here are the topics The JET Programme Canada requires to be addressed in the letters of recommendation:

• teaching/communication style and ability; are you comfortable with public speaking?
• leadership skills; how you work in a group
• work performance; how you handle pressure and challenging situations
• career aspirations; motivations for participating in JET

Again, MAKE SURE your references follow the rules! For example, mine had to seal their letters in envelopes and sign the seal to ensure the letter was untampered. Not following these rules can negatively impact your application.

Lastly, good luck! 

Applying for the JET Program: How it Works

[Please note that this information was collected in 2014 to 2015, so it may be outdated.]

Since its application time for 2015 departures, I want to post about applying and getting into the JET Program.

The JET Program - and application process especially - is known for being shrouded in mystery. Many people seem to have differing opinions on how exactly the whole process works. I want to present some information which will hopefully shed some light on how the program works. This information comes from a poster at ITIL who is involved in the JET program at an American consulate.

Additionally, I want to note that deadlines have been pushed forward a few weeks as of the 2015 departure, so some of the dates here may not apply anymore.


Early Departure
JETs arrive in 4 main waves from April to August. The two largest groups of arrivals are Group A (end of July) and Group B (beginning of August), who each have their own post-arrival orientation in Tokyo. However, there is also an April arrivals group as well as a Group C (late arrivals and upgrades; mid-August).

April arrivals are early departure participants. Early departures happen for a variety of reasons, but most likely a current JET has left their job before their replacement comes in July/August for some reason. April arrivals have a single day welcome reception and brief orientation in Tokyo before departing for their placements the next day. However, consulates get their information in waves and early departures can theoretically happen anytime between April and August. So while most early departure participants arrive in April and attend the orientation, many others do not.

Applying for early departure does not guarantee any higher chance of getting into the program; it just means that if you do get selected you don't have to wait as long to find out placement and actually leave. As a slightly meaningless reference point, Toronto consulate had around 70 participants leave in 2014 and 8 of those were early departure.

One thing to be wary of when applying for early departure is that you must be ready to leave within a month or less of being notified. If you are single and live at home, I think it would be fairly easy, but for me it was just too much with a family and my own home. I had tons of loose ends which took months to tie up before we left in August, so I can't imagine how it would have been with only a few weeks!


Interviews/The Selection Process

This is probably the most elusive aspect of the JET program. Consulates cannot reveal the exact way they score applicants and determine the shortlist.

There is a lot of potential information about how to ace the interview, but it really is dependent on a lot of factors. However, there are three questions which are essential for a successful applicant to answer:

1. Why Japan?

2. Why JET?

3. Why ALT/CIR?

If you can't give a good answer to these questions, you're probably not going to get in. These should have been addressed already in the statement of purpose, but you should expand on these ideas during the interview. Furthermore, you need to be able to explain why you want to teach in Japan with JET rather than with EPIK in Korea, for example. Be specific - your reasons and motivations for applying to this program are important. Many applicants have studied abroad, have ties to Japan, or have studied Japanese. You need to make sure your motivations are unique and personal in order to stand out. 

Personality is another significant aspect of the selection process. The interviewers need to be able to visualize you as someone who could be teaching a group of Japanese students. They understand that you may be nervous, but you still need to be able to sell yourself in person, rather than just on paper. 

Interviewed applicants are scored on a point-based system. After all interviews have been completed, the panel organizes applicants into one master list and that list is sent to Tokyo. From there CLAIR and the COs make the final decision. The problem is, having high marks does not guarantee you will be selected; similarly, having middle or low marks does not mean you'll automatically be cast aside.

For example, a consulate interviews 50 people. Out of those 50, the consulate does not recommend 5 of the applicants. That leaves them with 45 people who are being recommended. However, until April the consulate doesn't know the exact number of people who will be shortlisted in a given year, and even then this doesn't include upgrades later on. They can estimate from previous years, but they can't know for certain. Perhaps last year they sent 25 people, and the year before they sent 15. This year they could only send 10. Or maybe 35! Or anywhere inbetween. The consulate can send their list and hope their top picks get in, but if there were 15 people with high marks and only 10 spaces that year, that means 5 people didn't make the shortlist, even though they had amazing interviews. This means that consulates cannot disclose information about the number of participants which will be shortlisted this year. It would be unfair for them to promise 25 spots only to end up with 10.

Getting Shortlist Results
The number of shortlisters is determined by the number of COs who need JETs. Being shortlisted basically means you have a 99% chance of getting a placement. It is extremely rare, but some shortlisters cannot be placed. This is usually due to a medical condition, where the applicant needs to be close to a certain medical facility, but there is no placement which can accomodate their needs.  It can also be due to something such as a CO needing someone who can drive, but the applicant refuses to get a license.

The consulates receive their list back from Tokyo around late March to mid-April. They sort through the list and try to coordinate the release of the results so that everyone hears around the same time. In 2014 it took a week or two for all countries to release their results. It can take a while due to time zones, email lag, and individual circumstances. Before they actually get the results, the consulate doesn't really know when they will receive the short list. In 2014 I think there were rumours about when they would receive it about a week or two beforehand.

For more speculating, there is a discussion on acceptance rate over at ITIL.
The 2014-2015 placement statistics (how many JETs per country/per prefecture)


Alternates
For those given alternate status, the wait can be even more torturous than the initial application stage. Many people want to know their position on the alternate list so that they can know if they're close to being upgraded or not. However, this is impossible for the same reasons its impossible to know how many shortlisters there will be or if your score was high enough to guarantee you a spot. Even more so than shortlisters, alternates are upgraded based on specific requirements such as gender, home country, driver's license, language ability, dependents, etc. So if the next 4 people on an alternate list are female with no license and the CO wants a male with a license, that person will be upgraded even though they're 4th on the list. Consulates are vague about the alternate list to protect the candidates.

The number of upgraded alternates varies year to year. For example, after Fukushima, many people with placements in that area dropped out, so there was a large number of upgraded applicants. It depends on how many shortlisters don't accept or break contract. Some years 10% of alternates may be upgraded and other years it might be 90%.

The number of alternates depends on a few factors. Firstly the consulate considers how many alternates were sent the previous year. They tend to err on the side of having too many alternates to make sure their bases are covered in case of dropouts. It also depends on how well applicants did during their interviews. For example, last year a consulate sent 20 people and this year they interviewed 40. They hope to send 20 people again this year. From the 40 applicants they eliminate 5 for not passing the interview. They now have 15 potential alternates. Of those alternates, some may have passed their interview with very low scores, so the consulate cuts 5 of them off the list. The final alternate list is then 10 people.

Similar to early departures, alternates are upgraded in waves. The largest wave comes right after the deadline for shortlisters to submit their acceptance of their placement, usually in early May. The second wave comes nearer to departure, when shortlisters get cold feet and suddenly withdraw. There are smaller waves between August and December, the last possible time for an upgrade. Some new JETs freak out and leave right after they arrive or leave around the holidays, when homesickness hits and they tend to be in low spirits. Upgrades after August or September are rare, but they do happen!

Pre-departure
The process of getting into JET doesn't end with the interview. Prior to departure there are a lot of responsibilities for new JET participants. There is paperwork to fill in and submit, flights to book, visas to acquire, and photos to take. Additionally, you must submit your passport to your consulate in order to get your visa, making it difficult or impossible to travel outside the country between around May to July/August (so make sure its renewed beforehand!). Consulates get a special list from Japan which approves the JET visas (since JETs don't get the typical certificate of eligibility others need to acquire work visas). They usually get this list in late June or early July.

JETs will have at least one pre-departure orientation which is mandatory. The consulate has a responsibility to inform participants about certain procedures and rules. Its also when you will probably get all the nitty gritty details about arriving at the airport, the flight, and post-arrival. In Toronto we had a whole slew of pre-departure orientations, but the only one which was mandatory was a couple hours in the afternoon the day before we left.