The Interview

The fated day has arrived. (^{DUN DUN DUN} _DUUUUNNNNN)

My interview location was in LA, so I spent the morning and early afternoon hanging out in Little Tokyo and browsing the shops, since my interview wasn't until 3:30. For lunch, I had originally planned to go to Daikokuya for ramen, but if you've even been there yourself, you know how long the lines are. One of my professors recommended Monzo, an udon place right next door, so I decided to give it a try. They make their noodles from scratch!

I was seated immediately, and after asking the server what he recommended, I got the Mentai Squid Butter udon. It was really good! The other popular dish is the Sea Urchin Cream udon. Next time.

After lunch I hung out some more before making my way to the interview location at 3 pm, the Japanese-American Cultural & Community Center, interview voucher in hand. They say it's like your interview begins as soon as you walk in the door, so I was ready to impress. I was expecting more interviewees to be there, but looking back, 3:30 is pretty late in the day so most people would have finished by then. The JET Check-in was on the basement level, where a few people were seated at a round table, chatting away. Two of them were JET alumni and the rest were interviewees. The panelists with whom I was to be interviewing were running behind schedule, so I sat at the table as one by one the others were whisked away to meet their fate. I'm pretty sure I was the last one of the day. 

The Personalities of JET

Not long after I arrived, a guy walked in, also for 3:30 (a different interview panel than mine). He was one of those looks-good-on-paper-but-not-great-in-person types. He would not stop talking about himself and the things he had done. Not the kind of person I want to work with. Enough said, moving on.

Eventually the table conversation moved to "what would you bring to Japan to showcase American culture?" By that time we were joined by two other 3:30 pm interviewees. One of the two was an amateur photographer, and I remember the other guy saying he moved from city to city quite a bit as a kid. The moving guy suggested Tapatio sauce, which everyone though was a great idea. The arrogant guy suggested "mutual understanding." I jokingly said In-and-Out. Laughs were had. 

The JET alum I ended up chatting with (after all the others had gone in) was placed in Shiga prefecture from about 2009-2011. The local delicacy of Shiga is funazushi, a modern sushi precursor made of fermented raw fish from Lake Biwa. He also continued practicing kyudo (traditional Japanese archery) while in Japan through a local community group. He had considered asking for Okinawa as his top preference, but got cold feet at the last minute ("What if I end up on a remote island with no one around?") and ended up putting it down third choice. Right before I was called in he said he wondered what would have happened if he had spent his three years there instead of in Shiga; as a minority himself, it would have been very interesting to explore a minority culture of Japan, such as that of Okinawa. 

Some rumors floating around the internet suggest that the JET alums you talk to in the waiting room can possibly influence your acceptance or rejection, but in my experience they were just there to keep the interviewees relaxed and chatting. My guess is that they weigh in only if they see anyone do/say something extreme. 

The Interview

It was about 4:30 by the time I was called. The JET alum panelist came downstairs and walked me to the interview room, where two other panelists were waiting. One was a lady from Japan who has been in the US for less than a year and the other was a male professor of Asian studies from the LA area. I shook their hands and said hello before I sat down in my chair (about 6-8 ft away). On their shared desk was a bunch of files (one for each applicant, I presume) and they each had a copy of my application, statement of purpose, and an evaluation form (which I wasn't able to get a good look at) in front of them. They introduced themselves, and the interview proper started.

The JET alum gave me a rundown of how the interview was structured. First they would ask me questions about my application. If they wanted me to present or demonstrate anything that would come after, followed by my chance to ask the panel some questions. After all of that, there would be some final questions to confirm some facts about myself and to facilitate my placement if accepted.

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Disclaimer: each JET interview is highly specific to the interviewee. The following is just one example of what can happen, and is no way meant to be indicative of how all interviews go. I can guarantee that some questions I was asked will not be asked of you or anyone else, ever. The interview also depends on the panelists you get, so there are lots of variables involved. ALSO: if you're reading this to prepare for your own interview, check out the questions, sure, but don't give my answers. Show them who YOU are.

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They started with a question I had prepared: "Why did you apply for the JET program?" I mostly reiterated what I said on my statement of purpose, that I started studying classical Japanese swordsmanship, enjoyed it very much, and found the differences between the Japanese and American styles of education to be very different in how the curriculum is transmitted from student to teacher. They asked me to expand on this, were there any other aspects of Japanese and American education that were similar or different? I hadn't prepared this question, but I thought about it for a few seconds, had a couple of false start answers before saying that the deliberation with which things are done in Japanese education contrasts greatly with how Americans jump right into things. 

Next, they asked me "What do you think a senior high classroom is like?" Also a question I hadn't prepared, but I answered anyway: The kids, having had some experience in English, will come with expectations of their ALTs, and it would be my job to collaborate with the main teacher to respond to that and give them what they need next for their education. 

The Japanese panelist noted that on my application, I had marked that I heard about the JET Program through a former participant, and asked what that person said about the Program and their time in Japan. I actually know a few JET alum, but the first person to come to mind was the friend I mock-interviewed with a few weeks ago. I told that panel that I asked him if there was anything he wished he had known going into the Program, and related his answer. 

The professor asked what traits represent American culture the most, to which I answered individualism and a go-get-'em attitude and elaborated on each a little bit. He then brought up my music background, mentioned that I played cello, and asked what American music I would share with the people of Japan. I've thought about this one, so I offered music by American composer Aaron Copland. His sound is really characteristic of wide open plains, and it's a sound that you don't get with the popular European composers. On the pop/country side, I couldn't think of anything good, so I just said Taylor Swift's lesser known stuff to illustrate how a young woman can succeed in the music industry as an example of the American traits question asked prior. Looking back now, I feel like I should have also included in my answer music by William Grant Still, an African-American composer. His work blends classical and jazz in a really interesting way. Oh well, such is life.

Continuing with the music idea, I was asked "How will you use music and Harry Potter to teach kids about America?" For music, I suggested sharing the songs and dances of the various ethnic groups living in America, such as the Irish jig. Even though I'm not Irish, the "melting pot" (with finger quotes) nature of America has exposed us to cultures around the world.  For Harry Potter, I drew a connection between Harry, going to school in a world and culture completely different to the one he grew up in, and the Japanese students, studying English and American culture, which is like another world into which they are diving head-first. 

While we were on the topic of Harry Potter, they asked me how I started woodworking and wandmaking (yes, it's true, I'm a part-time freelance artist who takes HP wand commissions!). I told the panel how, just after Deathly Hallows pt 1 started playing in theaters, I bought a wood dowel from Michaels, grabbed a utility box cutter from the garage and just tried it. In my answer I emphasized that I was ready to give my best effort to something that I'd never done before, and dive into it head-first. 

In my application, I wrote that I had been a Head of House (read: club leader) for my school's HP club, so they asked "Why Ravenclaw?" (I was kind of surprised that they cared about this so much. The JET alum who walked me to the interview room even mentioned HP on the way there, and we chatted about how her students enjoyed the HP-based lessons she designed for them.) I explained that Ravenclaw was the house of learning, originality, creativity, and open-mindedness, and that those traits and a love of learning are things I really identify with. 

With the Harry Potter chat finished, the next question was "What do you think is the most important quality for an ALT to have?" to which I answered flexibility (cue scribbling on the evaluation sheets) and also the willingness to put the students' needs before my own. The follow-up question was of course "In what ways do you think you'll need to be flexible in Japan?" I answered this on two fronts: 1) the cultural norms, and the difficulties that come with that (like racial discrimination) and 2) mundane, everyday things, like learning the public transportation and train system, which is really different from where I'm from (you have to drive to get anywhere!).  

The last question in the main interview section was to tell the panel how JET related to my future career as a scientist. Again I basically reiterated what was on my statement of purpose: international collaboration is key in science, and JET would give me the experience of working with people who come from a different culture, so that in my dealings with others, I can be more sensitive to that. I also told them about a joint science conference that happened in December (so I couldn't have put this on my paper app, which was due in November) between my University and a University in Japan, and that through this conference I was able to meet and talk to several Japanese scientists. 

With the main interview finished, they asked if I wanted to take a Japanese test! The panel stressed that this was all bonus points and couldn't hurt my performance at all, so of course I said yes. The lady panelist from Japan asked the questions. I didn't completely understand all parts of the question, but I was able to guess the meanings.

Q. How are you doing today? 今日はいかがですか? A: Doing fine! 元気 です! 

Q. Which do you like more, cats or dogs? あなたはどちらより、猫や犬が好きですか? A. Cats! 猫! 

Q. Why? どうして? A: (They're) cute! 可愛い!

The third question I didn't understand at all, so I said (in Japanese), "Sorry, I don't understand" and that was it for the Japanese test. They asked how much formal Japanese education I've had (none) and whether I'd continue studying Japanese while I'm there. Of course I replied yes, in my free time, and I hear there will be some (they laughed), I'll learn as much as I can, get to know the other teachers, talk to the locals, etc. 

Then it was my turn to ask questions: 

For the JET alum: I mentioned importance of clubs in school life, and asked to what extent are ALTs allowed to and/or encouraged to participate in clubs with the students? They all though it was a really good question. A: Yes, it's been done, but check with the club's teacher for permission/specifics.

For the lady panelist from Japan: Being born here, Americans take a lot of things about our culture for granted, so it would be nice to get an outside perspective. Is there something about American culture you picked up on since coming here that you think is interesting and want to share with people in Japan? (She thought about this for a while before answering.) A: Just how much people here in CA are interested in Japan and Japanese culture. In Japan, she never would have imagined just how much interest there is here.

For the professor: If I ended up teaching at a senior HS, and many of them are gearing up for college, is there a simple academic subject you would recommend as the basis for an English lesson? A: What racial diversity really means, how each racial/ethnic group contributes to shaping American in their own way. He also gave me some advice: if I do end up going, judging by my app and my answers in the interview, to do my best to connect myself with students through everyday stuff they like, such as Harry Potter. 

Lastly, the panel ran through some basic fact-check questions (do you have dual citizenship with Japan? Any felonies? etc.) before asking me if I had a strong placement preference. I explained that the headquarters of the swordsmanship lineage in which I train has its headquarters in the city I picked, and that a placement there would allow me to keep training and also to connect the American members of the lineage with the Japanese members, facilitating cultural exchange in that way. And the follow up - would I be ok if I didn't end up there? Yes, for the most important parts of the Program, working with kids, acting as a representative of America, etc. location doesn't matter.

Last question: "Do you have a preference for the grade level you'd like to teach?" I said I preferred Junior High and High over Elementary, because my Japanese isn't good enough to provide the support needed for the youngest students.

That was it! I said my goodbyes, went back to the basement desk to check out and get some paperwork, and headed home (in awful rush hour traffic).

Final Thoughts

Well, I did my best to show them who I was. Luckily for me, all three panelists were really nice and chatty, and I was able to get a chuckle out them a few times. Now that it's out of my hands, I'll just have to wait for April and see if the "me" I showed is what the JET Program is looking for.