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Mosley
Joined: 17 Jan 2003
Posts: 158
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 Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2007 1:43 pm Post subject: Too old?! |
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| To the OP: you said you're a "bit too old for JET at 34"?! I was 41 when I left JET. Granted, I was an old f*** to the JETs with whom I served, but who cared? Not me. What counts is how well you would fit in to the school(s) to which you've been posted. |
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womblingfree
Joined: 04 Mar 2006
Posts: 826
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| Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2007 1:53 pm Post subject: Re: Too old?! |
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| Mosley wrote: |
| To the OP: you said you're a "bit too old for JET at 34"?! I was 41 when I left JET. Granted, I was an old f*** to the JETs with whom I served, but who cared? Not me. What counts is how well you would fit in to the school(s) to which you've been posted. |
Good point, I was thinking JET was a young graduate scheme but seems it isn't. |
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Mosley
Joined: 17 Jan 2003
Posts: 158
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| Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2007 2:21 pm Post subject: |
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| JET is still aimed towards the younger set but it's not impossible for a 35-40 yr. old to get accepted.... |
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fat_chris
Joined: 10 Sep 2003
Posts: 3198
Location: Beijing
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| Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2007 11:42 pm Post subject: Re: Too old?! |
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| Quote: |
| you said you're a "bit too old for JET at 34"? |
Funny that. When I arrive in Tokyo on July 29th for JET this summer, it will be exactly one week after my 34th birthday.
Too old? Hell no. This is the re-birth, just the beginning!
I'm lookin' forward to it? Now...in which prefecture will I be?
Regards,
fat_c |
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womblingfree
Joined: 04 Mar 2006
Posts: 826
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| Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2007 11:52 pm Post subject: Re: Too old?! |
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| fat_chris wrote: |
| Quote: |
| you said you're a "bit too old for JET at 34"? |
Too old? Hell no. This is the re-birth, just the beginning!
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o/\o
Have a great time 
In some respects I think JET is more suited to older candidates as it's not the den of frat-like shenanigans that some of the inner city eikaiwa can be.
Judging by the increased requirements for JET it looks like they might
agree.
Last edited by womblingfree on Tue Apr 24, 2007 11:57 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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fat_chris
Joined: 10 Sep 2003
Posts: 3198
Location: Beijing
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| Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2007 11:56 pm Post subject: |
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| Cheers! |
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Leon30
Joined: 18 Sep 2006
Posts: 60
Location: South Korea
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| Posted: Wed Apr 25, 2007 5:43 am Post subject: |
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So even if you've pissed off people at one Eikaiwa there are lots of others you can work for.
I don't know how much you'd want to though. I spent 5 years doing the Eikaiwa thing and its been about 2 years since I left Japan. I miss Japan a lot and I'd like to go back but I know there is no way I would ever work in an Eikaiwa again. It would just be way too depressing. |
Hi. If you have time, would you post or pm me about what made the job so depressing... just a few bullet points if you're pressed for time...?
It's something I'm considering doing soon, making the move from Korea to Japan - and whilst I doubt I'll change my mind and I seriously doubt it's worse than working at a simmilar job in Korea - it would be interesting to get your take on it... |
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southofreality
Joined: 12 Feb 2007
Posts: 579
Location: Tokyo
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| Posted: Wed Apr 25, 2007 1:21 pm Post subject: Re: Too old?! |
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| womblingfree wrote: |
In some respects I think JET is more suited to older candidates as it's not the den of frat-like shenanigans that some of the inner city eikaiwa can be.
Judging by the increased requirements for JET it looks like they might
agree. |
Check out BigDaikon. You might change your mind. |
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fat_chris
Joined: 10 Sep 2003
Posts: 3198
Location: Beijing
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| Posted: Wed Apr 25, 2007 4:37 pm Post subject: |
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True. I was surfing the BD for a while. But it got old very quickly. I'm too old for frat shenanigans--those were good for me about 15 years ago.
But that's the beauty of JET. There's so many people and so many things to do, I can find my own niche and avoid the frat-ness.
Best,
fat_c |
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G Cthulhu
Joined: 07 Feb 2003
Posts: 1373
Location: Way, way off course.
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| Posted: Wed Apr 25, 2007 5:34 pm Post subject: |
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| womblingfree wrote: |
| Glenski wrote: |
| According to Cthulhu, JET is looking more and more at people with actual teaching experience and credentials. |
Hmmm, JET might be an idea (although I'm a bit old for that, 34). Trouble is if a good job came my way I would feel bad about possibly leaving a rural kids school in the doo-doo.
I already have experience in Japanese high schools and several years experience of colleges and universities in the UK, so experience isn't really an issue. |
Yup, you sound like you are exactly the sort of person that should be applying to JET. 
Remember, everything in the requirements is "in principle", so feel free to apply. If you're outside any of the requirements (& time in country might be the only one (no more than 3 years, IIRC)) then chat with/cosy up to the consulate people so that they know you and expect your application. 34 is not too old by any stretch.
As for leaving, it's a job, not a career. If something comes up that fits your goals then go for it. No one will be terribly upset if you leave for career reasons so long as you do it according to the contract. |
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seanmcginty
Joined: 27 Sep 2005
Posts: 203
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| Posted: Wed Apr 25, 2007 6:26 pm Post subject: |
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| Leon30 wrote: |
| Quote: |
So even if you've pissed off people at one Eikaiwa there are lots of others you can work for.
I don't know how much you'd want to though. I spent 5 years doing the Eikaiwa thing and its been about 2 years since I left Japan. I miss Japan a lot and I'd like to go back but I know there is no way I would ever work in an Eikaiwa again. It would just be way too depressing. |
Hi. If you have time, would you post or pm me about what made the job so depressing... just a few bullet points if you're pressed for time...?
It's something I'm considering doing soon, making the move from Korea to Japan - and whilst I doubt I'll change my mind and I seriously doubt it's worse than working at a simmilar job in Korea - it would be interesting to get your take on it... |
I wouldn't say that working in Eikaiwa is depresing per se. You can have a really good time working at an Eikaiwa and I'm sure it isn't any worse than a similar job in Korea.
What I mean is that while it isn't a bad job, it is a dead-end career path. I was 22 years old when I first got hired by GEOS to teach in Japan. It was great for me then. Now I'm 30 years old and I've just spent my life's savings on going back to school, mainly because I realized Eikaiwa was a dead-end and I needed a new career. So for me now, the thought of going back to do the exact same job I was doing when I was 22 is just way too depressing to even consider. |
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Leon30
Joined: 18 Sep 2006
Posts: 60
Location: South Korea
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| Posted: Wed Apr 25, 2007 11:35 pm Post subject: |
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| seanmcginty wrote: |
| Leon30 wrote: |
| Quote: |
So even if you've pissed off people at one Eikaiwa there are lots of others you can work for.
I don't know how much you'd want to though. I spent 5 years doing the Eikaiwa thing and its been about 2 years since I left Japan. I miss Japan a lot and I'd like to go back but I know there is no way I would ever work in an Eikaiwa again. It would just be way too depressing. |
Hi. If you have time, would you post or pm me about what made the job so depressing... just a few bullet points if you're pressed for time...?
It's something I'm considering doing soon, making the move from Korea to Japan - and whilst I doubt I'll change my mind and I seriously doubt it's worse than working at a simmilar job in Korea - it would be interesting to get your take on it... |
I wouldn't say that working in Eikaiwa is depresing per se. You can have a really good time working at an Eikaiwa and I'm sure it isn't any worse than a similar job in Korea.
What I mean is that while it isn't a bad job, it is a dead-end career path. I was 22 years old when I first got hired by GEOS to teach in Japan. It was great for me then. Now I'm 30 years old and I've just spent my life's savings on going back to school, mainly because I realized Eikaiwa was a dead-end and I needed a new career. So for me now, the thought of going back to do the exact same job I was doing when I was 22 is just way too depressing to even consider. |
Ah. Yes, I see what you mean... thanks. |
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womblingfree
Joined: 04 Mar 2006
Posts: 826
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| Posted: Thu Apr 26, 2007 3:33 pm Post subject: |
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| seanmcginty wrote: |
What I mean is that while it isn't a bad job, it is a dead-end career path. I was 22 years old when I first got hired by GEOS to teach in Japan. It was great for me then. Now I'm 30 years old and I've just spent my life's savings on going back to school, mainly because I realized Eikaiwa was a dead-end and I needed a new career. |
What's a good idea is to get some recognised TEFL certificate before starting at the eikaiwa, then at least you can carry on working in many other countries afterwards.
Community colleges, schools, the British Council etc will look favourably at experience that's been acquired post-certificate.
Unfortunately working in education without any credentials doesn't count for anything unless you want to be Mr creepy big-cheese salesman/trainer/hatchet-man for one of the big four (or is it five?)
Last edited by womblingfree on Thu Apr 26, 2007 8:07 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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seanmcginty
Joined: 27 Sep 2005
Posts: 203
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| Posted: Thu Apr 26, 2007 5:41 pm Post subject: |
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| womblingfree wrote: |
| seanmcginty wrote: |
What I mean is that while it isn't a bad job, it is a dead-end career path. I was 22 years old when I first got hired by GEOS to teach in Japan. It was great for me then. Now I'm 30 years old and I've just spent my life's savings on going back to school, mainly because I realized Eikaiwa was a dead-end and I needed a new career. |
What's a good idea is to get some recognised TEFL certificate before starting at the eikaiwa, then at least you can carry on working in many other countries afterwards.
Community colleges, schools, the British Council etc will look favourably at experience that's been acquired post-certificate.
Unfortunately working in education without any credentials doesn't count for anything unless you want to be Mr creepy big-sheese salesman/trainer/hatchet-man for one of the big four (or is it five?) |
Yeah, that is a good point.
I should clarify that I don't think teaching English is a dead-end career, lots of people have very succesful and rewarding careers in the field. I just think working for the big 4 is a dead-end proposition. I remember when I worked for AEON and GEOS meeting some of the teachers who had been with the company for 10 years or more and had worked their way up into head office type positions. Biggest bunch of losers I have ever met. |
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womblingfree
Joined: 04 Mar 2006
Posts: 826
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| Posted: Thu Apr 26, 2007 8:06 pm Post subject: |
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| seanmcginty wrote: |
| I worked for AEON and GEOS meeting some of the teachers who had been with the company for 10 years or more and had worked their way up into head office type positions. Biggest bunch of losers I have ever met. |
And if they haven't got any teaching credential also completely unemployable outside Japan in any area except possibly sales. |
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