Remember that feeling of returning from JET, coping with reverse culture shock and struggling to figure out what to do next? To help our returning JETs, on November 20 JETAA held a Career Roundtable, attended by both new returnees and alumni looking for career inspiration.
The night started with our keynote speaker, David Rider, the Toronto Star’s urban affairs feature writer. David gave an interesting speech on how his time on JET in Osaka gave his career a boost, and gave him skills that help him even now in his job covering Rob Ford for the Toronto Star. David joined JET in order to experience Japan, and write freelance articles on Japan and Asia for major newspapers in Canada. David attributed some of his success to his ability to listen and understand people and his ability to remain unflappable in strange situations, skills he learned while on JET.
The session then broke into three workshops, where attendees chose the speaker who was most applicable to their career paths. Speakers included Kevin Callahan on start-ups and technology, Cathy Memah, on working for a non-profit organization, and Michael Munroe, on MBAs and finance, as well as many others. Attendees learned about the changing nature of journalism, the importance of LinkedIn, the value of having a clear finish goal when pursuing an MBA, and how fundraising is evolving for non-profit organizations.
After the workshop sessions, much wine was drunk and much cheese was eaten, as attendees networked with current returnees, speakers, and alumni, to talk about their career paths upon returning to Canada. A long line of people formed around Nick, who was taking professional photos for JETAA to use for their career social networking, and several recruiters for Japanese companies working in Toronto were mingling in the crowd.
All in all it was an excellent night! JETAA would like to thank all the speakers (Natalie Chan, Jennifer Danahy, Estée Fresco, Cathy Memah, Michael Munroe, Kevin Callahan, and David Rider), Wattpad Innovation for volunteering the space, our volunteers, and Marcia Iwasaki for organizing.