Japanese look abroad to boost international appeal

JAPAN'S universities - assailed by claims they have failed to cope with globalisation - are moving to boost their international competitiveness and appeal.

Big changes are happening as campuses are offering more courses in English to boost foreign student numbers.

The government's Global 30 program, launched in 2008, aims to attract 300,000 foreign students to Japan by encouraging 13 universities - including Tokyo, Kyoto, Waseda and Sophia - to become centres for international education.

Waseda University vice-president Katsuichi Uchida said his institution launched its school of international studies in 2004 in anticipation of the direction in which things were heading and now had six faculties teaching in English.

"In that school we take 600 students. Two-thirds are Japanese, one-third are foreign," Professor Uchida said.


"All courses are taught in English and all these students are required to spend a year in another country to study.

"Nowadays this is a kind of a model for the development of undergraduate education programs at Waseda."

He said the university was turning its focus to Chinese students and students from other parts of Asia where Japanese companies increasingly were basing many of their production facilities to capitalise on cheaper labour.

Waseda now has 4000 foreign students, of which 40 per cent are Chinese and 20 per cent South Korean.

"When you are on Waseda's campus you will hear students speaking in Chinese, Korean, English and Japanese," he said.

"Through this kind of environment, Japanese students now recognise diverse cultural backgrounds and languages.

"The purpose for us in receiving international students is not just to educate those students but also Japanese students."

Tokyo University has just flagged starting a September entrance system - to be aligned with the US academic calendar - and its president has emphasised the importance of globalisation of universities in recent speeches.

Professor Uchida said the attitude was changing with universities recruiting foreign students and changing to a more global curriculum and internationally recognised teaching methods.

"We have been the forerunner, but these days the other universities recognise the importance of globalisation," he said.

"We now understand the importance of liberal arts education to nurture critical

ways of thinking. We are now developing small classes and during classes we emphasise the importance of discussion between students and faculty members."

Sophia University president Tadashi Takizawa said the university, a small institution by Japanese standards, had more than 700 foreign students and was increasingly turning its eyes from West to East with a view to attracting students from other parts of Asia.

Sophia is a Jesuit-established institution that has been at the forefront of internationalised education in Japan.

Foreign student numbers in Japan have almost tripled since 2000, with the present total standing about 142,000. However, that's still small even when compared with Australia, which has more than 200,000 foreign students enrolled in higher education courses each year.

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