Academia dumbing down to keep enrollments up

If comics are your thing, why not make a career of it? In Japan, you can actually major in comics at a fully accredited university. And moreover, the Department of Manga (comics) at Kyoto Seika University, Spa! (10/24) reports, has been in existence for 33 years.

"I suppose 10 to 20 of our graduates have gone on to careers as professional artists," says a spokesperson for the institution, who adds that numerous others eventually take up such diverse occupations as editors, designers of video games and animated films, and other forms of media where cartoons are used, such as in advertising and industrial arts.

But certain programs at other institutions of higher learning seem a bit less focused. For instance, the eggheads at Denen Gakuen Women's College in Hyogo Prefecture have come with courses leading to a degree in "Future Design."

"While reviewing broad themes related to humanity and culture, they can propose designs for the coming future," explained a spokesperson for the institution who oversees entrance examinations.

Denen Gakuen also offers courses in "Life Pathology Studies," which go into the details of love relationships between men and women. Another popular course is Media Systems, in which students can study -- I kid you not -- about the ways people communicate via their cell phones.

This inventive approach to learning is not entirely new. Back in 1999, Utsunomiya Kyowa University in Tochigi Prefecture set up its "Faculty of City Life," which provides instruction in "fulfillment in urban living."

"If we had put 'economics' in the course name, co-eds would probably never sign up it," explains a staff at the registrar's office. "So we had to come up with something catchier." The institution must be doing something right, as it boasts that last year 100 percent of its graduates found jobs, well above the national average.

Some of the other unique or unusual programs the Spa! article introduces (and the institution where located) include:

- Faculty of Environmental Disaster Prevention (Fuji Joyo University) - Faculty of Healthy Produce (Hamamatsu University) - Faculty of Hospitality Tourism (Meikai University) - Faculty of Wellness Tourism (Josai International University)- Faculty of Canned Food Packaging (Toyo Food Industries Junior College)

In addition to accumulating regular course credits, students at Kansai International University in Miki City, Hyogo Prefecture, can avail themselves of its "campus mileage" point system.

Students who, for example, belong to clubs, take part in volunteer activities or acquire certification in some skill earn additional points that can be exchanged for a variety of goods and services, including meals at the campus cafeteria, parking on campus, items in shops on campus and even payment toward overseas study tours.

If institutions seem to be trying harder, notes Spa! it might be because they're running scared. For the past three years, the number of students enrolling in universities and junior colleges has declined. Out of 500 private institutions in Japan, enrollment at nearly one-half -- 225 -- is at less than full capacity.

Of course the falling birth rate is one factor. Yet another, according to Reiji Ishiwatari, a journalist and author who covers advanced education, tells Spa! is that despite the decline in college-age students relative to the overall population, the number of institutions of higher learning in Japan actually grew by 172 between 1995 and 2006.

"During the past decade, many two-year junior colleges metamorphosed into four-year programs," says Ishiwatari. "Also, many local cities and towns encouraged institutions to set down roots as a strategy to attract young people or keep them closer to home.

"But now the size of the pie is shrinking, and these schools are scrambling for creative ways to boost their enrollment." "Another thing you have to realize is that the teaching of many types of job specialties, such as medical technicians, nursing, tourism, and so on that were once the exclusive preserve of vocational schools, has shifted to the universities," Ishiwatari adds. "So you are bound to encounter a lot of new and unfamiliar departments."
(By Masuo Kamiyama, contributing writer)
October 28, 2006

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