There are some caveats, though. While it’s true that JET participants have many paid days off, they also share the work calendar with their licensed peers, which means they don’t have vacation days. For example, the academic year goes from April to March, with almost a month for summer vacation. During summer vacation the students are not on campus, but teachers are still expected to come to school and prepare their lessons. Other companies might not require their ALTs to come during this time.

One of the biggest caveats I can tell you is that as a JET, you are not considered a "teacher." You won’t have to do the final grading for the students, you won’t have conferences with the parents, and you won’t be expected to work long hours and do extra homeroom duties. You also won’t have the pressure of making sure your students succeed in school. And if a student gets into trouble on a Saturday morning, you will not be contacted by a random community member and expected to take care of it before you call the parents and inform them what the student did. That's what the licensed teachers do. And if that sounds great, just remember that with this almost extreme division of responsibility, you really won’t get the same respect as a licensed teacher at the school.

That said, you’ll be working alongside passionate people who wanted to be teachers, obtained extra schooling, and have advanced degrees in education. Most of them have varying degrees of experience with ALTs. Some of the younger ones may remember growing up with an ALT in their classroom; some of the older ones will have team-taught with many ALTs before. Your key responsibility is to show up on time, and even then you usually have plenty of time to prepare your lessons. It’s up to you to carve out your own reputation.

One of the most common complaint is that the ALT is little more than a “tape recorder,” silent throughout much of the lesson, but only called upon to pronounce new or troubling words. Indeed, I attended many training seminars designed to change this very notion. However, while this might seem demeaning, it’s actually an opportunity for you to show your partner how cooperative you can be.

For myself, I did some “tape recorder” classes, but I was also able to show the JTE that I could do more. I was always enthusiastic about helping to teach his class, and over time, he gave me more duties as he trusted my teaching style more. Getting involved in the clubs also helped me to be seen as someone who was dedicated to and interested in my students, and even when I visited elementary schools (as above), I made a point of interacting with the kids at lunch and during recess.

Some JTEs may box you in because they're just unsure of what you can do. But the more ways you show you can build a rapport with your JTEs and your kids, the more likely they are to make a point of drawing on that rapport in class.

If you're interested in joining the JET Programme, you generally have to apply in your home country (though there are some very rare exceptions). The process takes several months, typically beginning in autumn with an eye to having you arrive in Japan in summer of the following year—so you really need to plan ahead!

For more information, check out the official page and apply! And welcome to Japan!