New steps aim to raise Japan's share of Asian students on campus

With the rising number of students worldwide seeking overseas educations, Japan hopes to gain a larger share of Asian students.

To that end, the government plans to allow transfer of college credits earned overseas, sources said over the weekend.

The move will enhance partnerships between domestic and Asian colleges through such moves as "twinning" programs for easy transfer of credits, according to the Asian Gateway Strategic Council, a policy group chaired by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

To promote academic and personnel exchanges, the panel will also propose a rating system that would measure a Japanese school's level of internationalization.

The policy panel's guideline is due out in May. The panel was set up to explore measures to make Japan more open to foreign workers and other internationalization moves.

Under the twinning program, foreign students entering Japanese colleges after completing their second year overseas will be able to complete their undergraduate degree by studying three more years in Japan. Currently, most foreign students here take longer to graduate because they first study at Japanese language schools.

The new program would reduce their total stay in Japan and financial cost, the panel's draft guideline said.

The panel also advises setting up information centers in Asian countries to advise prospective students.

A rating system will also be set up to evaluate Japanese schools on their readiness to accept foreign students, and on what they have achieved through academic partnerships with overseas colleges.

After implementing the 1983 "Plan to Accept 100,000 Foreign Students," Japan raised its share of foreign students to 100,000 by 2003. The upward trend slowed after that, however, dropping in 2006 for the first time in nine years.

The number of students worldwide seeking educational opportunities abroad is expected to rise in the next two decades. Japan aims to increase its quota of foreign students, which today totals less than 120,000.

The worldwide number of students seeking degrees outside their home countries equaled 1.8 million in 2000, but by 2025, that figure is predicted to rise fourfold.

The panel will continue hearing opinions from experts and concerned ministries until May. The panel's report will be included in this year's government guideline for structural reforms to be compiled in June.

(IHT/Asahi: April 16,2007)
http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200704160086.html