JLGC and JETAA held a joint seminar for JET Programme alumni who have returned from Japan to the UK after their term had finished, to help people looking for work and support in using their JET experience from the programme for future careers. As well as new JET alumni, staff from JLGC and the embassy were in attendance, as well as JETAA UK committee members to answers questions on their experiences of life and job-hunting after Japan.
This year JETAA tried something new, organising a seminar specifically on using LinkedIn to market candidates to potential employers at this event in London’s Asia House on Friday 27 September. Charlotte Steggall, JET alumni and currently as Higher Education Champion at Suffolk University, as well as a breadth of experience running her own business as a CV writer and counsellor, in addition to a variety of roles as a translator for Nintendo and PA in large Japanese multinationals.
Charlotte, who was an ALT in Mie Prefecture ran the workshop for the group of mainly JET alumni just returned from Japan, although participants who returned some time ago were also in attendance to hear Charlotte’s thoughts and experience on using LinkedIn to market professional experience online. LinkedIn is increasingly being used by employers and recruiters looking for new staff, with over 60% of employers saying they would use the social media website for hiring, according to a recent report by the recruiters Robert Walters.
JETAA UK, supported by Japan Local Government Centre and the Embassy of Japan in the UK, offers a range of support services to JET alumni, including a regular updates jobs board with advertisements posted from Japanese and UK employers looking to employ our alumni, whether just returned from Japan with skills learnt from working in a Japanese environment and having overcome the challenges of living and being employed in an overseas environment. Additional activities to support alumni include events around the country organised by the chapters for people to network and meet potential employers, and a database of mentors with experience in a variety of sector who give up their time to consult people looking to enter a new field, whether newly returned from Japan or looking for a change of career. Many JET alumni have found their current or previous roles through being involved in JETAA.
The event was then followed by a reception to which many alumni not so recently back, as well as the Japanese business community in the UK, were present, which was another opportunity for JET alumni to network and talk to people about their future direction. The London JETAA chapter then held one of their famous nijikai close by at a local pub to talk more about their activities and how to get involved.
UK JET alumni, 10,000 over 30 years of the programme, work in a broad range of sectors across the UK and internationally, in government and other public sector, in teaching and academia, as well as throughout the private sector both in Japanese and non-Japanese areas. If you are interested in JETAA’s activities and would like to know more about how the chapters work and what funding is available to support these activities organised by our volunteer committees throughout the UK, please contact treasurer@jetaa.org.uk
