Upon finishing undergraduate studies, Jay traveled to Japan where he studied tea ceremony ceramics in 1974 -75 at the Takatori Seizan Pottery on the island of Kyushu in Southern Japan, achieving the rank of Journeyman Potter. After returning to the United States, he received both his MA and MFA from San Jose State University where he also served as Conference Director for the National Council for Education in the Ceramic Arts Conference in San Jose, 1982.