Didn't quite go as expected, but overall I feel it went pretty well.
Firstly, make sure you give yourself twice as much time as you think you need to get to the interview. Then double it. Maybe add a little more, just to be safe. I planned to be there about half an hour before hand, and I gave myself some more time to compensate for the weather, but I was less than 5 minutes before my designated time. Was still breathing a little heavily from rushing around when I had to start my self-introduction.
Overall, I don't remember much specific from the interview, things like that tend to become a bit blurred. I'll need to improve that if I'm ever to become a hitman. er, ummm, forget I said that.
After arriving, I was given a form to fill out by the receptionist, and started filling that out. There were a few people around in the waiting room, though I'm not sure if they were candidates or other people involved. There was a TV, but I didn't have a chance to see what it was about, it seemed Japan-related but not JET-related. As I completed the form, a Japanese man came to get me. I followed him to the room and appologized for not arriving very early. I think his name was Aki, and he was from the Japanese embassy. The two women already behind the desk were Yoko Riley, a Japanese teacher at U of C, and Jennifer, a JET alumni. They invited me to sit before introducing themselves, and then asked me to present my introduction. I had kindof expected to stand for this, but I was already seated, so I stayed down. As mentioned, still trying to control my breath a bit, I gave my intro, and stayed under two minutes (very important in my opinion, having done several class presentations and conferences before)
Then it was time for the questions. Firstly Yoko asked some, then Jennifer asked some, then Aki asked some, then they eached asked a few more. The questions weren't quite what I expected, for example I don't think they tested at all what I knew about Japan. Lets see what I do remember...
One of the first things was along the lines of "You're in engineering... how do you see the JET program as it relates to your career." I responded that JET was not so much so related to career goals as to personal goals, however, improved communication and awareness of other parts of the world are usefult regardless of what work you end up doing.
Something along the lines of "First intro-class is important, how would you conduct such a class, introducing yourself and your country?" I answered along the lines of orally introducing myself, using some photos from Canada, as well as a map, since Canada is so huige, and from experience, people from smaller denser countries find that neat and weird how the nearest major city may be a few hundred kilometers away.
Something along the lines of "If you could bring two items from Canada to teach a little about canada, what would they be?" I had trouble with this... I suggested a flag, since it's our country's emblem, and I can talk about how it originated. The second one I was hesitating too long so I went with what had jumped into my head, "maple syrup." Not the best answer, but I talked about how food can make a pretty interactive class, even though Canada doesn't have much uniquely canadian (though some might say "poutine"). They asked if I could make it, I laughed and said I'd never tried, but it doesn't seem too difficult.
Something along the lines of having put down a location preference. I discussed why I put Osaka, my primary interest in the futuristic technology oriented major cities, as well as being relatively close to cultural centres such as Kyoto and Nara.
A couple times they emphasized that I may end up in a completely different place, somewhere rural perhaps. I discussed how that would still be okay, there would be some trade-offs, but some new advantages, such as being more immersed in a different part of the culture, more pressure to learn japanese, and more nature. I emphasized that the preference was just a preference, not a necessity.
They asked if I was a member of any alumni associations, and asked for my view on the value of alumni associations. I'm not a member of any alumni, but I said they could be valuable in some cases, such as providing information to people interested in doing what they just did, as well as keeping in touch with people who had similar experiences and interests as you. I didn't get a chance to dis University alumni as simply being a money grab. :)
They asked if I had much experience with kids (which I don't really), and how I would feel about dealing with them. What sort of things I would talk with them about outside of class. This question was a little unclear, felt a little out of place, but I gave some kind of answer. They followed up to this asking about what level of students I think I'd prefer, elementary, junior high, or high school. I said high school, since people would be a bit more mature, and generally more interested/dedicated to school. Yoko had to comment on this one, letting me know that sometimes you end up in more rural places where people were not able to get into higher ranked high schools, and don't really plan to go to university and don't see any value in english and are not pleased with having to take the class. How would I deal with this? I was at a loss, I said something about following the primary teacher's lead, and trying to create more interest in english, though I wasn't sure how.
The other potentially negative comment overall was that I seemed to be very serious. So, advice for other people, don't seem over-serious. Though I don't really think I was.
Oh they also asked what my plans were for after the jet program. I think this may have been related to how the jet programme fits into your career. I said it depends a lot on my experience with JET, I might try to extend the contract, though eventually I'd likely return to engineering work. But I'd still try to find work overseas, in another place. (hmm it sounded clearer when I said it, but I'm having trouble finding the right words now! Better than the other way around at least)
Oh, somewhere in there, near the beginning I think, they asked something to the effect of what I was most interested in about Japan.
I was a member of JCC for a couple years, so a couple times they asked about that, like what I did or learned as part of that.
Near the end, Aki was interested on a more informal basis what Geomatics Engineering was, since he's also an engineer. Also was interested a little in what type of temple it was I attend.
At the very end of course you're invited to ask questions. So I asked Jennifer as a former JET what does she think most people are surprised by, or don't expect, when they go to Japan. She said the availability of products that are available here, she said she had been led to believe some things like toothpaste or deodorant might not be readily available, but it was.
Anyways, that's all that's coming to my mind right now. Overall everyone was quite nice, didn't try to make me nervous, and it was generally a better experience than some job interviews I've had. Of course, there may be other interviewers there too with their own style. So, nothing really unexpected, but lacking some things I expected like proving you know something about japan or more direct questions about canada.
Holy long blogpost batman.
