Oct 13

New: JETAA Education Professionals Group on LinkedIn

Update 10/15/10:  It turns out a JETAA Education Professionals group had already been created by JET alum Joshua Flannery (who also serves as Secretary for JETAA Western Japan).  Despite some minor initial confusion, this is a really good thing since he’s been doing a great job with  an existing group and now we’ll have even more people.

I’ve just set up a JET Alum Education Professionals Group on LinkedIn.

Here’s the updated link to join:  http://www.linkedin.com/groups?mostPopular=&gid=2973279

The goal is to bring together as many JET alum teachers plus education policy/government/academic folks as possible, as well as any JET alums who are interested in getting into the field or just have an interest in the topic period.

A bigger purpose is that it would be nice if JETAA can start being a source of good ideas for improving the JET Programme.  JET alum teachers and other education professionals are a good resource for helping to make that happen.  And the first step is figuring out who is out there (since there are no official lists or databases of JET alumni and what they’re doing now).

Of course, another purpose of the group is networking and also a way for established JET alumni to help those getting started or figuring out their path.

So don’t be shy.  Step right up and start getting to know your fellow JET alum education professionals around the world.

Note:  “I” = Steven Horowitz (Aichi-ken, 1992-94)


Oct 13

Dear ABA Committee Chair, No, It’s Not That Complicated. Signed, The Legal Profession

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Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) (Saitama-ken 2003-05) is a renegade attorney who plays by his own rules.  He operates a think tank of one, The Law School Tuition Bubble, where he archives, chronicles, and analyzes the rising cost and declining value of legal education in the United States.  He also maintains the “Bankruptcy Legal Topics,” and, “Bankruptcy Billables,” sections for Steven Horowitz’s Bankruptcy Bill.  For further reading regarding JETs and the law, he recommends JETs with J.D.s.

Just how powerless is the ABA in the face of a tuition bubble and legal labor oversupply?  Not as much as it believes it is.  Check out how it suffers from Stockholm Syndrome here.


Oct 11

Guest Post: A Few Humble Suggestions to Burst Your Bubble

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Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) (Saitama-ken 2003-05) is a renegade attorney who plays by his own rules.  He operates a think tank of one, The Law School Tuition Bubble, where he archives, chronicles, and analyzes the rising cost and declining value of legal education in the United States.  He also maintains the “Bankruptcy Legal Topics,” and, “Bankruptcy Billables,” sections for Steven Horowitz’s Bankruptcy Bill.  For further reading regarding JETs and the law, he recommends JETs with J.D.s.

Everitt Henry relieves my workload and gives us three suggestions for dealing with lawyer oversupply and the tuition bubble.


Sep 29

Career: JETAA Northern California Career and Networking Forum (CNF) – October 3

Posted by JETAA Northern California’s Mark Frey:

Join us for a great opportunity to meet professionals from both Japanese and U.S. organizations that play active roles in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond, as well as recent JET returnees and fellow alumni. The JET Alumni Association of Northern California (JETAANC) Career & Networking Forum will take place on Sunday, October 3, 2010, at the Kabuki Hotel, 1625 Post Street, San Francisco, from 1:30-5:00pm. Registration begins at 12:30pm. A networking happy hour will follow starting at 5pm in the hotel’s O! Izakaya lounge. The event is free for JET alumni and non-alumni may attend for $5.

The event will feature keynote speaker Andrew Hattori (Miyazaki, 2002-04), JETAANC Board Member and member of the Public Policy Institute of California; a panel discussion featuring JET alumni; and a networking session where attendees can meet representatives from various organizations, companies and members of the Bay Area professional community. During the networking session, participants will also have the opportunity to discuss resumes and job hunting techniques with alumni and recruiting professionals.

Recently returned JETs cannot afford to miss this event. For veteran alumni, this is a great opportunity for you to make career contacts, catch up with old friends, and help recently-returned JETs—your second chance to be a sempai all over again! If you are interested in attending, RSVP here: http://tinyurl.com/3xsg2lr.

For more information on this and other JETAANC events, contact president@jetaanc.org or visit www.jetaanc.org


Sep 27

Department of Education to the Rescue? Proposed CFR Changes to account for “Program Integrity” and “Gainful Employment”

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Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) (Saitama-ken 2003-05) is a renegade attorney who plays by his own rules.  He operates a think tank of one, The Law School Tuition Bubble, where he archives, chronicles, and analyzes the rising cost and declining value of legal education in the United States.  He also maintains the “Bankruptcy Legal Topics,” and, “Bankruptcy Billables,” sections for Steven Horowitz’s Bankruptcy Bill.  For further reading regarding JETs and the law, he recommends JETs with J.D.s.

Unlike Japan, the United States has no trouble filling graduate degree programs, as this NYT article on Japanese higher education points out.  The student debt situation in the U.S. is so dire that the Department of Education is adopting a new regulation to require some schools to demonstrate their graduates are employed and paying down their debts after graduation.  Can this rule apply to the ever more expensive law schools??  Find out here.


Sep 22

No Bubble, Just ROCK!! Vol. 1

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Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) (Saitama-ken 2003-05) is a renegade attorney who plays by his own rules.  He operates a think tank of one, The Law School Tuition Bubble, where he archives, chronicles, and analyzes the rising cost and declining value of legal education in the United States.  He also maintains the “Bankruptcy Legal Topics,” and, “Bankruptcy Billables,” sections for Steven Horowitz’s Bankruptcy Bill.  For further reading regarding JETs and the law, he recommends JETs with J.D.s.

Take a break, and listen to some Rock & Roll!


Sep 13

Reformers, Futile Gesturers, Blamers, and Loss-Cutters: Adventures in Anger, Personal Responsibility, and Positive Thinking

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Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) (Saitama-ken 2003-05) is a renegade attorney who plays by his own rules.  He operates a think tank of one, The Law School Tuition Bubble, where he archives, chronicles, and analyzes the rising cost and declining value of legal education in the United States.  He also maintains the “Bankruptcy Legal Topics,” and, “Bankruptcy Billables,” sections for Steven Horowitz’s Bankruptcy Bill.  For further reading regarding JETs and the law, he recommends JETs with J.D.s.

As the tuition bubble expands, so too does a cast of characters who discuss it–all with their own audiences and agendas.  Read this to find out who’s who as the tuition bubble debate becomes more complicated.


Sep 8

NUMBERS CRUNCHED! The ABA’s Number of Attorneys per State and per Gross State Product

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Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) (Saitama-ken 2003-05) is a renegade attorney who plays by his own rules.  He operates a think tank of one, The Law School Tuition Bubble, where he archives, chronicles, and analyzes the rising cost and declining value of legal education in the United States.  He also maintains the “Bankruptcy Legal Topics,” and, “Bankruptcy Billables,” sections for Steven Horowitz’s Bankruptcy Bill.  For further reading regarding JETs and the law, he recommends JETs with J.D.s.

Folks, this chart should explain itself.  It doesn’t speak too much to the tuition bubble, but eyeballing the data suggests there’s a correlation between lawyer density and less income per lawyer.  I may have to run a regression analysis just to satisfy my inner social scientist.


Sep 3

Structural Unemployment Plagues U.S. Legal Sector

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Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) (Saitama-ken 2003-05) is a renegade attorney who plays by his own rules.  He operates his own blog, The Law School Tuition Bubble, where he archives, chronicles, and analyzes the rising cost and declining value of legal education in the United States.  He also maintains the “Bankruptcy Legal Topics,” and, “Bankruptcy Billables,” sections for Steven Horowitz’s Bankruptcy Bill.  For further reading regarding JETs and the law, he recommends JETs with J.D.s.

I’ve read how young adults in Japan are sometimes criticized for being lazily unemployed and living with their parents.  I don’t know how common or fair that depiction is, but it’s out there.  Economists’ term for this phenomenon is “structural unemployment.” Guess what awaits the U.S. legal profession?


Aug 31

New “JET Alumni Non-Profit Group” on LinkedIn

Arisa Takahashi (CIR, 1991-94), the Treasurer for JETAA Northern California, has started a much-needed new LinkedIn group for JETs and JET alumni for those working in or interested in non-profit organizations and related fields.

CLICK HERE to sign up for the JET Alumni Non-Profit Group on LinkedIn.  (Or just do a search for it on LinkedIn.)

Domo arigatou Arisa-sama!


Aug 31

The Missing J.D.s

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Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) (Saitama-ken 2003-05) is a renegade attorney who plays by his own rules.  He operates his own blog, The Law School Tuition Bubble, where he archives, chronicles, and analyzes the rising cost and declining value of legal education in the United States.  He also maintains the “Bankruptcy Legal Topics,” and, “Bankruptcy Billables,” sections for Steven Horowitz’s Bankruptcy Bill.  For further reading regarding JETs and the law, he recommends JETs with J.D.s.

Anyone see Kore-eda Hirokazu’s 「誰も知らない」(Dare-mo Shiranai), the movie about the mother who abandons her four children in a Tokyo apartment?  I thought of that movie when I learned that 4/10 law graduates over the last forty years are neither practicing lawyers nor judges.  What happened to them?  Did they land on their feet?  If you’re going to law school will you end up like them?  Found out more here.


Aug 28

New “JET Alumni Policy & Government Group” on LinkedIn

A new LinkedIn group called “JET Alumni Policy & Government” has been set up by Steven Horowitz (Aichi-ken, 1992-94) for JETs and JET alumni who work in any field related to policy or government, aspire to work in related fields or have an interest in the topic.

CLICK HERE to see the group and join.


Aug 13

How Law Schools Behave Like States in International Relations Theory

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Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) (Saitama-ken 2003-05) is a renegade attorney who plays by his own rules.  He operates his own blog, The Law School Tuition Bubble, where he archives, chronicles, and analyzes the rising cost and declining value of legal education in the United States.  He also maintains the “Bankruptcy Legal Topics,” and, “Bankruptcy Billables,” sections for Steven Horowitz’s Bankruptcy Bill.  For further reading regarding JETs and the law, he recommends JETs with J.D.s.

You studied political science before JET didn’t you?  Do not lie!  For those of you with a healthy interest in politics, specifically international relations, please read, “How Law Schools Behave Like States in International Relations Theory,” and tell me who’s the realist.


Aug 10

PROfessional Japanese-English Conference on Translation PROJECT Tokyo 2010

JetWit job poster Stephen Palanik (Fukushima Ken, 2004-08) learned of the following translator’s conference through the Japan Association of Translators, and thought it might be of interest to current and former JETs in the Tokyo area (or those that can get to Tokyo relatively easily). Stephen is a translator based in Hamamatsu city, Shizuoka Ken, and he occasionally posts job listings and event information for JET alumni.

PROJECT Tokyo 2010 is the third in a series of one-day conferences on translation and interpreting organized by the Japan Association of Translators (JAT; 日本翻訳者協会) for participants to build skills and exchange information about their professions.

Theme: Tools and Workshops: Better, Faster, Richer
Date: Saturday, September 11, 2010
Time: 9:30 to 17:00
Registration opens at 9:00
Venue: TKP Shinagawa Conference Center

3F Takanawa Court, 3-13-1 Takanawa, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Approx. 5 minutes’ walk from Shinagawa Station (Takanawa Exit)

Admission:
Students: ¥4,000
JAT Members: ¥5,000
Non-Members: ¥6,000
Post-conference networking event: ¥5,000
Two-hour buffet meal and open bar

* Registration for the conference and post-conference networking event closes at midday on September 4, 2010. Registration is via the conference website only.

The program will consist of introductions to translation tools, workshops to improve practical skills, and informative sessions from industry specialists.

* Visit the conference website for more details.

Come to PROJECT Tokyo 2010 and find out how you can change the way you work!


Jul 30

Legal Education in New York: Top of the Heap or Dream Deferred

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Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) (Saitama-ken 2003-05) is a renegade attorney who plays by his own rules.  He operates his own blog, The Law School Tuition Bubble, where he archives, chronicles, and analyzes the rising cost and declining value of legal education in the United States.  He also maintains the “Bankruptcy Legal Topics,” and, “Bankruptcy Billables,” sections for Steven Horowitz’s Bankruptcy Bill.  For further reading regarding JETs and the law, he recommends JETs with J.D.s.

I’m pretty sure that most Jets Wit out there live here in New York.  If so, you’ll be right at home with this week’s post—where I chide the Big Apple for adding five law schools during its 1970s economic and demographic slump.  But when your contract expires please return to NYC, JETAANY needs your support!


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