Letter of Recommendation from Foreign Japanese Teacher

[Andrew Patterson]

Hello everybody! I graduated from college in 2016 and have been studying Japanese in Japan for about half a year now in preparation for applying to the JET Programme. I was wondering if I could request letters of recommendation from my teachers over here. The only problem I could see there being is that they would only be able to write it in Japanese. Is that alright, also would it be better to ask a professor from college as well?

[mothy]

I don't remember if there are any rules about the letter of recommendation being in english. I'm pretty sure everyone who looks at it will be able to read japanese though, so it should be ok as long as not against rules. I would also want a letter of rec from college too. I find it's generally best if you can get a letter of rec from different areas of your life.

[Gizmotech]

I wonder how that works... usually they want a letter of rec from your current employer or a current professor, but most Japanese language schools don't count as academic institutions.

[Andrew Patterson]

Thanks for the replies y'all! I'll go with my college advisor and foreign Japanese teacher then. Yeah, my school isn't really an academic institution I guess. Seems more like a business to me. Unfortunately, I don't feel comfortable requesting one from my current job as I don't know how they'd take it. So I'll just have to make due.

[mothy]

have been studying Japanese in Japan for about half a year now in preparation for applying to the JET Programme.

Wait. I just noticed this. Please tell me you're planning on applying for a CIR position and you haven't been spending x amount of yens on the chance for an ALT position that requires nothing more than a uni degree and a heartbeat.

[Andrew Patterson]

Oh yeah, I want to move into CIR eventually and translate when I get back home. Right now I’m just applying for ALT though. It was a goal of mine to speak Japanese anyways. So a little for preparation a little for myself.

[mothy]

Please remember, JET isn't the only way to get a job in Japan, and if you're already in Japan, even on a student visa, you've already fought half the battle.

I would encourage you to take a step back, think about what you want in twenty years and realise JET is only one possible step to that goal.
Recognizing the limits of what JET can provide, maybe it's good for you. But my feeling, having been through JET and gotten regular employment after, JET should be a stepping stone to your goal, not your goal.

[Jiggit]

If people knew what they wanted to do with their lives there wouldn't be any alts period.

[Gizmotech]

If people knew what they wanted to do with their lives there wouldn't be any alts period.

Hey! I knew perfectly well that I wanted to be a lay about teaching english for peanuts for the rest of my life... How I fucked up after JET and got this super well paying job is fucking beyond me....