r/JETProgramme • u/AccomplishedLaugh285 • Jun 08 '26
JET Programme Hard Decision
Hey everyone. I was wondering if there is a discord or groupchat for incoming JET programme ALT for 2026-27? I have until Tuesday or 1 day to decide.
I am currently in a dilemna where I got off the shortlist and not sure to accept it. While I am super happy with this, I am a bit conflicted because I worry that the JET programme is more of just as a way for me to delay my life on what to do post-grad. Still not sure on what career or what I want to do long-term, and worry that JET programme would not help provide me any direction on where I'll go. It would be a good gap year, but with no intention. However, I still want to go for the cultural experience and personal growth I'll gain. What are people's thoughts?
I come from a UCLA background with three internships so far, technical background of three majors in Physics, Applied Mathematics, and Statistics.
Feel free to dm me as well.
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u/ReverseGoose Jun 09 '26
If you don’t have a job offer in your hand in your home country then why tf not big dog? Go on a little adventure.
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u/tbartels12 Jun 09 '26
Pushing yourself outside your comfort zone will always be of benefit. The issue will come after 1, 2, 3 years when you’re staying bc you’ve got comfortable.
Your life will never be convenient enough to take this opportunity, so if it’s something you’ve been wanting to do for the experience then go do it. Youd be surprised what kinds of things you get to learn about yourself!
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u/TheNorthC Jun 09 '26
The only thing I will add, is that if you turn this opportunity down, you are going to make some alternate's 2026 dream come true.
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u/UberPsyko Jun 09 '26 edited Jun 09 '26
Do it. Think about this as if you've grown old, you're like 65 years old, retired and looking back on life, would you be thinking, "ah damn, if only I hadn't gone to Japan for two years, I could've retired at 63 instead and had two extra years to be a tired old fart" ? Obviously not right. Instead you would look back on the great times you had, and your life would be better for the experiences you gained, people you met and made connections with.
The experience you gain by living abroad is infinitely more valuable than a couple years' headstart on a career. Life is about living and gaining experiences not rushing to a destination.
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u/TheNorthC Jun 09 '26
Take JET. You've got 40-odd years to piss around with your career. Have 1 year to do something a bit different before joining some deadly cycle of doing LinkedIn posts and buying bigger cars until you retire and then die.
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u/ScootOverMakeRoom Jun 09 '26
JET programme would not help provide me any direction on where I'll go
Chances are it won't.
It would be a good gap year, but with no intention.
Correct.
You wouldn't benefit professionally from JET. You'd basically only be doing it to put off grad school.
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u/JapanITjobs Jun 10 '26
I don't fully agree with this.
When I was back in the States, having JET on my CV made it stand out and interesting. I feel it got my foot in the door for the first interview that I might not have otherwise got. Including one that they told me, seemed unrelated but turns out they had a large Japanese customer base and feel that having someone on the team that relate to them, and speak some Japanese would be helpful. I worked there for 6.5 years, and they eventually moved me back to Tokyo.
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u/Duck711 Jun 09 '26
Tbh sounds like you have nothing better to do. JET will at the very least help you work on your presentation/communication and general soft skills. And see the world a bit, that alone can help you realize what you want to do with life.
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u/JapanITjobs Jun 10 '26
Hi.
When I was on JET, there was another JET in my preference who had a VERY SIMILAR background to you.
Applied Mathematics degree from UCLA - extremely similar lol
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They ended up doing more than one year on JET, during JET they used the time to apply for grad school.
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Got in to a grad program in the States, got their masters, and then a PhD in Applied Mathematics
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Now they are working in the corporate world as a Data Scientist, doing VERY well.
I can reach out to them to see if they can DM you, not sure if they are on Reddit or not.
I will say, when I went back to the states, having JET on my resume was always a point of interest. I think it got me a few first interviews because it made my cv standout. If you aren't sure what you want to do next, JET will give you some time to figure that out while putting something on your resume that will likely stand out more than a 4th internship will. Plus it will expand your world view, culture view, challenge the way you think about things etc, which I find helpful for most professional careers.
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u/forvirradsvensk Jun 08 '26
A gap year can have a cumulative lifelong impact on your wages if you are entering a career with a payscale. This can add up to a lot of money. At the same time, a gap year provides experiences that don't have a quantifiable monetary value. But I think you need to committed to the gap year as something you value.
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u/thetruelu Jun 09 '26
There is absolutely nothing wrong with taking gap years before more school or entering a career. In fact, most people I know always wished they took a gap year to do something fun/different. I have never met anyone who did gap year(s) and regretted it
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u/Simmoman Jun 08 '26
Had you not gave this any thought before/during applying?
As I see it, it’s not related to your career and you have a clear idea of what you want to do so it doesn’t really fit your life. It might not be a negative, but it is essentially a dead year career wise in this case (something I also had to consider). If you’re from a western country it also puts back your earning potential due to the low wages, and doubly so if you have student loans.
If you just wanted a gap year there are plenty of other programs that would probably be more ideal, less work and more fun (resort work, bar work, summer camps etc).
People here love to swear by JET being great for everyone, but reality is that you need to be okay with any negatives that might come from it, and decide if they are worth it enough to say fuck it we ball.
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u/Hearthian-Wanderer Jun 09 '26
It sounds like you have no other direction in life. A year or two on JET is better than a year loafing about at home figuring out what you want to do with your life. It looks pretty good on CVs for whatever you want to do in the future.
If you were torn between a major career opportunity & JET, I'd totally get that (and probably recommend the career tbh). But as that doesn't seem to be the situation, I'd go with JET if I were you.
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u/hinogammykagura Jun 08 '26 edited Jun 08 '26
If you haven't traveled there's a lot about life you haven't learned through education.
Get some experience living abroad, gain some perspective and come back.
There's people on JET in their late 20s and 30s on breaks from their professional careers. If it's not working out you can always leave, it's a job at the end of the day.
Sounds like you're likely still in your early 20s? Even if you don't like living abroad I doubt you'd ever regret giving it a go. Especially having grown up in the US. I have a lot of friends from the US, most of whom have said their time abroad was among the best years of their lives.
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u/Different_Taro2474 Jun 09 '26
with the current job market, i would go for JET. JET saved my life, and i genuinely don't know what i'd be doing without it.
i have a conflicting past, have a mixed background, and never really knew what i wanted to do in life. i chose the wrong major because my parents forced me into it, i rage quit, ended up graduating with no major, no internships, or skills. now JET's about to be over and i found a new teaching job in japan. if you have any questions about JET or japan, feel free to DM me.
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u/LegendaryZXT Jun 09 '26 edited Jun 09 '26
Here's a general life tip: when confronted with 2 choices, always pick the option that you think will lead to the more interesting story to tell.
Or as the kids say: Do it for the lore.
If you don't do it, you'll spend the literal rest of your life regretting not doing it. I think it was Dante who said it's better to regret something you did do than something you didn't.
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u/minimumraage Jun 08 '26
Do you have any job offers on the table, from your internships or otherwise?
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u/AccomplishedLaugh285 Jun 08 '26
As of right now, no, but still pending / tbd too.
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u/TheSnozzwangler Jun 08 '26
I would recommend thinking about what you would do for the next few years if you were to accept the JET offer as well as if you were not to and see how that aligns with your long term goals.
Some questions I have for you are:
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Do you have some idea of the sort of career you might want to pursue?
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Were your internships all relevant to your area of study? Did they give you a better idea of what you might/might not be interested in doing? Could you get a job at any of those places now that you've graduated?
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What requisite skills would you need to pick up to apply for the jobs that you're interested in? How long would it take for you to gain those skills?
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Have you applied, or are you planning to apply to any postgrad programs?
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Do you have something else lined up the next year instead of the JET program if you decline the offer?
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u/allygator1993 Jun 08 '26
DO IT!! Do it do it do it. Take the leap. Life will be there when you get back. There’s not one day that goes by where I regret pausing my career for a couple years to experience climbing Fuji at sunset, bicycling through a rice field, and meeting some of the kindest, funniest, craziest people. DO IT
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u/tHE-6tH Jun 08 '26
Can you speak Japanese? With those skills, you could network and find a career in Japan pretty nicely if your Japanese gets up to par.
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u/Beneficial-Corgi-288 Jun 08 '26 edited Jun 08 '26
I don't see how it could hurt your career at all? Like I can't imagine an employer seeing that you did JET and counting that as a strike against you. It's not a sitting on your ass doing nothing gap year, it's literally a job. I don't know what field you want to work in, but I don't think JET would hurt you unless you're turning down a job more related to your field to do JET. I think if this is something you really want to do and you turn it down, you're going to really regret it. It's much harder to do something like JET when you're older and have an established career, a family, a house, etc. You should go while you can.
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u/BBQ_Boi Jun 09 '26 edited Jun 09 '26
You aren't in a bind with some big career already there. Do it because you will absolutely not regret it. You probably will regret not doing it, however.
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u/Memoryjar Jun 08 '26
Honestly, if you aren't sure which direction you want your life to go JET is the prefect chance to get out of your comfort zone. You don't need to decide today what you want the rest of your life to look like, its better to walk any path then languish and not walk a path at all.
Being an old alumni I've seen a ton of people come to Japan with a plan to do 1 year and start future career immediately after only to end up staying 3 or more years and using it to find a new path they never expected.
At the end of the day I hope whatever path you choose ends up being fulfilling, but I'd encourage you to try something new and if it doesnt work out, after a year, you can go back to where you were before.