So, I got my JET acceptance letter in the mail… again. Last time it was on letterhead from the Japanese Consulate in Miami. This time, 9 years later, it arrived as an email.
CONSULATE-GENERAL OF JAPAN IN MIAMI(JET) 5:06 PM
to undisclosed recipients
Thank you for your patience throughout the 2013 Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program application season. Results have come back from Japan, and I am pleased to inform you that you have successfully passed the second stage of the screening process! You are on the final short list for ALT candidates and are scheduled for placement with a Contracting Organization, which is possible in almost all cases.
To keep your position on the short list, I will need the following documents from you by April 29:
· Reply Form
· Copy of application for FBI Identification Record
· Copy of application for IRS Certificate of Residency (Form 8802)
· Photocopy of valid passport (if not previously submitted with application; this can be submitted later if you need to apply for a new passport)
I am still in the process of updating the Reply Form and other documents, but I wanted to be sure to let you know your status today. I will direct you to a website with the necessary documents and instructions later this week. I apologize for the delay.
While you do have until the 29th to get your response in, if you already have a sense of whether or not you intend to accept your place on the short list, I would appreciate a quick email letting me know in order that I can start getting some of your paperwork together while waiting for your documents.
Congratulations, and I look forward to communicating more with you about this exciting opportunity! Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.
… so there it is. I am a JET Programme participant again. Can I go back and recreate something that happened before, definitely not. Can I create something new, different, and in its own unique way exciting? Definitely so. All I know is that I am a ReJET. A JET again. 2004-2006 wasn’t enough, now it will be 2013-present for awhile.
… when do I tell my coworkers? And how can I make my 5 year old really understand that she has to speak Japanese every day? And how do I teach her how to avoid a kancho? All these questions and more will be answered in the months that follow. As @tesolgeek goes off adventuring in Japan-land again.
ReJET… just one letter off from Reject… and that missing letter makes all the difference.
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