Im sure this post will get shot down with 'stop complaining you must have a bad personal statement or interview' but please hear me out;
This will be my third year applying. Not once have I made it to the interview stage. I make my living as a freelance videographer working for youtubers and small film studios, which i assumed would be a normal enough profession to turn into a semi-decent SOP. I dont work for anyone, so I cant reach out for a recommendation, so every year I have to email my college professors on bended knee asking for another letter, and its now become pretty humiliating.
The most frustrating thing to me is I have the self awareness to know im relatively normal by most standards. Im not obsessed with Anime, im not looking to ditch for another job in Japan, and Im confident in my ability to write/ speak/ teach English. I know everyone probably thinks 'I would knock their socks off if i got to the interview', but im just at a loss on what to do. Last year I let my SOP get looked over by a current JET, they seemed to think it was acceptable, hitting all the key points etc. I dont know its my current job, my letters of recomendation, or just the inner working of the selection process.
I keep hearing people say that there are just 'types of people' that JET doesnt hire, and after three you should probably take the hint and just throw in the towel. Does anyone else feel the same? Again, im not trying to farm sympathy, im just so frustrated I dont know what to do anymore.
by PirakaFan69