A Year in Oita

January

Jan 1st ~ 3rd: 初月・New Year's holidays
Second Monday of January: 成人の日・Coming of Age Day

[All ALTs] Start of the third semester of the school year.
[All JETs] All JETs should have received recontracting papers by now. The deadline for a decision depends on the CO, and could be anytime from late January to early February.

February

Feb 3rd: 節分・beginning of spring (not a national holiday)
Feb 11th: 建国記念日・National Foundation Day
Feb 23rd: 天皇の誕生日・Emperor's Birthday

[New JETs] First Year Check-in 3

March

Mar 3rd: ひな祭り・Doll's Festival
Mar 14th: White Day (not a national holiday)
~Mar 20th: Spring Equinox Day

[All JETs] Staff transfer notifications: all workers associated with the government, including teachers and workers at the prefectural and city offices, will receive notification of whether they will be moving to a new workplace at the beginning of the new fiscal year (April).
[All JETs] Soubetsukai (workplace farewell parties for those leaving)

April

[All JETs] Staff transfers go into effect. There may be kangeikai parties to welcome your new teachers/coworkers.
[All ALTs] Start of the first semester of the school year; new first year students
[New JETs] First Year Check-in 4

May

[Leaving JETs] Perhaps check out the Leaving Guide if you haven’t already to make sure you have prepared thoroughly for the end of their JET experience.

June

[All ALTs] ALT Survey (done every two years or so, last done 2024)
[New JETs] First Year Check-in 5

July

[New JETs] Group A arrivals
[RAs] Regional Advisor Meeting

August

[New JETs] Group B arrivals
[Prefectural JETs] Yufuin English Seminar
[New JETs] Prefectural Orientation

September

[All ALTs] Start of Second Semester of School Year
[New JETs] First Year Check-in 1

October

November

[All ALTs] ALT Skills Development Conference (formerly known as the Midyear Conference)
[Some ALTs] Certain areas in Oita Prefecture hand out and ask for a decision on recontracting in November for budgeting reasons.
[Oita City BOE JETs] Texas English Seminar

December

[New JETs] First Year Check-in 2
[All JETs] Bounenkai, end of the year party. Your schools/offices will more likely than not have these parties in December. Oita AJET usually also holds a separate AJET Bounenkai as well.