Foreign grads find Japan good for jobs

More foreign students graduating from Japanese universities and graduate schools are sticking around to work in Japan, immigration statistics show.

A record number of 8,272 foreign students obtained work permits in 2006 for jobs in Japan, a rise of about 40 percent from the previous year.

Of those, 96 percent were from Asian nations.

Immigration officials said the trend likely reflects the fact that Japanese businesses are expanding operations in China and aim to take advantage of their language skills and specialized training.

The foreign-student-to-worker trend is likely to continue, they said.

Work permits are granted only after foreign students are hired by companies.

The number of foreign students changing to work visas had stayed at between 2,000 and 4,000 annually since 1994, when the Justice Ministry started tracking the data.

But in 2004, that figure surged to more than 5,000, jumping to 5,878 in 2005 and reaching 8,272 in 2006.

By nationality last year, the largest group was Chinese at 6,000, up 43 percent from the previous year.

This was followed by 944 South Koreans and 200 Taiwanese.

By industry, 21 percent were employed in business and trade, while 13 percent worked in the computer industry.

Thirty-two percent said their jobs involved translation and interpretation, followed by information processing and sales.(IHT/Asahi: August 24,2007)
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