JET!
So! Applications were in! I'd been studying Japanese, done some english tutoring, prepped for the interview, and sufficiently hated my current job and surroundings.
Yet the interviews were posted and my number wasn't there. Numbers close to mine were there (The one below me, more specifically ::shakes fist::), just not mine.
So I didn't even get a friggin' interview!
For comfort and perspective, let's turn to the numbers:
Total # of ALTs (2009):
4,063
Total # of ALTs from America:
2,428
Total # of ALTs in their first year:
1,453
Assuming the ratio of Americans remains constant, Total number of American ALTs in their first year (2009):
868
Actual number of Americans in their first year:
843.
Total number of American JET Applicants in 2007: 3951
Total number of American JET Applicants in 2008: 4,081
Total number of American JET Applicants in 2010: over 5300.
Total number of Alt Interviews this year: 1928 - Sarah Beth = 1927. :P
So even assuming that the number of JETs remain constant (which they wouldn't), there was a huge spike (30%!) of applications. If I couldn't get in in 2008, I probably wouldn't have been able to do it in 2010. I don't have actual numbers yet (nor do I think I'll actually run them when I get them), but I have the sneaking suspicion that there are probably far fewer JET jobs out there now due to cutbacks and JETS that would normally retire not retiring. I wasn't expecting to get in this year, so I can't say I'm too disappointed with the result. I mean I was already planning (based on purchases of electronic goods) for a situation in which I wouldn't move across countries. So not getting an interview is disappointing in that it deprives me of a chance to a) practice interviewing and b) get my hopes up, only to get them crushed later.
Still, I WAS expecting an interview. Maybe I didn't fill out a form right or sign something right. It's possible. I'd imagine that, given the sheer volume of applications, they probably were scrutinizing the forms more thoroughly then in the past. I remember I didn't include a separate proof of graduation since it included my graduation dates on my transcript (I instead provided an extra copy of my transcript). Something like that could have disqualified me.
Or maybe I just suck :P
If my performance in 2008 hindered me in this run, I should be comforted by the fact that there's only one space in the application form when they ask if you've applied before. And given the high volume of applications this year, I find it unlikely that they keep records of those that don't get interviews. I'd essentially start 2011 with a fresh slate: someone who applied but didn't get an interview. Maybe due to low quality (which they'd see on the current application), or maybe due to misplaced paper work.
Or maybe I could apply elsewhere. Or go to Grad school. Or something.
Yet the interviews were posted and my number wasn't there. Numbers close to mine were there (The one below me, more specifically ::shakes fist::), just not mine.
So I didn't even get a friggin' interview!
For comfort and perspective, let's turn to the numbers:
Total # of ALTs (2009):
4,063
Total # of ALTs from America:
2,428
Total # of ALTs in their first year:
1,453
Assuming the ratio of Americans remains constant, Total number of American ALTs in their first year (2009):
868
Actual number of Americans in their first year:
843.
Total number of American JET Applicants in 2007: 3951
Total number of American JET Applicants in 2008: 4,081
Total number of American JET Applicants in 2010: over 5300.
Total number of Alt Interviews this year: 1928 - Sarah Beth = 1927. :P
So even assuming that the number of JETs remain constant (which they wouldn't), there was a huge spike (30%!) of applications. If I couldn't get in in 2008, I probably wouldn't have been able to do it in 2010. I don't have actual numbers yet (nor do I think I'll actually run them when I get them), but I have the sneaking suspicion that there are probably far fewer JET jobs out there now due to cutbacks and JETS that would normally retire not retiring. I wasn't expecting to get in this year, so I can't say I'm too disappointed with the result. I mean I was already planning (based on purchases of electronic goods) for a situation in which I wouldn't move across countries. So not getting an interview is disappointing in that it deprives me of a chance to a) practice interviewing and b) get my hopes up, only to get them crushed later.
Still, I WAS expecting an interview. Maybe I didn't fill out a form right or sign something right. It's possible. I'd imagine that, given the sheer volume of applications, they probably were scrutinizing the forms more thoroughly then in the past. I remember I didn't include a separate proof of graduation since it included my graduation dates on my transcript (I instead provided an extra copy of my transcript). Something like that could have disqualified me.
Or maybe I just suck :P
If my performance in 2008 hindered me in this run, I should be comforted by the fact that there's only one space in the application form when they ask if you've applied before. And given the high volume of applications this year, I find it unlikely that they keep records of those that don't get interviews. I'd essentially start 2011 with a fresh slate: someone who applied but didn't get an interview. Maybe due to low quality (which they'd see on the current application), or maybe due to misplaced paper work.
Or maybe I could apply elsewhere. Or go to Grad school. Or something.