The hardest part about leaving Japan for JETs is…
- Leaving very important things behind!
- Friends and coworkers
- Students
- Japanese language, culture, and lifestyle
- Specific places/things you grew accustomed to/grew to love
- Food – Where’s the Ramen?
- The sense of adventure
- The job
- No longer having something “new” to learn everyday
- Keeping up your language skills
- Knowing it isn’t necessarily easy to come back and dwelling on that fact
- Entering the “unknown” next phase of your life
The hardest part about coming back was…
- Finding a job!!! (there is a definite consensus on this)
- Reverse culture shock
- Learning how to incorporate the Japanese lifestyle into your American life
- Adjusting to living in a completely new area, or one that you’d been away from
- Realizing not everyone wants to hear about JET
- Trying to get friends and family to understand that you changed through your experience
- Connecting your experience in Japan to your new life and career
- Being in a new location without an established support system/friend network (Please note JETAADC is a ready support system/friend network!)
JETs’ advice…
- Take advantage of the opportunities Washington, DC has to offer – cultural, historical, educational, career, personal, etc.
- Connect with and get involved in JETAADC!
- Start meeting people and making friends as fast as you can
- Meetup is a good place to meet people outside of work
- Make some friends who have also experienced living overseas
- Take the good with the bad—Japan does some things better than the US, and the US does some things better than Japan
- Network, join societies and groups, and get on some listservs
- Save money—live with roommates
- Research places to live before you move
- Avoid getting into a “rut” and if you do, push, push, push yourself to get out quickly
- Be willing to think outside the box—even if you want Japan to be a part of your career, establish yourself in the US first