May 20

JETAA Scotland logo

JETAA Chapters Comments Off on JETAA Scotland logo

Very nice!  I’m not sure if it’s new, but I hadn’t seen it before and I just noticed it in a JETAA UK Facebook post:

May 19

Job: Game Translation at Voltage Inc.

Jobs Comments Off on Job: Game Translation at Voltage Inc.

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Overview: 

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May 18

JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Melody Wong on the Drop That Eggroll Podcast

Article/Journalism, Interview/Profile, Japan Trends, JQ Magazine Comments Off on JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Melody Wong on the Drop That Eggroll Podcast

“JET gave me insight into a deeper rooted area of the Japanese culture that I appreciate. There were so many similarities of Japanese culture that I saw in my Chinese culture, and it really made me appreciate both as separate entities.” (Courtesy of Melody Wong)

By Wendy Ikemoto (Ehime-ken, 2006-2011) for JQ magazine. Wendy is a Hawaii-transplant and current Secretary of the JET Alumni Association of New York (JETAANY). When she isn’t working with librarians, you’ll find her visiting JET friends around the globe.  

Melody Wong (Okayama-ken, 2011-13) is a native of Los Angeles and a member of the JET Alumni Association of Southern California (JETAASC). Prior to JET, she attended the University of California at Riverside and worked in finance for half a decade before deciding to switch things up to teach English in Japan. In December 2013, she launched the Drop That Eggroll podcast with her co-host and good friend, Alex Lau. Together, they explore subjects that span across Asian ethnicities, ranging from fun topics like pretty Korean boys and Filipino cuisine to more controversial fare like the Tiger Mother’s tips for success and ANA’s “whiteface” commercial.

Six months after DTE’s launch, JQ caught up with Melody to get the scoop on how the podcast came to be, what the future holds for it, how JET has influenced her views on the Asian culture, and why you all should be tuning in.

Can you start by describing your background for us?

I’m a second-generation Chinese American, born and raised in Los Angeles. I speak Cantonese and English fluently. The only Asian country I’ve ever lived in was Japan (two years), though I’ve traveled back and forth between China and the U.S. throughout my childhood.

Where were you on JET?

I was a JET in a tiny little town called Kibichuo-cho in the Okayama Prefecture. My town was so small and rural that even people in Okayama barely knew about it. There was no train station, so no one could really get to me unless they had a car, so I drove out everywhere all the time. I was an assistant language teacher (ALT) to multiple elementary and junior high schools.

How do you and Alex know each other?

Alex and I met through our mutual friend Larry. In high school, I was an avid member of the community service club, Key Club. My high school was part of a larger division that included lots of other local high schools, which is how I met Larry. Larry attended the Art Center College of Design and became friends with his classmate Alex. Through some social engagements, Alex and I met. All three of us, including several other friends, went on a trip to Japan in 2010, which was the trip that ultimately influenced me to join the JET Program.

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May 18

Job: Assistant Director Study Abroad Services – University of Florida (Gainesville, FL)

Jobs Comments Off on Job: Assistant Director Study Abroad Services – University of Florida (Gainesville, FL)

Via JET alum Carleen Ben.  Posted by Jayme Tsutsuse (Kyoto-fu, 2013-Present), organizer of Cross-Cultural Kansai.  Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

Position: Assistant Director Study Abroad Services
Posted by: University of Florida
Location: Gainesville, FL
Type: full-time
Advertised Salary: $44,000 – $46,000

Overview:

The Assistant Director of the University of Florida International Center (UFIC) Study Abroad Services (SAS) unit serves as a representative, administrator, leader, innovator, and partner for the success of study abroad at UF. The Assistant Director directly reports to the Executive Director of the UFIC and is responsible for supervising a team of 6 study abroad advisors and a senior clerk. Read More

May 18

Job: Programs Coordinator, Study Abroad – Cal Lutheran (Thousand Oaks, CA)

Jobs Comments Off on Job: Programs Coordinator, Study Abroad – Cal Lutheran (Thousand Oaks, CA)

Via JET alum Carleen Ben.  Posted by Jayme Tsutsuse (Kyoto-fu, 2013-Present), organizer of Cross-Cultural Kansai.  Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

Position: Programs Coordinator
Posted by: Study Abroad, Cal Lutheran
Location: Thousand Oaks, CA
Type: full-time
Salary: $36,093 – $46,920

Overview:

Reporting to the Director of the Study Abroad Program, the position will be primarily responsible for coordinating faculty-led travel seminars and assisting in the development, implementation and evaluation of Study Abroad programming. The position is also responsible for advising students throughout the application cycle and student re-entry. Read More

May 18

Job: Program Manager – Penn Abroad, University of Pennsylvania (PA)

Jobs Comments Off on Job: Program Manager – Penn Abroad, University of Pennsylvania (PA)

Via JET alum Carleen Ben.  Posted by Jayme Tsutsuse (Kyoto-fu, 2013-Present), organizer of Cross-Cultural Kansai.  Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

Position: Program Manager
Posted by: Penn Abroad, University of Pennsylvania
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Type: full-time

Job Duties:

The Penn Abroad Program Manager administers Penn-approved undergraduate study abroad programs for an assigned portfolio. Responsibilities include but are not limited to: advising undergraduate students interested in studying abroad, application management, coordinating participant selection, collaborating with relevant academic and administrative offices both on-campus and abroad, preparing budget sheets, initiating student account billing and adjustments, Read More

May 16

JET alum launches publishing site and contest that pays you for your short stories

Contest, LifeAfterJET, Writers Comments Off on JET alum launches publishing site and contest that pays you for your short stories

Have a short story? Upload it to www.fictionarcade.com to earn royalties and the chance of winning a chunk of the nearly $10,000 award pool between May and December!

Alan Shelton (Ibaraki-ken, 2000-03) is an Australia-based translator and former CLAIR Tokyo employee.  But more importantly, he has, along with a few other folks including JET alums, created FictionArcade.com, a pioneering new online publishing site geared specifically to short stories.  And he’s encouraging JETs and JET alumni to contribute their short stories as a way to earn money for their writing.  Read on for more info and to hear Alan’s story.

I trained to be a writer. Japanese was just a class I chose to fill out my first semester schedule. Now, fourteen years later, Japanese is my bread and butter and writing is just a hobby. Feel free to insert your cliché of choice about the unexpected nature of life.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not complaining. I enjoy translation. It pays well; the work is steady; and I get to work at home in my underwear. What’s not to love?

Okay, I used to complain, but my wife eventually called my bluff. “If you want to be a writer, go for it. Take a break from translation, write some stuff and try to sell it.”

“It’s not that simple,” I would whinge. “Nobody buys short stories. That’s what I write, and it doesn’t pay. You give them away for free on the Internet. Maybe if its a long short story you can get it up on Amazon for 99 cents, but no one’s going to pay a buck for six pages.”

“So sell it for 20 cents,” she said.

“There are no websites that sell stories for less than a dollar,” I retorted.

And then I had a eureka moment. I would build that website. I had to build that website. Heck, the movie montage music was already playing in my mind where a team of tireless programmers were working round the clock, overcoming obstacle after obstacle until that moment when my lead programmer – who would bear a striking resemblance to Mark Zuckerberg – leans back in his chair and says, “Alan, it’s finally done.”

Of course, in reality there are no training montages, and my lead IT guy looks more like Steve Jobs, but the site is done, and it’s called Fiction Arcade. I want it to be an oasis in a digital desert for paid short fiction. I want all those time-crunched, former JETs who pay the bills with translation and interpretation but who harbor a frustrated writer inside to discover it and say, “Watch out world. A new literary flower is about to bloom!”

Here’s how Fiction Arcade works. Anyone can upload a short story for free. The author sets the price between one and four tokens (which is equivalent to between 20 and 80 cents). Readers get to preview the first half of the story for free. If they want to read the rest, they purchase tokens and then spend them to download the story.

In an age of ubiquitous social media, good stories get noticed, they get talked about and they get purchased. A dynamite 20 cent story can get hundreds or thousands of downloads. This adds up to serious money and a fan base – a fan base that will be more than happy to download the author’s next offering. It may seem counterintuitive at first, but a good, cheap short story has the potential to earn more than a higher-priced novel. And even if it doesn’t, a writer can knock out a polished short story in a few days and then let it accrue money for her over the span of months or years.

Of course, if Fiction Arcade’s virtual shelves are bare, readers aren’t going to be terribly interested. Which is why Fiction Arcade is running a series of big money story contests between now and December in order to fill those shelves. Each month the overall top author according to reader downloads and ratings will get $250 dollars on top of what their stories earned. Also, the top author in the genre of the month – sci-fi in May – will get $250. In December, the top three authors overall between May and December will get $1,750, $1,250 and $750, respectively. And in each genre, the top author will win $250.

If you’ve ever thought about writing or already have some short stories lying around, now is the time to do something about it. You have nothing to lose and only money, fame and the adulation of the crowd to gain. Come check it out at www.fictionarcade.com or find us on Facebook!

May 16

Job: Homestay Accommodation Coordinator/Student Services Counselor, EC San Francisco Language Center (CA)

Jobs Comments Off on Job: Homestay Accommodation Coordinator/Student Services Counselor, EC San Francisco Language Center (CA)

Via JET alum Carleen Ben.  Posted by Jayme Tsutsuse (Kyoto-fu, 2013-Present), organizer of Cross-Cultural Kansai.  Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

Position: Homestay Accommodation Coordinator/Student Services Counselor
Posted by: EC San Francisco Language Center
Location: San Francisco, CA
Type: full-time

Overview:

EC San Francisco is one of 18 schools in five countries that are part of EC English, a dynamic, innovative and fast growing group of Intensive English Programs. Read More

May 16

Job: Study Abroad Advisor, University of Vermont (VT)

Jobs Comments Off on Job: Study Abroad Advisor, University of Vermont (VT)

Via JET alum Carleen Ben.  Posted by Jayme Tsutsuse (Kyoto-fu, 2013-Present), organizer of Cross-Cultural Kansai.  Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

Position: Study Abroad Advisor
Posted by: University of Vermont
Location: Burlington, VT
Type: full-time (11-month contract)

Overview:

The University of Vermont seeks a talented study abroad advisor to join our team. Reporting to the assistant director for study abroad in the Office of International Education, the study abroad advisor has the following general responsibilities: Advise UVM students about study, internship and service-learning opportunities abroad; serve as primary point of contact for students navigating university and government processes related to preparing for study abroad; organize and facilitate events and programs, liaise with campus and off-site partners; and maintain administrative records. Read More

May 16

Job: MUDEC Program Coordinator, Miami University European Center (Oxford, OH)

Jobs Comments Off on Job: MUDEC Program Coordinator, Miami University European Center (Oxford, OH)

Via JET alum Carleen Ben.  Posted by Jayme Tsutsuse (Kyoto-fu, 2013-Present), organizer of Cross-Cultural Kansai.  Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

Position: Program Coordinator 
Posted by: Miami University Dolibois European Center
Location: Oxford, OH
Type: full-time
Salary range: $48,000 – $52,000

Overview:

In the Office of Global Initiatives, the Program Coordinator for the Miami University Dolibois Education Center (MUDEC) is the lead Oxford based staff member and liaison to the Luxembourg campus of Miami University. The Coordinator manages the activities of the program and works closely with the Luxembourg faculty and administrative staff.  Read More

May 15

AJET Professional Development Call with JET alum Anthony Bianchi

Audio, Career Update, Celebrity, Interview/Profile, Japan Local, LifeAfterJET, Local Government, Notable JET Alums, Return on JET-vestment Comments Off on AJET Professional Development Call with JET alum Anthony Bianchi

Via the AJET website:

On May 7th, we held our fourth AJET Professional Development Conference Call. Our guest speaker was former JET, Mr. Anthony Bianchi (Aichi-ken, Kiyosu City, 1989-91) who now serves as a city council council member in Inuyama City, Aichi prefecture. Mr. Bianchi is often highlighted in the Japanese media and is well-known for being the first American-born elected official in Japan. Click here to read a short interview with him on AJET.net.

Anthony Bianchi (Aichi-ken, 1989-91)

Mr. Bianchi discussed the inner workings of his current position, various initiatives to improve English and international communication in his community and how JETs can potentially get involved with local politics in their communities.

Click here to listen to the recording of the call on the AJET website:  http://ajet.net/2014/05/13/professional-development-call-anthony-bianchi/

May 14

Job: Asst Dir, Teaching In English Program – Montclair State University (Montclair, NJ)

Jobs Comments Off on Job: Asst Dir, Teaching In English Program – Montclair State University (Montclair, NJ)

Position: Assistant Director
Posted by: Teaching In English Program – Montclair State University
Location: Montclair, NJ
Type: full-time
Salary: $60,000-70,000
Start Date: August 1, 2014
Apply by: June 1, 2014

Overview:

The Marketing and Program Coordinator of the Teaching in English Program (TIE) is responsible for promoting and marketing the program to overseas academic institutions.  TIE is an intensive training program offered by Montclair State University overseas and on the university campus.  Taught by MSU faculty members, the program is designed to strengthen academic English proficiency for international university instructors.  Read More

May 14

Job: International Student Advisor, Syracuse University (NY)

Jobs Comments Off on Job: International Student Advisor, Syracuse University (NY)

Via JET alum Carleen Ben.  Posted by Jayme Tsutsuse (Kyoto-fu, 2013-Present), organizer of Cross-Cultural Kansai.  Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.

Position: International Student Advisor
Posted by: Syracuse University
Location: Syracuse, NY
Type: full-time

Overview:

Advising students and facilitating the monitoring of institutional compliance with federal regulations of the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of State. Creation of immigration documents for F, J, and other visa statuses. Advising, counseling and educating students on topics related to their sojourn in the United States, including immigration, employment, travel, personal, financial and social concerns. This adviser plans and coordinates orientation programs for students; cross-cultural training across campus; electronic communications, including both an electronic newsletter and website. Serves as Designated School Official for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and Alternate Responsible Office for U.S. Department of State. Read More

May 14

【RocketNews24】Kawasaki donut shop goes beyond cat sweets with cute alpacas, penguins, and killer whales

Article/Journalism, Writers donuts, doughnuts, Kawasaki, RocketNews24 Comments Off on 【RocketNews24】Kawasaki donut shop goes beyond cat sweets with cute alpacas, penguins, and killer whales

Posted by Michelle Lynn Dinh (Shimane-ken, Chibu-mura, 2010–13), editor and writer for RocketNews24. The following article was written by Casey Baseel, a writer and translator for RocketNews24, a Japan-based site dedicated to bringing fun and quirky news from Asia to English speaking audiences.

If we’re speaking honestly, we don’t really need much of an added incentive to eat a donut. Really, a sweet, inexpensive indulgence that we can eat with our hands is pretty much a laser-guided strike on our willpower.

Still, we can usually muster enough self-control that we don’t plow through a half-dozen in one sitting. But when you take donuts’ numerous preexisting merits and add the visual appeal of shaping them like cats, penguins, alpacas, and even killer whales, that’s when we stop even trying to resist them.

Click here for more on these adorable donuts and to find out where you can get some.

May 14

DISCO International Japanese company Job Fair – Sat, June 14 (NYC)

Career Comments Off on DISCO International Japanese company Job Fair – Sat, June 14 (NYC)

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Overview: 

JET Alumni– Companies Are Seeking You at an Upcoming Career Forum Hiring Event

Want to put your experience in Japan to work and use your Japanese language skills right here in the U.S.? Register now for the first ever Career Forum for working professionals featuring domestically-situated companies and positions. Participating companies are specifically seeking highly-qualified Japanese/English-speaking candidates ready to work throughout the U.S. Take advantage of this ground-breaking event and don’t miss a beat in finding exciting employment opportunities tailor-made to your skills and experience. Read More