There are about 5,800 JETs across Japan for the 2024 year, about half of which are from America, and according to the website, each country is only allowed a certain number of JETs.
I'm just curious if someone applying from a small country (for example, Barbados) which presumably doesn't have as many applicants to JET and less competition would have a higher chance at being accepted compared to someone applying from a country like the USA or UK?
by Gaijin-Giraffe
7 comments
The country can have an impact, but it’s not clear cut. Each country’s embassy decides the standards it wants to hold it’s JETs to, so application processes can differ between countries. For example, I think the UK digitized its application process much later than the US did. The US is apperently allowing online interviews now while other countries require in person.Â
The Phillipines pretty famously has a very competitive application process for JET. Every PH JET I met was a licensed teacher with years of classroom experience
Only so many applicants per country so with lower numbers why would you not think higher competition? Its not amount of people but percentage applying. Weeb countries though may attract more.
I’m from Trinidad and Tobago. Every year about 150 to 200 people apply and around 25 are chosen. Trinidad has 1.5 million people. It doesn’t matter the size of the country because lots of people apply relative to the spaces available.. even if the overall applicant number is lower than a large country the spaces are limitedÂ
I think this is actually a complicated math problem because yes but also no. Barbados population is 280,000 inhabitants where the US’s is 334,000,000. (thats 3 more 0’s) so ratio wise, i dont know cause i dont math?
and im sure there are whole bunch of other factors too
You’re looking at this wrong. It’s by percentage of people who apply vs get accepted. I think the US is actually one of the easiest regions to apply from.
From what I hear also the Philippines is a very difficult place to get accepted from. This is because the JET program is looked at as very prestigious for English teachers.
Japan is relatively safe and has a better economy, so unlike in America where taking salary in yen is actually a huge step down and for some a financial risk, for people in the Philippines it’s actually pretty good pay, and gives them opportunities to send money back home. This means that for the amount they accept, there are much more applicants, and much more QUALIFIED applicants.
In the US JET is often looked at as a one time thing, or a short little experience. In some other countries it can be looked at as a solid opportunity in terms of English teaching, that provides very good opportunities and benefits, leading to much more QUALIFIED applicants.
The US has a lot of under-qualified applicants that they accept because of the sheer amount of people they accept, and because for us the pay is kind of bad, qualified people are looking for different opportunities quite often
Yes.Â
Each country is allocate a number of spots.Â
Depending on how many people apply for those spots in a given country it will be easier or harder.Â
For example if the UK is given 100 spots and has 2,000 applicants that means the acceptance rate is 5%.
Meanwhile if Canada is also given 100 spots but only has 500 applicants that means a 20% acceptance rate. Â
But unless you have dual citizenship and can choose which country to apply from (a rare case) it doesn’t really matter what other countries rate is, you are stuck with what your countries is.Â
Tl: dr; You presume wrong lol.
Edit: you are better off subscribing to the conspiracy theory that applicants from specific areas have a much better chance at getting in. I mean look at Hawaii, every Hawaiian JET I knew had moved to the mainland for school, had at least one Japanese (American) friend, and had a lot of interaction with Japanese culture growing up.