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acornrevolution
Joined: 01 Jul 2007
Posts: 47
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 Posted: Fri May 22, 2009 10:33 am Post subject: Interac Interview |
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I am looking to start work in September, and Interac wants to schedule me for an interview. Currently, I'm in South Korea, and though Tokyo is no more than 3 hours a way, I'm wondering if its worth the $300/400 investment to fly over for the interview. I really would not enjoy getting stuck with a job in the sticks with 5 or more schools. They said they'd try to match my preferences, which is for suburban/urban (or any place that has martial arts options), and ideally not driving, or at least no more than 2 schools.
Any advice? |
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gwynnie86
Joined: 27 Apr 2009
Posts: 159
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| Posted: Fri May 22, 2009 11:15 pm Post subject: |
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They do interviews in other countries, mine is in the UK. But I don't know about Korea! From what I hear, it's best to be flexible, and if you have no prior experience or Japanese language skills you don't get much choice.
My interview with them is soon so let me know how it goes, if you decide to do it  |
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acornrevolution
Joined: 01 Jul 2007
Posts: 47
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| Posted: Sat May 23, 2009 3:09 am Post subject: |
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| Unfortunately, there aren't any interview centers in Korea. If they did it on Saturdays, I would have no qualms, but to go during the week, I have to call in sick here. I'll be deciding in a few days I suppose. I've found some cheap tickets, so..... |
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seklarwia
Joined: 20 Jan 2009
Posts: 1546
Location: Monkey onsen, Nagano
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| Posted: Sat May 23, 2009 7:14 am Post subject: |
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Because the school year starts in March, that is when the largest amont of positions are up for grabs. The time you are applying for... I'd imagine they'll only be really giving out alternate positions. The only positions they might be able to assign before hand are likely the ones they are taking over from JET, which as we all know, are mostly the inaka positions that you seem not to want.
But if you accept a position as an alternate, you might get lucky and be replacing an ALT who left early from a position in the middle of Tokyo, or you could be replacing someone who left because they didn't like being in the middle of no where. Thing is, as an alternate you are not allowed to turn down the placement they give you. So if being in the coutryside is really going to make you miserable, then you need to consider carefully whether being an alernate is really worth the risk.
If not being in a or edging on a city is really important, then dispatch companies like Interac or programmes like JET are probably not the way to go for you. |
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gwynnie86
Joined: 27 Apr 2009
Posts: 159
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| Posted: Sat May 23, 2009 3:58 pm Post subject: |
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| Hmm. I'm starting August/Sept too if I go... does it mean I'll be somewhere shitty that a JET left for a good reason? :s |
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seklarwia
Joined: 20 Jan 2009
Posts: 1546
Location: Monkey onsen, Nagano
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| Posted: Sat May 23, 2009 4:48 pm Post subject: |
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| gwynnie86 wrote: |
| Hmm. I'm starting August/Sept too if I go... does it mean I'll be somewhere shitty that a JET left for a good reason? :s |
Replacing a JET might be considered a good thing, since that is the time they complete their contracts. The school year starts in March, so this is when many ALTs start and finishing working. But for reasons unknown to me (maybe someone else can fill in blank) JET contracts start and end in the summer.
So if you take over from a JET at this time, then they have left because their contracts have finished and there is a good chance that school can't be too bad if they were able to stick it out for the duration of the contract.
If you are replacing another Interac ALT though... then you should be A LITTLE weary.
But you should remember that whilst some ALTs bail because the school was a nightmare, many also leave through no fault of the school. Maybe the ALT couldn't deal with the homesickness or had an emergency back home. Perhaps they got sick or had an accident that required sustantial recovery time, maybe they had a private dispute with Interac, or perhaps the ALT realised they would actually have to work and that it wasn't just an extended holiday where they could spend their days picking up japanese girls or sightseeing.
But I'm getting side tracked, since the focus of my post was really to do with locations rather than school conditions, because the OP mentioned not wanting to be in the sticks. And if the OP would prefer not to drive, then don't mention having a license and don't tick the evil little box that asks whether you would be willing to accept a driving position. Driving positions not only come with more schools (sometimes a huge number), but they are sometimes in more remote locations that don't have the public transport necessay to allow a non-driving ALT to do. |
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