Representatives from the Consulate-General of Japan in Honolulu will be introducing the 2009-2010 Japanese Exchange and Teaching (JET) program to the Hawai'i Pacific University community. The HPU JET briefing will be held at 2 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 7 in the President's Conference Room located on the second floor of the Fort Street Mall building at 1166 Fort Street Mall.

U.S. citizens who will have a bachelor's degree by May 2009 are invited to learn about English teaching opportunities in Japan through the JET program. Applicants must be less than 40-years-old as of April 1, 2009; not have lived in Japan for three or more years in the past eight years; not have been a former JET participant in the last 10 years; have excellent English skills, both spoken and written; and have a genuine interest in Japan. JET English teaching assistants are not required to be fluent in Japanese.

Approximately 40 JET teachers are selected from Hawai'i annually and several dozen HPU graduates have received JET assignments over the years.

Positions available through JET include assistant language teachers (ALT) and English teachers in the Japan public school system from July 2009 to June 2010. Positions are renewable.

Alumni of the program will be available to answer questions and a PowerPoint presentation and video interviews of JET participants will be shown. JET representatives will provide applicants information and guidelines about completing the application form and submitting required documents.

JET participants receive an annual salary of approximately $33,000, round-trip airfare, health insurance, paid vacations and other benefits. Applications are due at the end of November 2008 and applicants who meet certain criteria are then invited to an interview in Honolulu in February 2009. JET recipients are announced in April and will depart to Japan in August 2009.

For additional information contact Dr. William Zanella, HPU associate professor of Asian History and JET campus representative, at 544-1171 or wzanella@hpu.edu. Other information is available at http://www.us.emb-japan.go.jp/JETProgram/homepage.html and http://www.jetprogramme.org/.