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The Gaikokugo Seinen Shōchi Jigyō, often shortened to the Jetto Puroguramu, is a teaching program sponsored by the Japanese government that brings foreign university graduates to Japan as Assistant Language Teachers (ALTs), Sports Education Advisors (SEAs), or Coordinators for International Relations (CIRs) for local governments and boards of education.
JET is one of the world's largest international exchange programmes. Since its beginning in 1987, over 77,000 people from 77 countries have participated. Official statistics published in July 2024 showed that 5,861 participants from 51 countries were employed on the programme at that time. Japanese citizens are only allowed to apply if they relinquish their Japanese citizenship first. The programme states that its goal is to "promote internationalization in Japan's local communities by improving foreign language education and fostering international exchange at the community level".
JET requires applicants to be fluent in English, possess citizenship of certain countries, and hold a bachelor's degree; the degree can be in any subject and does not have to be related to languages or teaching, as the programme's focus is less on teachers and more on cultural ambassadors who are able to assist Japanese teachers of English. Applicants do not have be familiar with the Japanese language, though resources are provided for those who wish to learn during their time in the country. The vast majority of participants are recent graduates, but there is no age limit. About 90% of participants are ALTs, with the rest divided between CIRs and SEAs. Participants can be employed on the programme for a maximum of five years.
The programme later revised its aims to "increase mutual understanding between the people of Japan and the people of other nations, to promote internationalisation in Japan's local communities by helping to improve foreign language education, and to develop international exchange at the community level". The total number of JET participants steadily decreased from a high of 6,273 in 2002 to 4,330 in 2011, then began to increase and stabilize.
The Association of Japan Exchange and Teaching (AJET) provides support for programme participants, and facilitates communication with the programme's sponsors. AJET organises events and has a number of publications to assist with teaching in Japan, including Planet Eigo and Foxy Phonics. AJET is not an official JET organization and has no official ties with CLAIR.
Prospective participants must submit a detailed application including a statement of purpose and self-reported medical form, usually in November or December of the year before their departure. Those who pass stage one of the process are invited to interviews which are conducted in major cities, usually in February. Although applications are accepted from people living in Japan, there are no interviews offered in the country and applicants must interview in their home country. Interviews are conducted in English or in the language of the applicant's country, and part of the interview will be conducted in Japanese if the applicant indicated Japanese ability on their application or if they are a CIR applicant. The interview is normally conducted by a panel of three people consisting of former JETs and members of Japanese government, embassy, and consulate organizations. The interviews are approximately 20 minutes long. Interviewees are then offered a position, rejected, or designated as "alternates" (backup applicants who may participate if positions become available).
Once offered a position, applicants must formally submit their acceptance or rejection of the offer. In addition, they must provide the results of a recent physical examination that has been performed by a physician within the last three months. Finally, they must submit detailed contact information so that the programme can send them materials and information as the departure date draws nearer. Participants usually learn of their placement details during May and July, just before their departure date of either late July (Group A) or early August (Group B). Alternates may receive very short notice, sometimes only a few weeks, if a placement becomes available. A small group of alternates will usually arrive in late August (Group C) and other alternates will arrive alone at various times throughout the fall. Applicants who withdraw from the program after receiving placement notification are ineligible to reapply the following year. Applicants are required to depart in a group from the city in which they were interviewed, although rare exceptions are made. Departure usually takes place from the Japanese embassy or consulate that serves the applicant's home town, though it could theoretically be any site in the country the applicant named on their application. Air fares are arranged by the programme.
Participants are required to attend pre-departure and post-arrival orientations, as well as annual mid-year conferences, and may attend a returnee conference during their tenure. Participants are placed with a local authority in Japan (the contracting organization) which serves as their employer. There are 47 prefectural governments and 12 city governments in addition to numerous individual city, town, and village governments and some private schools designated as contracting organizations. While applicants can specify up to three preferred locations and can request urban, semi-rural, or rural placements, they may be placed anywhere in Japan and placements may not match their requests.
Participants sign a one-year contract which can be renewed up to four times for a maximum of five years. Some contracting organizations offer the option of contracting for a total of five years, although some prohibit contracting beyond three years. Before 2006, participants could only contract for up to three years, with the exception of a few positions. A small percentage of exceptional participants are elected to stay for the maximum number of consecutive appointments, a sum of four renewal cycles, for a total of five years. Participants who began their tenure on the programme during or before 2011 received an annual net salary of ¥3.6 million (approximately $25,142). Since 2012, participants have been paid on a new annual salary scale: ¥3.36 million (approximately $23,466) for the first year, ¥3.6 million (approximately $25,142) for the second year, ¥3.9 million (approximately $27,237) for the third year, and ¥3.96 million (approximately $27,656) each for the fourth and fifth years; notably, this is the gross income as opposed to the pre-2011 net salary, so participants who are liable for income or residential taxes in Japan must pay them.
The Japanese government provides participants with airfare to and from Japan, and may receive other benefits such as housing subsidies. Participants are generally forbidden to take paid work outside of their programme duties.
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Several prefectures have opted out of JET in recent years, and some hire individuals directly through advertising or word of mouth, while others use an intermediary dispatch company—usually one of the big English schools such as Heart, Interac, or Altia. Whilst directly hired employees may obtain working conditions similar to the JET Programme, those employed by dispatch companies often have very different working contracts that include unpaid holidays or pay-by-the-day contracts. Some dispatch methods used by certain boards of education have even been declared illegal by Japanese labor standards authorities.
Since 1998, the Hong Kong government has operated a similar program known as the Native English-speaking Teacher scheme, which employs about 800 teachers. The South Korean government has also implemented a similar program called EPIK (English Program in Korea).
In 2007, the possible stay for some JET participants was extended from three years to five years, subject to certain stipulations. JET participants in their third year are able to re-contract two more times if their work performance, accomplishments, and abilities are deemed outstanding by their contracting organization. However, as in most JET matters, the application process is decided upon by the individual contracting organization.
In 2009, it became possible to apply for an April start. This option does not exclude the applicant from being considered from the traditional August start. Successful applicants starting in April are notified in early March, which includes details on their placement. The April start is in line with the start of the Japanese school year.
In May 2010, the JET programme came up for review by the Government Revitalization Unit, the jigyōshiwake budget review panel, due to the need to cut costs given the state of the economy of Japan. However, the subsequent LDP administration of Shinzō Abe in fact announced its expansion and aimed to double its size within years.
In February 2012, The Japan Times alleged that one contracting board of education had fraudulently deducted payments from JET participants and harassed whistleblowers of the practice.
In January 2019, Medium posted a report on an incident that involved a board of education attempting to cover up an incident of sexual assault concerning two members of the JET Programme. This bought awareness of similar events over the years in the programme. Those involved claim that JET has vowed to increase their support for JETs in the future and to work closer with boards of education, but no official statement was made by JET. In December 2020, it was reported in Japanese media that the plaintiff had begun seeking legal redress and damages from the Nagasaki Prefecture's local government.
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