A key government panel on education suggested Monday the establishment of a new category of school that will attach primary importance to practical vocational training for high school graduates।
The idea was suggested by the Central Council for Education as a measure to broaden the range of career choices for high school graduates and reduce the high rate of young people leaving employment।
The move reflects public concern over the increasing number of part-time job hoppers and NEETs, a term that refers to young people not in education, employment or training।
On Monday, a special committee of the panel to the education, science and technology minister compiled the draft of a report on the vocational independence of young people।
The report states that the new schools will create a new category of educational body in addition to universities and vocational colleges।
Under the current system, vocational colleges are given a considerable measure of freedom in devising their educational programs। But unlike these colleges, the envisaged schools are supposed to set up programs roughly in line with state-controlled standards.
The new schools would teach students a wide array of skills to prepare them to become full-fledged members of society and/or business professionals, allocating 40 to 50 percent of the curriculum to practical work and training। In addition, internships would be a mandatory part of the courses.
However, many issues still need to be discussed before the plans can be put into action।
For example, the panel has been indecisive about the duration of courses at the new schools, stating it should last from two to three years, or at least four years। Digital content creation and computer software-related engineering courses have been floated as ideas to be included in the new schools' curriculums.
According to the education ministry, about 50,000 people who graduated from high school last academic year did not proceed to higher education or employment after graduating।
Meanwhile, a survey shows that 50 percent of people who started work after graduating resigned within three years।
According to educational experts, current vocational education at high schools is ineffective, which is one of the reasons for the increase of NEETs and part-time job-hoppers, widely known as freeters।
The government has been urged to improve vocational education at high schools to try to counter this trend।
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20090701TDY02311.htm
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
Monday, June 01, 2009
Taiwan's working holiday program with Japan opens
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) urged young Taiwanese people yesterday to seize the chance of joining a reciprocal working holiday program with Japan that will come into effect tomorrow, warning that the openings will soon be snapped उप
"A working holiday is a perfect solution for young people who want to travel abroad but are financially constrained," Peter Tsai, secretary-general of the MOFA's Association of East Asian Relations, told reporters।
"Those who are interested in joining the Taiwan-Japan working holiday program should file their applications as soon as possible, as it is a long-anticipated program about which the Foreign Ministry and other related government agencies have received many inquiries from interested parties," he added।
According to Tsai, Taiwan and Japan will each offer 2,000 openings in the first year of the program and the Taipei-based Interchange Association, which represents Japanese interests in Taiwan in the absences of formal diplomatic ties, will accept applications June 1-5 and Nov. 2-6.
While applicants will not be required to be versed in Japanese, language ability might be factored into the review process if the number of applicants far exceeds the 2,000-per-year quota, he added।
Japan is the third country to sign working holiday agreements with Taiwan, which signed similar pacts with Australia and New Zealand in 2004।
From June 1, Taiwanese people aged 18-30 can apply to the Interchange Association for a working holiday visa that will allow them to work on a short-term basis while visiting Japan। The visas are valid for one year.
Japan has similar programs with 10 other countries and is expected to sign one with Hong Kong this year, according to the MOFA।
According to the Interchange Association, prospective Taiwanese applicants should file applications in person and submit supporting documents, including a valid Taiwanese passport, resume, return ticket, a clean bill of health, a clean criminal record, accident insurance and sufficient finances to cover the initial part of their stay।
Those who acquire visas under the working holiday program are barred from working at night clubs or any sex trade-related places, as well as taking any other controversial jobs, the agency added।
The Interchange Association is scheduled to announce the results of screening for those who file June applications July 3 and qualified applicants should pick up their visas July 6-17।
Taiwan and Japan maintain close relations despite the absence of formal diplomatic ties। The Japanese government granted visa-free privileges to Taiwanese citizens in 2007 and the two sides that same year also began recognizing each other's driver's licenses.
An average 2।5 million citizens travel between the two countries each year.
http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=963345&lang=eng_news&cate_img=35.jpg&cate_rss=news_Business
"A working holiday is a perfect solution for young people who want to travel abroad but are financially constrained," Peter Tsai, secretary-general of the MOFA's Association of East Asian Relations, told reporters।
"Those who are interested in joining the Taiwan-Japan working holiday program should file their applications as soon as possible, as it is a long-anticipated program about which the Foreign Ministry and other related government agencies have received many inquiries from interested parties," he added।
According to Tsai, Taiwan and Japan will each offer 2,000 openings in the first year of the program and the Taipei-based Interchange Association, which represents Japanese interests in Taiwan in the absences of formal diplomatic ties, will accept applications June 1-5 and Nov. 2-6.
While applicants will not be required to be versed in Japanese, language ability might be factored into the review process if the number of applicants far exceeds the 2,000-per-year quota, he added।
Japan is the third country to sign working holiday agreements with Taiwan, which signed similar pacts with Australia and New Zealand in 2004।
From June 1, Taiwanese people aged 18-30 can apply to the Interchange Association for a working holiday visa that will allow them to work on a short-term basis while visiting Japan। The visas are valid for one year.
Japan has similar programs with 10 other countries and is expected to sign one with Hong Kong this year, according to the MOFA।
According to the Interchange Association, prospective Taiwanese applicants should file applications in person and submit supporting documents, including a valid Taiwanese passport, resume, return ticket, a clean bill of health, a clean criminal record, accident insurance and sufficient finances to cover the initial part of their stay।
Those who acquire visas under the working holiday program are barred from working at night clubs or any sex trade-related places, as well as taking any other controversial jobs, the agency added।
The Interchange Association is scheduled to announce the results of screening for those who file June applications July 3 and qualified applicants should pick up their visas July 6-17।
Taiwan and Japan maintain close relations despite the absence of formal diplomatic ties। The Japanese government granted visa-free privileges to Taiwanese citizens in 2007 and the two sides that same year also began recognizing each other's driver's licenses.
An average 2।5 million citizens travel between the two countries each year.
http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=963345&lang=eng_news&cate_img=35.jpg&cate_rss=news_Business
Saturday, May 30, 2009
iPhone to replace register at Japan university
A Japanese university is giving away Apple Inc's trendy iPhone to students for free, but with a catch: the device will be used to check their attendance।
The project, which is being tested ahead of its formal launch in June, involves 550 first and second year students and some staff of a department at Aoyama Gakuin University, which is located just outside Tokyo in Sagamihara city।
The school's iPhones are meant to create a mobile information network between students and professors, but they are also a convenient way for the teachers to take attendance in class.
As students enter the room, instead of writing their name on a sheet, they simply type in their ID number and a specific class number into an iPhone application।
To prevent students from logging in from home or outside class, the application uses GPS location data and checks which router the students have logged in to।
"We don't want to use this to simply take attendance। Our hope is to use this to develop a classroom where students and teachers can discuss various topics," professor Yasuhiro Iijima told Reuters as he demonstrated the application.
University officials insist the project is not intended to infringe on students' privacy or track them down।
"With Japanese cellphones it's possible that the location data is automatically sent. However, with the iPhone, you must always confirm before the GPS data can be sent," Iijima said.
Many of the students testing the system said they were happy with it।
"Up until now, we've been using little slips of paper to take attendance। But with a cell phone, you don't have to spend time collecting all of those and so I think it's quite nice," 20-year-old student Yuki Maruya.
When the system goes fully online next month, the university also hopes to provide video podcasts of lectures to help students who missed classes, or just can't remember their lessons।
http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSTRE54R1NE20090528
The project, which is being tested ahead of its formal launch in June, involves 550 first and second year students and some staff of a department at Aoyama Gakuin University, which is located just outside Tokyo in Sagamihara city।
The school's iPhones are meant to create a mobile information network between students and professors, but they are also a convenient way for the teachers to take attendance in class.
As students enter the room, instead of writing their name on a sheet, they simply type in their ID number and a specific class number into an iPhone application।
To prevent students from logging in from home or outside class, the application uses GPS location data and checks which router the students have logged in to।
"We don't want to use this to simply take attendance। Our hope is to use this to develop a classroom where students and teachers can discuss various topics," professor Yasuhiro Iijima told Reuters as he demonstrated the application.
University officials insist the project is not intended to infringe on students' privacy or track them down।
"With Japanese cellphones it's possible that the location data is automatically sent. However, with the iPhone, you must always confirm before the GPS data can be sent," Iijima said.
Many of the students testing the system said they were happy with it।
"Up until now, we've been using little slips of paper to take attendance। But with a cell phone, you don't have to spend time collecting all of those and so I think it's quite nice," 20-year-old student Yuki Maruya.
When the system goes fully online next month, the university also hopes to provide video podcasts of lectures to help students who missed classes, or just can't remember their lessons।
http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSTRE54R1NE20090528
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Scholarships on offer for students wanting to study in Japan
The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology will offer scholarships to international students who wish to study in Japan, at the Professional Training College, the College of Technology or in the university। According to a press release from the Consulate General of Japan, the scholarships are for three, four and five years, beginning April 2010. At the Professional Training College, the three-year scholarship courses offered are in Civil Engineering, Architecture, Electrical Engineering, Electronics, Telecommunication, Nutrition, Infant Education, Secretarial Studies, Hotel Management, Tourism, Photography, Fashion and Dressmaking. At the College of Technology, the courses, of four years duration, relate to Mechanical Engineering, Information Communication, Networking Engineering, Architecture and Civil Engineering. Undergraduate students can apply for the five-year scholarships available in Social Sciences and Humanities, Law, Politics, Pedagogy, Sociology, Literature, History, Japanese Language, Economics, and Business Administration and others, as well as in Electronics, Electrical Engineering, Information Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Naval Architecture, Civil Engineering and Architecture, Chemical Engineering, Textile Engineering, Maritime Engineering, Biotechnology, Agricultural Engineering, Animal Sciences, Veterinary Medicine, Forestry, Food Sciences, Fisheries, Medicine and Dentistry। Applicants must have been born between 2 April 1988 and 1 April 1993 and completed a 12-year (plus-two or higher secondary) regular course of school education. The applicant must be willing to undergo a one-year intensive course in the Japanese language and other subjects in preparation for college and university. Applicants will have to appear for a written examination in July 2009 at the Consulate premises. This will be followed by an interview. Results will be intimated to candidates by February 2010. The prescribed application form along with the guidelines can be obtained from the Consulate-General of Japan (Culture and Information) 12/1, Cenotaph रोड
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Chennai/Scholarships-on-offer-for-students-wanting-to-study-in-Japan/articleshow/4557627.cms
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Chennai/Scholarships-on-offer-for-students-wanting-to-study-in-Japan/articleshow/4557627.cms
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
The Odds Favor Business Schools in China and India
Asian B-schools must go a long way to match Western ones, but they are fast making giant strides
Economic power is shifting rapidly from the West to the East—especially to China and India। China appears destined to become the world's largest economy by 2025. India, trailing China by about 12 years, will rank among the world's top three or four by then. By 2025, China and India will also likely account for well over 100 of the world's 500 largest companies, up from 36 today. Where will the corporate leaders of these new economies come from? Are the leading business schools in China and India up to the task, or will the grooming of tomorrow's global leaders be done primarily at institutions such as Harvard, Stanford, and INSEAD?
Global MBA rankings would suggest that the die is already cast. According to the Financial Times' 2009 rankings, China and India account for only one school each among the top 100 MBA programs in the world, as contrasted with 56 from the U.S. Even these two (the China Europe International Business School and the Indian School of Business) are the products of Western alliances. None of the top two purely Indian MBA programs (IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Bangalore) or the top two purely Chinese MBA programs (Tsinghua University's School of Economics & Management and Beijing University's Guanghua School of Management) make it into the FT Global 100 list. And Indian B-schools are reporting disappointing job-placement numbers for their graduates as the global recession dampens demand from would-be employers.
Asian Strength
Notwithstanding the apparent dominance of Western—especially American—business schools, we argue that the odds favor the top business schools from within China and India. Here's why.
• First, student quality at the top Indian and Chinese business schools is superb and getting better। Sheer population numbers give these schools an advantage in the intellectual caliber of incoming students. Numbers dictate that it is harder to get into a top business school in India or China than into a similarly ranked school in the U.S. or Europe. Current Chinese MBA students, virtually all born after 1978, grew up in the reform era, have been learning English for years, and have been heavily exposed to the market economy. They are also much more willing to challenge the status quo, a requisite for becoming innovative.
Increasingly, Chinese students can also draw inspiration from domestic business heroes such as Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba Group। Faculty at U.S. business schools routinely acknowledge—but are hesitant to say so publicly—that the likelihood of MBA students transforming into stellar corporate leaders depends far more on their personal characteristics than on the caliber of the faculty, either as research scholars or in terms of pedagogical skills in the classroom.
• Second, domestic salaries received by graduates of the top MBA programs in both China and India are rising and becoming competitive with their counterparts in the West। At the top three MBA programs in both India and China, average starting salaries for domestic jobs range from $30,000 to $50,000. Adjusted for purchasing power parity, these salaries are on par with or higher than those earned by the graduates of the top Western MBA programs. As income levels in China and India continue to rise faster than in the West, it is likely that the salaries earned by the graduates of the top MBA programs will also move up at a faster pace. Attractive salaries and abundant job prospects would suggest that the indigenous MBA programs will become even more attractive to the top domestic applicants in the coming years.
Third, it is now virtually impossible for any school to maintain a competitive advantage based on the curriculum। Given the Internet, every school has real-time access to the curriculum being followed and course materials being used by every other school. Most of the top business schools in the world (including those in China and India) routinely monitor curricular innovations at other schools and revise their own curriculums every three to five years. Another factor driving toward parity in curriculum innovation is the growing number of Chinese and Indian PhD graduates who are returning to their homelands to take up faculty positions. Nearly half of the faculty at Tsinghua University's School of Economics & Management earned their PhDs from Western business schools.
• Fourth, context matters। Unlike in the U.S., state- and family-owned enterprises constitute the large majority of corporations in both China and India. In both economies, market realities too are radically different from those in the U.S. Average per capita income in China is about one-fifteenth and in India about one-fortieth of that in the U.S. Given vast rural populations, the market for almost every product or service in China and India is also far more diverse than that in the U.S.
Leading indigenous MBA programs are able to provide much greater exposure to these contextual realities than Harvard or Stanford ever could। One U.S.-trained partner at the Mumbai offices of one of the world's leading strategy consulting firms told us: "We have direct experience with MBAs from the top Indian schools as well as returnees with degrees from the top Western schools. American MBAs are better packaged. However, the Indian MBAs are much stronger analytically and have more in-depth understanding of the Indian business environment. On average, the latter tend to be more successful for us. The importance of context also shows up in that our Europe-educated MBAs tend to perform better in India than those from the U.S."
A Paucity of Diversity
Notwithstanding these advantages, even the top MBA programs in China and India suffer from two major weaknesses। One, their student body is much less diverse than at top MBA programs in the West. Harvard's annual intake of 900 students comes from over 70 countries. Stanford draws its annual pool of about 370 students from over 50 countries. Greater diversity fosters richer class discussions and a more global network of contacts. This is one area where the leading Western business schools will continue to sustain an enduring advantage.
Two, in terms of faculty research, even the best Chinese and Indian business schools pale in comparison with any of the top 25 Western business schools। Building the necessary research culture and assembling a critical mass of top scholars requires resources and even then can take years. Here too, top Western business schools are likely to sustain an enduring advantage. In terms of a business school's ability to train corporate leaders, however, the quality of faculty research may not be as critical as it may appear. Graduates of the Indian Institutes of Technology have been spectacularly successful at climbing the top rungs of Corporate America despite the fact that, until recently, the IITs have been primarily teaching rather than research institutions.
Looking ahead, it is clear that history is on the side of the top business schools from India and China। Their biggest challenge will be to turn superb teaching institutions into research powerhouses as well.
The rise of China and India also offers an opportunity to the leading Western business schools। They must commit to becoming insiders within China and India. Context matters, and the best way to develop a deeper understanding of China and India and to broaden the alumni network within these economies is to partner as well as compete with the dragons and tigers on their home turf. The fastest and most effective way to do so without running into capacity problems will be via nondegree executive education programs.
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/may2009/gb2009057_658055_page_2.htm
Economic power is shifting rapidly from the West to the East—especially to China and India। China appears destined to become the world's largest economy by 2025. India, trailing China by about 12 years, will rank among the world's top three or four by then. By 2025, China and India will also likely account for well over 100 of the world's 500 largest companies, up from 36 today. Where will the corporate leaders of these new economies come from? Are the leading business schools in China and India up to the task, or will the grooming of tomorrow's global leaders be done primarily at institutions such as Harvard, Stanford, and INSEAD?
Global MBA rankings would suggest that the die is already cast. According to the Financial Times' 2009 rankings, China and India account for only one school each among the top 100 MBA programs in the world, as contrasted with 56 from the U.S. Even these two (the China Europe International Business School and the Indian School of Business) are the products of Western alliances. None of the top two purely Indian MBA programs (IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Bangalore) or the top two purely Chinese MBA programs (Tsinghua University's School of Economics & Management and Beijing University's Guanghua School of Management) make it into the FT Global 100 list. And Indian B-schools are reporting disappointing job-placement numbers for their graduates as the global recession dampens demand from would-be employers.
Asian Strength
Notwithstanding the apparent dominance of Western—especially American—business schools, we argue that the odds favor the top business schools from within China and India. Here's why.
• First, student quality at the top Indian and Chinese business schools is superb and getting better। Sheer population numbers give these schools an advantage in the intellectual caliber of incoming students. Numbers dictate that it is harder to get into a top business school in India or China than into a similarly ranked school in the U.S. or Europe. Current Chinese MBA students, virtually all born after 1978, grew up in the reform era, have been learning English for years, and have been heavily exposed to the market economy. They are also much more willing to challenge the status quo, a requisite for becoming innovative.
Increasingly, Chinese students can also draw inspiration from domestic business heroes such as Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba Group। Faculty at U.S. business schools routinely acknowledge—but are hesitant to say so publicly—that the likelihood of MBA students transforming into stellar corporate leaders depends far more on their personal characteristics than on the caliber of the faculty, either as research scholars or in terms of pedagogical skills in the classroom.
• Second, domestic salaries received by graduates of the top MBA programs in both China and India are rising and becoming competitive with their counterparts in the West। At the top three MBA programs in both India and China, average starting salaries for domestic jobs range from $30,000 to $50,000. Adjusted for purchasing power parity, these salaries are on par with or higher than those earned by the graduates of the top Western MBA programs. As income levels in China and India continue to rise faster than in the West, it is likely that the salaries earned by the graduates of the top MBA programs will also move up at a faster pace. Attractive salaries and abundant job prospects would suggest that the indigenous MBA programs will become even more attractive to the top domestic applicants in the coming years.
Third, it is now virtually impossible for any school to maintain a competitive advantage based on the curriculum। Given the Internet, every school has real-time access to the curriculum being followed and course materials being used by every other school. Most of the top business schools in the world (including those in China and India) routinely monitor curricular innovations at other schools and revise their own curriculums every three to five years. Another factor driving toward parity in curriculum innovation is the growing number of Chinese and Indian PhD graduates who are returning to their homelands to take up faculty positions. Nearly half of the faculty at Tsinghua University's School of Economics & Management earned their PhDs from Western business schools.
• Fourth, context matters। Unlike in the U.S., state- and family-owned enterprises constitute the large majority of corporations in both China and India. In both economies, market realities too are radically different from those in the U.S. Average per capita income in China is about one-fifteenth and in India about one-fortieth of that in the U.S. Given vast rural populations, the market for almost every product or service in China and India is also far more diverse than that in the U.S.
Leading indigenous MBA programs are able to provide much greater exposure to these contextual realities than Harvard or Stanford ever could। One U.S.-trained partner at the Mumbai offices of one of the world's leading strategy consulting firms told us: "We have direct experience with MBAs from the top Indian schools as well as returnees with degrees from the top Western schools. American MBAs are better packaged. However, the Indian MBAs are much stronger analytically and have more in-depth understanding of the Indian business environment. On average, the latter tend to be more successful for us. The importance of context also shows up in that our Europe-educated MBAs tend to perform better in India than those from the U.S."
A Paucity of Diversity
Notwithstanding these advantages, even the top MBA programs in China and India suffer from two major weaknesses। One, their student body is much less diverse than at top MBA programs in the West. Harvard's annual intake of 900 students comes from over 70 countries. Stanford draws its annual pool of about 370 students from over 50 countries. Greater diversity fosters richer class discussions and a more global network of contacts. This is one area where the leading Western business schools will continue to sustain an enduring advantage.
Two, in terms of faculty research, even the best Chinese and Indian business schools pale in comparison with any of the top 25 Western business schools। Building the necessary research culture and assembling a critical mass of top scholars requires resources and even then can take years. Here too, top Western business schools are likely to sustain an enduring advantage. In terms of a business school's ability to train corporate leaders, however, the quality of faculty research may not be as critical as it may appear. Graduates of the Indian Institutes of Technology have been spectacularly successful at climbing the top rungs of Corporate America despite the fact that, until recently, the IITs have been primarily teaching rather than research institutions.
Looking ahead, it is clear that history is on the side of the top business schools from India and China। Their biggest challenge will be to turn superb teaching institutions into research powerhouses as well.
The rise of China and India also offers an opportunity to the leading Western business schools। They must commit to becoming insiders within China and India. Context matters, and the best way to develop a deeper understanding of China and India and to broaden the alumni network within these economies is to partner as well as compete with the dragons and tigers on their home turf. The fastest and most effective way to do so without running into capacity problems will be via nondegree executive education programs.
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/may2009/gb2009057_658055_page_2.htm
Japan: Slowly Warming Up to MBAs
Japan offers more business school programs than ever, but Japan Inc। remains skeptical of the value of an MBA
In Japan, it has never been easier to find an MBA program. Twenty years ago, only a few universities offered business administration courses, so most aspiring students headed to the U.S. to study. Even as business school degrees gained in popularity around the world, the number of domestic programs edged up only slowly। However, in the last five years the number of Japanese universities with business schools has more than doubled, to 55.
Several reasons account for the increased popularity of business schools in Japan. Government deregulation, for instance, made it easier for schools to offer MBA programs. Japanese schools also have become more flexible, making their programs more accessible to local students. For instance, many schools now offer part-time study for students unable or unwilling to take time out from their current jobs. "If I had had to quit my job to study, I might've not thought about taking an MBA course," says Midori Ibuka, 40, a manager at YKK, the world's biggest zipper maker। Between 2005 and 2007, Ibuka took a course at Waseda University's business school in Tokyo, going to classes from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., five nights a week. Formerly an executive's secretary, Ibuka, who spent $30,000 in fees, has since been assigned to her current general manager position in YKK's communications division.
Seniority Trumps Education
Yet for all that, it's difficult to make the case that Japan Inc। embraces employees with MBAs. On the contrary, many big companies still prefer to hire grads fresh out of college and mold them into the type of managers they want, rather than hiring B-school grads. Meanwhile MBA holders sent to B-school by companies find it tough to put newfound skills into practice when they return to work.
Corporate Japan doesn't seem convinced of the merits of MBAs. Many companies still have a lifetime employment system with pay and promotions based on seniority. That means MBA holders can't expect rapid progression or improved compensation. Lion, a maker of household products, has sent two employees to Keio University's program every year since the late 1970s, including President Sadayoshi Fujishige, yet the company doesn't mark them out as special cases। "We don't give MBA holders any special treatment in terms of salary or promotion," says Fujishige.
Recent events may not help raise the profile of MBAs in Japan. With the current global recession blamed on the excesses of U।S.-style capitalism, Japan's MBA holders may be losing some of their luster as well. For one thing, many of the investment banks that hired MBAs are cutting back.
Meanwhile, the notion that MBAs can be bad for business, while not widespread, goes down well in Japan. Last fall, Takayuki Yasui, a columnist for the Asahi Shimbun daily, attributed some weakness of Detroit's auto industry to U.S. companies tendency to promote managers with MBAs, whereas more successful companies like Honda (HMC) for example, fill their management ranks with engineers। To illustrate the point, the paper said an unnamed U.S. Big Three executive had turned down a proposal from the president of a Japanese automaker to view a factory because he wouldn't understand it. "The American CEO has learned theory of management at business school, and he's more interested in making money than making cars," Yasui quoted the shocked Japanese auto chief as saying.
Signs of Increased Acceptance
Perhaps it's no surprise, then, that those returning to Japanese companies after receiving MBAs sometimes get frustrated and often quit companies for a new challenge।
But rather than encourage companies to use B-school grads more effectively, many companies have instead decided to stop paying for employee MBA programs. At Keio University, the first Japanese university to offer an MBA program in 1978, 65% of business degree students were sent by their companies in the late 1980s, compared with 35% today. "Many Japanese companies can't make really good use of MBA holders when they come back [to work]," says Yoshito Hori, president of Globis, a Tokyo management school. Hori left trading company Sumitomo a few years after returning from Harvard।
Still, it's not all doom and gloom, Hori, whose school tops a ranking of student satisfaction, adds that the answer may lie in tailoring courses that bridge the gap between Japanese and global business practices. Hori says the school's approach borrows heavily from Harvard in its use of detailed case studies, often drawing on examples from successful Japanese companies। Globis also places importance on programs that foster the spiritual side of business leadership. For instance, there are classes in which would-be executives study the Analects of Confucius. "Successful corporate managers all have a personal magnetism and a rich sense of humanity," he says. "This kind of education is weak at the U.S. schools."
Meanwhile, Japanese companies have internationalized their production and sales. So employees will have no choice but to find ways of communicating techniques developed in Japan। Business schools can act as a useful tool in taking principles learned in Japanese factories and offices and finding ways to package them for a global audience.
And while Japan might not reward MBA students to the same extent as the U.S., that could change in time. One hopeful sign: Japan's best-known manufacturer, Toyota (TM)—a company not renowned for MBAs in the boardroom—will appoint a B-school grad as its next president in June when family scion Akio Toyoda, who holds an MBA from Babson College near Boston, succeeds Katsuaki Watanabe। "Compared to the U.S., MBAs are not prevalent in Japan's business circles," says Kyoichi Ikeo, dean of Graduate School of Business Administration at Keio University, which was the first Japanese university to offer an MBA in 1978. "We have to constantly send out the message that an MBA education and the research done at school are meaningful for the development of companies."
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/may2009/gb2009057_863933_page_2.htm
In Japan, it has never been easier to find an MBA program. Twenty years ago, only a few universities offered business administration courses, so most aspiring students headed to the U.S. to study. Even as business school degrees gained in popularity around the world, the number of domestic programs edged up only slowly। However, in the last five years the number of Japanese universities with business schools has more than doubled, to 55.
Several reasons account for the increased popularity of business schools in Japan. Government deregulation, for instance, made it easier for schools to offer MBA programs. Japanese schools also have become more flexible, making their programs more accessible to local students. For instance, many schools now offer part-time study for students unable or unwilling to take time out from their current jobs. "If I had had to quit my job to study, I might've not thought about taking an MBA course," says Midori Ibuka, 40, a manager at YKK, the world's biggest zipper maker। Between 2005 and 2007, Ibuka took a course at Waseda University's business school in Tokyo, going to classes from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., five nights a week. Formerly an executive's secretary, Ibuka, who spent $30,000 in fees, has since been assigned to her current general manager position in YKK's communications division.
Seniority Trumps Education
Yet for all that, it's difficult to make the case that Japan Inc। embraces employees with MBAs. On the contrary, many big companies still prefer to hire grads fresh out of college and mold them into the type of managers they want, rather than hiring B-school grads. Meanwhile MBA holders sent to B-school by companies find it tough to put newfound skills into practice when they return to work.
Corporate Japan doesn't seem convinced of the merits of MBAs. Many companies still have a lifetime employment system with pay and promotions based on seniority. That means MBA holders can't expect rapid progression or improved compensation. Lion, a maker of household products, has sent two employees to Keio University's program every year since the late 1970s, including President Sadayoshi Fujishige, yet the company doesn't mark them out as special cases। "We don't give MBA holders any special treatment in terms of salary or promotion," says Fujishige.
Recent events may not help raise the profile of MBAs in Japan. With the current global recession blamed on the excesses of U।S.-style capitalism, Japan's MBA holders may be losing some of their luster as well. For one thing, many of the investment banks that hired MBAs are cutting back.
Meanwhile, the notion that MBAs can be bad for business, while not widespread, goes down well in Japan. Last fall, Takayuki Yasui, a columnist for the Asahi Shimbun daily, attributed some weakness of Detroit's auto industry to U.S. companies tendency to promote managers with MBAs, whereas more successful companies like Honda (HMC) for example, fill their management ranks with engineers। To illustrate the point, the paper said an unnamed U.S. Big Three executive had turned down a proposal from the president of a Japanese automaker to view a factory because he wouldn't understand it. "The American CEO has learned theory of management at business school, and he's more interested in making money than making cars," Yasui quoted the shocked Japanese auto chief as saying.
Signs of Increased Acceptance
Perhaps it's no surprise, then, that those returning to Japanese companies after receiving MBAs sometimes get frustrated and often quit companies for a new challenge।
But rather than encourage companies to use B-school grads more effectively, many companies have instead decided to stop paying for employee MBA programs. At Keio University, the first Japanese university to offer an MBA program in 1978, 65% of business degree students were sent by their companies in the late 1980s, compared with 35% today. "Many Japanese companies can't make really good use of MBA holders when they come back [to work]," says Yoshito Hori, president of Globis, a Tokyo management school. Hori left trading company Sumitomo a few years after returning from Harvard।
Still, it's not all doom and gloom, Hori, whose school tops a ranking of student satisfaction, adds that the answer may lie in tailoring courses that bridge the gap between Japanese and global business practices. Hori says the school's approach borrows heavily from Harvard in its use of detailed case studies, often drawing on examples from successful Japanese companies। Globis also places importance on programs that foster the spiritual side of business leadership. For instance, there are classes in which would-be executives study the Analects of Confucius. "Successful corporate managers all have a personal magnetism and a rich sense of humanity," he says. "This kind of education is weak at the U.S. schools."
Meanwhile, Japanese companies have internationalized their production and sales. So employees will have no choice but to find ways of communicating techniques developed in Japan। Business schools can act as a useful tool in taking principles learned in Japanese factories and offices and finding ways to package them for a global audience.
And while Japan might not reward MBA students to the same extent as the U.S., that could change in time. One hopeful sign: Japan's best-known manufacturer, Toyota (TM)—a company not renowned for MBAs in the boardroom—will appoint a B-school grad as its next president in June when family scion Akio Toyoda, who holds an MBA from Babson College near Boston, succeeds Katsuaki Watanabe। "Compared to the U.S., MBAs are not prevalent in Japan's business circles," says Kyoichi Ikeo, dean of Graduate School of Business Administration at Keio University, which was the first Japanese university to offer an MBA in 1978. "We have to constantly send out the message that an MBA education and the research done at school are meaningful for the development of companies."
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/may2009/gb2009057_863933_page_2.htm
Asia Seeks Its Own Brand of Business Schools
To compete with Western B-schools and capitalize on Asia's growing business importance, Korean universities are partnering with schools around the region
Business major Lee Sun Kee is happy that he attended Korea University in Seoul. Lee, a senior, took four courses at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School last fall as an exchange student and feels that his university in Korea offers business programs just as good as those at Ivy League schools। "At Wharton, I met talented students and a couple of star professors whose lectures were impressive," says Lee. "But for other classes, I thought I could have learned better in Korea at one-tenth of Wharton's tuition."
Lee is one of a growing number of students appreciating a drastic makeover undertaken at business schools in Korea. Under a campaign to globalize curricula, faculty, and ways of thinking by students, top universities in the country have rebuilt their programs by modeling themselves largely on leading business schools in the U.S. "Globalization is our new mission," says Jang Hasung, dean of Korea University Business School. While Korean multinationals like Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor have been expanding worldwide for years, Jang says his school long had focused too much on national issues and Korean perspectives।
Now these Korean universities want to join other Asian B-schools in Hong Kong, Singapore, and China to compete directly with European and U।S. B-schools. That's because Asia has emerged as home for a growing number of multinational corporations that generate many highly paid jobs. "With the center of gravity in the global economy shifting to Asia, it's just natural for students from the U.S. and Europe to seek Asian experiences and networking opportunities through business schools in Asia," says Suh Kil Soo, associate dean at Yonsei University Graduate School of Business, which is developing a program emphasizing case studies of the chaebol, Korea's family-controlled conglomerates.
Intra-Asian efforts are also aiming to maximize such incentives। Last year, Korea University forged a three-nation alliance with the National University of Singapore and China's Fudan University in Shanghai to open a joint 18-month program, which requires students to study for six months at each of the three schools. The program, called "S cube" to represent the three cities of Seoul, Shanghai, and Singapore, "will let students leverage on different strengths of the three nations and benefit from extensive Asian networking," says Jang at Korea University. There are now 31 students enrolled, with the first class graduating next February.
Making Korean B-Schools More Global
Officials at Korean business schools believe they can now aim higher thanks to major reforms they have promoted at home। At the vanguard of a movement to make Korean business schools more global is Korea University. More than half of all lectures at its business school are now in English, even in undergraduate business school programs. To make its curriculum compatible with leading B-schools in the U.S. and Europe, Korea University received accreditation from the U.S.-based Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business in 2005 and the Brussels-based European Foundation for Management Development in 2007. The school has also pushed to team up with foreign partners. In recent years, Korea University has concluded exchange programs with some 100 business schools in the U.S., Europe, and Asia to accept some 300 foreign students, or nearly a fifth of all B-school students, annually. Apart from 10 full-time foreign professors, more than 20 visiting foreign professors run courses throughout the year.
Korea University isn't the only school in the country seeking international recognition। A total of six universities in Korea, including Seoul National University, Yonsei University, and Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology, have been accredited by AACSB and they all run MBA courses in English. "We are latecomers but Korea is moving rapidly to emerge as a major business education center in Asia," says Song Jae Yong, associate dean of Seoul National University Business School.
In fact, globalizing business schools is a national campaign, with the government setting aside more than $20 million to help finance such efforts by universities until 2012। To catch up with Asia's B-school leaders such as the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology and the National University of Singapore, the government in 2006 began providing some $1 million annually for seven years to a handful of universities, including Korea University and Seoul National University. Under the program, universities taking the government subsidy must find corporate sponsors donating a similar amount in addition to their own budgets matching or exceeding the subsidy to be spent on developing business schools. Seoul National is using the government aid to hire 20 renowned professors from the world's top 20 business schools to run credit-earning two-week intensive programs between terms.
One strategy to attract students looking for international experience is offering dual degree programs together with overseas universities। In 2006, for example, Seoul National started a program with Duke University in the U.S. to give its MBA students a chance to get a second MBA degree from Duke if they complete a second year there after a one-year course in Seoul. Seoul National last year concluded similar arrangements with France's Essec and China's Peking University.
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/asia/
Business major Lee Sun Kee is happy that he attended Korea University in Seoul. Lee, a senior, took four courses at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School last fall as an exchange student and feels that his university in Korea offers business programs just as good as those at Ivy League schools। "At Wharton, I met talented students and a couple of star professors whose lectures were impressive," says Lee. "But for other classes, I thought I could have learned better in Korea at one-tenth of Wharton's tuition."
Lee is one of a growing number of students appreciating a drastic makeover undertaken at business schools in Korea. Under a campaign to globalize curricula, faculty, and ways of thinking by students, top universities in the country have rebuilt their programs by modeling themselves largely on leading business schools in the U.S. "Globalization is our new mission," says Jang Hasung, dean of Korea University Business School. While Korean multinationals like Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor have been expanding worldwide for years, Jang says his school long had focused too much on national issues and Korean perspectives।
Now these Korean universities want to join other Asian B-schools in Hong Kong, Singapore, and China to compete directly with European and U।S. B-schools. That's because Asia has emerged as home for a growing number of multinational corporations that generate many highly paid jobs. "With the center of gravity in the global economy shifting to Asia, it's just natural for students from the U.S. and Europe to seek Asian experiences and networking opportunities through business schools in Asia," says Suh Kil Soo, associate dean at Yonsei University Graduate School of Business, which is developing a program emphasizing case studies of the chaebol, Korea's family-controlled conglomerates.
Intra-Asian efforts are also aiming to maximize such incentives। Last year, Korea University forged a three-nation alliance with the National University of Singapore and China's Fudan University in Shanghai to open a joint 18-month program, which requires students to study for six months at each of the three schools. The program, called "S cube" to represent the three cities of Seoul, Shanghai, and Singapore, "will let students leverage on different strengths of the three nations and benefit from extensive Asian networking," says Jang at Korea University. There are now 31 students enrolled, with the first class graduating next February.
Making Korean B-Schools More Global
Officials at Korean business schools believe they can now aim higher thanks to major reforms they have promoted at home। At the vanguard of a movement to make Korean business schools more global is Korea University. More than half of all lectures at its business school are now in English, even in undergraduate business school programs. To make its curriculum compatible with leading B-schools in the U.S. and Europe, Korea University received accreditation from the U.S.-based Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business in 2005 and the Brussels-based European Foundation for Management Development in 2007. The school has also pushed to team up with foreign partners. In recent years, Korea University has concluded exchange programs with some 100 business schools in the U.S., Europe, and Asia to accept some 300 foreign students, or nearly a fifth of all B-school students, annually. Apart from 10 full-time foreign professors, more than 20 visiting foreign professors run courses throughout the year.
Korea University isn't the only school in the country seeking international recognition। A total of six universities in Korea, including Seoul National University, Yonsei University, and Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology, have been accredited by AACSB and they all run MBA courses in English. "We are latecomers but Korea is moving rapidly to emerge as a major business education center in Asia," says Song Jae Yong, associate dean of Seoul National University Business School.
In fact, globalizing business schools is a national campaign, with the government setting aside more than $20 million to help finance such efforts by universities until 2012। To catch up with Asia's B-school leaders such as the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology and the National University of Singapore, the government in 2006 began providing some $1 million annually for seven years to a handful of universities, including Korea University and Seoul National University. Under the program, universities taking the government subsidy must find corporate sponsors donating a similar amount in addition to their own budgets matching or exceeding the subsidy to be spent on developing business schools. Seoul National is using the government aid to hire 20 renowned professors from the world's top 20 business schools to run credit-earning two-week intensive programs between terms.
One strategy to attract students looking for international experience is offering dual degree programs together with overseas universities। In 2006, for example, Seoul National started a program with Duke University in the U.S. to give its MBA students a chance to get a second MBA degree from Duke if they complete a second year there after a one-year course in Seoul. Seoul National last year concluded similar arrangements with France's Essec and China's Peking University.
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/asia/
Monday, May 18, 2009
Aoyama Gakuin U. to hand out free iPhones to students
Aoyama Gakuin University is phasing out traditional methods of taking attendance at its School of Social Informatics, in favor of free GPS-enabled iPhones.
The faculty began providing Apple iPhone 3Gs to all 550 staff and students Friday, using the GPS function to determine whether they are in school or not। The university will initiate full operation of the system in the autumn. The school also has plans to expand their use to setting simple tests and questionnaires, submitting homework and reviewing class video materials.
The university is to pay the basic charges itself, ensuring no extra financial burdens will fall on students
The same day, it also announced a tie-up with iPhone provider Softbank Mobile Corp।, called "Mobile & Net Society Education and Training."
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/national/news/20090516p2a00m0na001000c.html?inb=rs
The faculty began providing Apple iPhone 3Gs to all 550 staff and students Friday, using the GPS function to determine whether they are in school or not। The university will initiate full operation of the system in the autumn. The school also has plans to expand their use to setting simple tests and questionnaires, submitting homework and reviewing class video materials.
The university is to pay the basic charges itself, ensuring no extra financial burdens will fall on students
The same day, it also announced a tie-up with iPhone provider Softbank Mobile Corp।, called "Mobile & Net Society Education and Training."
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/national/news/20090516p2a00m0na001000c.html?inb=rs
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
First batch of nurses, caregivers leave for Japan under JPEPA
With tears in their eyes, Vilma Balatbat, 39, and her husband tightly embraced each other, knowing it would be some time before they would be together again।
On Saturday, Balatbat and 269 other Filipino nurses and caregivers, most of them mothers, left for Japan, making up the first batch of Filipino workers deployed to the world’s second largest economy under the controversial Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA).
“I’m both sad and happy,” said Balatbat, a mother of two, who will be working overseas for the first time। “I’ll certainly miss my loved ones, but this is also a new chapter for me. I’ve been waiting so long to work abroad.”
Balatbat, a registered nurse in the Philippines, will train as caregiver in a healthcare institution in Nagoya for six months while studying Japanese, a requirement for employment। The JPEPA program will entitle Balatbat to initially receive an “allowance” of P17,000 a month.
By February next year, she ought to pass the national board exams in Japan before she can be employed as caregiver and given a special visa of four years। Only then will she receive a regular wage of P75,000 a month.
The 92 nurses and 178 caregivers, including Balatbat, boarded two Japan Airlines flights that departed Manila on Saturday। Hired by 134 Japanese institutions and facilities through the Japan International Corporation of Welfare Services (JICWELS), these women will study Japanese in five designated language institutions in Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and Hiroshima while undergoing practical training at the same time.
Ten more are scheduled to leave on May 31। They are, however, exempted from undergoing training, having passed the prequalifying exams for proficiency of the Japanese language.
Economic agreement
Signed in 2006 but ratified by the Senate only on October 9, JPEPA is essentially an “economic” agreement that seeks to promote investments and trade of goods and services between Japan and the Philippines। But the agreement will also facilitate the entry of at least 400 Filipino nurses and 600 caregivers for Japan’s aging society.
Japan had long been the destination of Filipino entertainers, popularly known as “japayukis,” until the Japanese government passed a law in 2004 that imposed stricter immigration policies to address human trafficking।
Under the new legislation, Filipino entertainers entering Japan should have at least two years of professional training at an educational institution or experience in a country other than Japan। Job recruiters said the law disqualified up to 90 percent of Filipino entertainers that were deployed in Japan.
On January 12, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) and its Japanese counterpart—Japan International Corporation of Welfare Services—signed a memorandum of understanding paving the way for the deployment of Filipino nurses so they could make it to the national licensure examination for nurses scheduled in February 2010। The exam, administered in Japanese, is held every year.
Filipino caregivers, meanwhile, need at least three years of work experience before they can take the national certification examination। Their contracts allow them to work in Japan for three years. If they pass the exam, they can continue to work in Japan. If they don’t, they have to return to the Philippines immediately.
Two sides of debate
Critics of agreement have said the arrangement, under which Filipino nurses and caregivers are treated as “candidate nurses” and “candidate caregivers” and consequently paid lower wages until they pass the national exam in Japanese, legitimizes exploitation of Filipino workers।
But the allegations of exploitation hardly bother nurses and caregivers who flew to Japan on Saturday।
Beth Apellanes, 38, left her three children in Bohol for a job that will have her caring for elderly Japanese in Nagoya। She said she considers the JPEPA requirement for her to undergo six months of language and practical training as an opportunity to learn another language and prepare her for certification.
What worries her more is the uncertainty of living a new place। “I hope the Japanese are good people, and it won’t be difficult to deal with them,” Apellanes said.
During their pre-departure orientation on Friday, the Philippine government expressed optimism that the first batch of the caregivers and nurses to Japan will convince Japanese authorities to open more jobs for Filipino health workers in Japan।
“You are the face of Philippine healthcare professionals,” Hans Cacdac, POEA’s deputy administrator said। “Let us show the world, let us show the very good people of Japan that we are ready to provide necessary human and health care because that is what is what we are good at. I would think quite frankly that we are ranked if not the best, as among the best in the world to provide human and health care.”
While these health workers “do our country proud” by caring for sick or elderly Japanese, they join the growing ranks of overseas Filipino workers who have entrusted their families, including their spouses, young children and aging parents, to the care of others।
At the airport, children wailed as they bade their mothers goodbye. Elderly parents helped their sons and daughters wheel the pushcarts to the departure area. Airport guards stepped in to break up the endless hugging and kissing and to shoo off nonpassengers from restricted areas.
One of the nonpassengers was Balatbat’s husband। He moved to the far end of the departure area’s driveway to catch a good view of Japan Airlines plane bearing his wife as it taxied the runway. As if on cue, tears rolled down his cheeks when the aircraft took off.
Editor’s note: VERA Files is the work of veteran journalists taking a deeper look at current issues।
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2009/may/12/yehey/top_stories/20090512top3.html
On Saturday, Balatbat and 269 other Filipino nurses and caregivers, most of them mothers, left for Japan, making up the first batch of Filipino workers deployed to the world’s second largest economy under the controversial Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA).
“I’m both sad and happy,” said Balatbat, a mother of two, who will be working overseas for the first time। “I’ll certainly miss my loved ones, but this is also a new chapter for me. I’ve been waiting so long to work abroad.”
Balatbat, a registered nurse in the Philippines, will train as caregiver in a healthcare institution in Nagoya for six months while studying Japanese, a requirement for employment। The JPEPA program will entitle Balatbat to initially receive an “allowance” of P17,000 a month.
By February next year, she ought to pass the national board exams in Japan before she can be employed as caregiver and given a special visa of four years। Only then will she receive a regular wage of P75,000 a month.
The 92 nurses and 178 caregivers, including Balatbat, boarded two Japan Airlines flights that departed Manila on Saturday। Hired by 134 Japanese institutions and facilities through the Japan International Corporation of Welfare Services (JICWELS), these women will study Japanese in five designated language institutions in Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and Hiroshima while undergoing practical training at the same time.
Ten more are scheduled to leave on May 31। They are, however, exempted from undergoing training, having passed the prequalifying exams for proficiency of the Japanese language.
Economic agreement
Signed in 2006 but ratified by the Senate only on October 9, JPEPA is essentially an “economic” agreement that seeks to promote investments and trade of goods and services between Japan and the Philippines। But the agreement will also facilitate the entry of at least 400 Filipino nurses and 600 caregivers for Japan’s aging society.
Japan had long been the destination of Filipino entertainers, popularly known as “japayukis,” until the Japanese government passed a law in 2004 that imposed stricter immigration policies to address human trafficking।
Under the new legislation, Filipino entertainers entering Japan should have at least two years of professional training at an educational institution or experience in a country other than Japan। Job recruiters said the law disqualified up to 90 percent of Filipino entertainers that were deployed in Japan.
On January 12, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) and its Japanese counterpart—Japan International Corporation of Welfare Services—signed a memorandum of understanding paving the way for the deployment of Filipino nurses so they could make it to the national licensure examination for nurses scheduled in February 2010। The exam, administered in Japanese, is held every year.
Filipino caregivers, meanwhile, need at least three years of work experience before they can take the national certification examination। Their contracts allow them to work in Japan for three years. If they pass the exam, they can continue to work in Japan. If they don’t, they have to return to the Philippines immediately.
Two sides of debate
Critics of agreement have said the arrangement, under which Filipino nurses and caregivers are treated as “candidate nurses” and “candidate caregivers” and consequently paid lower wages until they pass the national exam in Japanese, legitimizes exploitation of Filipino workers।
But the allegations of exploitation hardly bother nurses and caregivers who flew to Japan on Saturday।
Beth Apellanes, 38, left her three children in Bohol for a job that will have her caring for elderly Japanese in Nagoya। She said she considers the JPEPA requirement for her to undergo six months of language and practical training as an opportunity to learn another language and prepare her for certification.
What worries her more is the uncertainty of living a new place। “I hope the Japanese are good people, and it won’t be difficult to deal with them,” Apellanes said.
During their pre-departure orientation on Friday, the Philippine government expressed optimism that the first batch of the caregivers and nurses to Japan will convince Japanese authorities to open more jobs for Filipino health workers in Japan।
“You are the face of Philippine healthcare professionals,” Hans Cacdac, POEA’s deputy administrator said। “Let us show the world, let us show the very good people of Japan that we are ready to provide necessary human and health care because that is what is what we are good at. I would think quite frankly that we are ranked if not the best, as among the best in the world to provide human and health care.”
While these health workers “do our country proud” by caring for sick or elderly Japanese, they join the growing ranks of overseas Filipino workers who have entrusted their families, including their spouses, young children and aging parents, to the care of others।
At the airport, children wailed as they bade their mothers goodbye. Elderly parents helped their sons and daughters wheel the pushcarts to the departure area. Airport guards stepped in to break up the endless hugging and kissing and to shoo off nonpassengers from restricted areas.
One of the nonpassengers was Balatbat’s husband। He moved to the far end of the departure area’s driveway to catch a good view of Japan Airlines plane bearing his wife as it taxied the runway. As if on cue, tears rolled down his cheeks when the aircraft took off.
Editor’s note: VERA Files is the work of veteran journalists taking a deeper look at current issues।
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2009/may/12/yehey/top_stories/20090512top3.html
Monday, May 11, 2009
Breaks provided for student loans
The education ministry will give more people extra time to repay their student loans while doubling the number of university students who can receive interest-free loans, officials said.
Starting this fiscal year, 100,000 borrowers will be allowed to postpone repayment of the loans from the Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO) for up to five years, 2।5 times the current 40,000, they said.
The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology made the decision because it expects more graduates will face difficulties repaying their debts amid the current recession, they said।
The number of students who can borrow the interest-free emergency loans from JASSO will double to 8,000। The measure will be taken, for example, to help students whose parents have lost their jobs.
During this fiscal year, JASSO will lend 947।5 billion yen to 1.15 million students, including those at two-year junior colleges.
After the students graduate, they are given grace periods to repay their debts in cases of disease, disasters and financial difficulties, such as job losses or low incomes।
About 40,000 people were granted grace periods in fiscal 2007 due to financial difficulties. The figure is expected to be almost the same for fiscal 2008, which ended in March.
In light of the economic slump, the ministry decided to increase the number of people eligible for the grace periods to 100,000।
The ministry earmarked 1 billion yen in the supplementary budget plan for this fiscal year as loans to JASSO to cover the increase in nonpayments।
For most of JASSO's loans, students apply before or immediately after entering college or university. But they can apply at any time for emergency loans, including interest-free ones.
The ministry, expecting soaring demand for interest-free loans, decided to increase the number of students who can receive these loans to 8,000।
Interest-free loans are financed by tax money। The ministry earmarked 1.5 billion yen in the supplementary budget plan for the increase in lending.(IHT/Asahi: May 9,2009)
http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200905090065.html
Starting this fiscal year, 100,000 borrowers will be allowed to postpone repayment of the loans from the Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO) for up to five years, 2।5 times the current 40,000, they said.
The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology made the decision because it expects more graduates will face difficulties repaying their debts amid the current recession, they said।
The number of students who can borrow the interest-free emergency loans from JASSO will double to 8,000। The measure will be taken, for example, to help students whose parents have lost their jobs.
During this fiscal year, JASSO will lend 947।5 billion yen to 1.15 million students, including those at two-year junior colleges.
After the students graduate, they are given grace periods to repay their debts in cases of disease, disasters and financial difficulties, such as job losses or low incomes।
About 40,000 people were granted grace periods in fiscal 2007 due to financial difficulties. The figure is expected to be almost the same for fiscal 2008, which ended in March.
In light of the economic slump, the ministry decided to increase the number of people eligible for the grace periods to 100,000।
The ministry earmarked 1 billion yen in the supplementary budget plan for this fiscal year as loans to JASSO to cover the increase in nonpayments।
For most of JASSO's loans, students apply before or immediately after entering college or university. But they can apply at any time for emergency loans, including interest-free ones.
The ministry, expecting soaring demand for interest-free loans, decided to increase the number of students who can receive these loans to 8,000।
Interest-free loans are financed by tax money। The ministry earmarked 1.5 billion yen in the supplementary budget plan for the increase in lending.(IHT/Asahi: May 9,2009)
http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200905090065.html
Opening the door to foreigners
Massive layoffs from the current economic crisis are falling heavily on foreign workers, many of whom are opting to leave the country to seek work back home.
But for those who stay, there remain the difficulties of adapting to Japanese society, limited educational opportunities for their children and lack of medical support। Yet a rapidly aging Japan is unlikely to long remain the world's second-largest economy without them.
"Japan's immigration policy has always been a patchwork. We need to have proper laws and regulations in place when accepting people from abroad," Susumu Ishihara, 57, president of the Japan Immigrant Information Agency, said during a recent interview with The Japan Times.
Motivated by a sense of urgency, Ishihara recently spent ¥5 million of his own money to launch a quarterly Japanese-language magazine, called Immigrants, focusing on immigration issues। The goal is to provide more information on foreigners living here to Japanese people to bridge the gap between the two sides.
The first issue of the quarterly, circulation 10,000, included messages from ambassadors of South American countries as well as interviews with immigration policy experts, including Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Taro Kono, and Shigehiko Shiramizu, a professor of global media studies at Komazawa University।
Ishihara, a former journalist for the daily Mainichi Shimbun, claims that when Japan revised the immigration law in 1989, during the bubble economy, and started accepting Japanese-Brazilians the following year, the revision was not discussed fully due to political situation at that time.
"Japanese politics was in turmoil in 1989 with the death of Emperor Showa (Hirohito), the collapse of Prime Minister Noboru Takeshita's Cabinet after the introduction of the consumption tax, and the pounding defeat of the ruling LDP led by Prime Minister Sosuke Uno in the Upper House election," he said।
"Though the revision was such an important policy shift with serious ramifications for Japan, it cleared the Diet without much debate," said Ishihara, who wrote extensively about Japanese politics as well as defense and human rights issues during his journalistic career।
By attitude if not policy, the government has tried to discourage foreigners from living here permanently, he said। But the revision triggered an influx of Japanese-Brazilians, who numbered 317,000 by 2007.
Recently, however, the government has offered to pay for laid-off Brazilians and Peruvians of Japanese descent to leave Japan, with the promise of never coming back।
Counting some 600,000 Chinese and 590,000 Koreans, Japan was home to 2.15 million foreigners as of 2007, nearly twice as many as in 1990, according to the Justice Ministry.
Many Japanese-Brazilians here must make do with low wages earned from long hours in factories, leaving little time to care for their children, the 57-year-old editor in chief of the magazine said।
Without the ability to communicate fully with Japanese children, Japanese-Brazilian kids tend to stick together। Some, alienated from society, turn to crime, he said.
"When I use the term 'immigration policy,' people may think I am urging Japan to accept more foreigners, but it's not quite true। What I'm saying is that there are already so many foreigners living here, so we have to think about them. We have already opened the door to foreigners, and companies need them, too," Ishihara said.
His views are shared by politicians in the Liberal Democratic Party-New Komeito ruling bloc। In February last year, about 80 LDP politicians, led by former Chief Cabinet Secretary Hidenao Nakagawa, formed a group to promote foreign personnel exchanges.
The group submitted a proposal to educate and train foreigners who wish to come to Japan and to accept 10 million immigrants over the next 50 years. The policy proposal also called for accepting 1,000 asylum seekers annually and others who need protection on humanitarian grounds।
Separately, current Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeo Kawamura established a lawmakers' group to create a bill to support schools for foreigners living in Japan। In addition, the Cabinet Office set up an office especially to deal with problems facing foreigners here earlier this year.
"For a long time, the issue of foreigners here has been regarded as taboo in the political arena because working for foreigners' rights won't help politicians get elected, and it may even anger some Japanese who don't want to accept foreigners। So, I welcome such moves by politicians," said Ishihara, who is also an expert on Korean residents in Japan.
Behind such moves is the growing uncertainty about Japan's future। Ishihara notes Japan's population is expected to drop below 90 million by 2050, 30 million to 40 million less than the 2005 level.
Every industrialized nation finds itself in a similar situation and competition is heating up to attract immigrants, Ishihara said, adding, "Even other parts of Asia, including Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan, have shaped their immigration policy to legally accept foreign workers."
Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam and China are currently experiencing population growth and supply workers to other countries, but they, too, will see declines in population by 2030। "But Japan has done nothing to cope with the looming crisis so far," he said.
Ishihara noted many industries in Japan are already dependent on foreign workers, including convenience stores and farming, where many Chinese and other non-Japanese work। "These days, even the sumo industry is dominated by foreigners," he added with a smile.
Ishihara plans to use part of the magazine's proceeds to help foreign children get a higher education in Japan, given the current difficulties they face, including financial constraints।
"Japanese society should support these children who work hard to get into universities। They are the ones who have overcome various difficulties since arriving here, and I'm sure they will be active in bridging the gap between Japan and foreign countries," he said.
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/rss/nn20090430f1.html
But for those who stay, there remain the difficulties of adapting to Japanese society, limited educational opportunities for their children and lack of medical support। Yet a rapidly aging Japan is unlikely to long remain the world's second-largest economy without them.
"Japan's immigration policy has always been a patchwork. We need to have proper laws and regulations in place when accepting people from abroad," Susumu Ishihara, 57, president of the Japan Immigrant Information Agency, said during a recent interview with The Japan Times.
Motivated by a sense of urgency, Ishihara recently spent ¥5 million of his own money to launch a quarterly Japanese-language magazine, called Immigrants, focusing on immigration issues। The goal is to provide more information on foreigners living here to Japanese people to bridge the gap between the two sides.
The first issue of the quarterly, circulation 10,000, included messages from ambassadors of South American countries as well as interviews with immigration policy experts, including Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Taro Kono, and Shigehiko Shiramizu, a professor of global media studies at Komazawa University।
Ishihara, a former journalist for the daily Mainichi Shimbun, claims that when Japan revised the immigration law in 1989, during the bubble economy, and started accepting Japanese-Brazilians the following year, the revision was not discussed fully due to political situation at that time.
"Japanese politics was in turmoil in 1989 with the death of Emperor Showa (Hirohito), the collapse of Prime Minister Noboru Takeshita's Cabinet after the introduction of the consumption tax, and the pounding defeat of the ruling LDP led by Prime Minister Sosuke Uno in the Upper House election," he said।
"Though the revision was such an important policy shift with serious ramifications for Japan, it cleared the Diet without much debate," said Ishihara, who wrote extensively about Japanese politics as well as defense and human rights issues during his journalistic career।
By attitude if not policy, the government has tried to discourage foreigners from living here permanently, he said। But the revision triggered an influx of Japanese-Brazilians, who numbered 317,000 by 2007.
Recently, however, the government has offered to pay for laid-off Brazilians and Peruvians of Japanese descent to leave Japan, with the promise of never coming back।
Counting some 600,000 Chinese and 590,000 Koreans, Japan was home to 2.15 million foreigners as of 2007, nearly twice as many as in 1990, according to the Justice Ministry.
Many Japanese-Brazilians here must make do with low wages earned from long hours in factories, leaving little time to care for their children, the 57-year-old editor in chief of the magazine said।
Without the ability to communicate fully with Japanese children, Japanese-Brazilian kids tend to stick together। Some, alienated from society, turn to crime, he said.
"When I use the term 'immigration policy,' people may think I am urging Japan to accept more foreigners, but it's not quite true। What I'm saying is that there are already so many foreigners living here, so we have to think about them. We have already opened the door to foreigners, and companies need them, too," Ishihara said.
His views are shared by politicians in the Liberal Democratic Party-New Komeito ruling bloc। In February last year, about 80 LDP politicians, led by former Chief Cabinet Secretary Hidenao Nakagawa, formed a group to promote foreign personnel exchanges.
The group submitted a proposal to educate and train foreigners who wish to come to Japan and to accept 10 million immigrants over the next 50 years. The policy proposal also called for accepting 1,000 asylum seekers annually and others who need protection on humanitarian grounds।
Separately, current Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeo Kawamura established a lawmakers' group to create a bill to support schools for foreigners living in Japan। In addition, the Cabinet Office set up an office especially to deal with problems facing foreigners here earlier this year.
"For a long time, the issue of foreigners here has been regarded as taboo in the political arena because working for foreigners' rights won't help politicians get elected, and it may even anger some Japanese who don't want to accept foreigners। So, I welcome such moves by politicians," said Ishihara, who is also an expert on Korean residents in Japan.
Behind such moves is the growing uncertainty about Japan's future। Ishihara notes Japan's population is expected to drop below 90 million by 2050, 30 million to 40 million less than the 2005 level.
Every industrialized nation finds itself in a similar situation and competition is heating up to attract immigrants, Ishihara said, adding, "Even other parts of Asia, including Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan, have shaped their immigration policy to legally accept foreign workers."
Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam and China are currently experiencing population growth and supply workers to other countries, but they, too, will see declines in population by 2030। "But Japan has done nothing to cope with the looming crisis so far," he said.
Ishihara noted many industries in Japan are already dependent on foreign workers, including convenience stores and farming, where many Chinese and other non-Japanese work। "These days, even the sumo industry is dominated by foreigners," he added with a smile.
Ishihara plans to use part of the magazine's proceeds to help foreign children get a higher education in Japan, given the current difficulties they face, including financial constraints।
"Japanese society should support these children who work hard to get into universities। They are the ones who have overcome various difficulties since arriving here, and I'm sure they will be active in bridging the gap between Japan and foreign countries," he said.
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/rss/nn20090430f1.html
Jochi Gakuin, Seibo plan April 2011 merger
Academic organizations Jochi Gakuin and Seibo Nursing School announced Tuesday they would start negotiations over a possible merger in April 2011.
Jochi Gakuin operates Sophia University in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, which comprises eight faculties and a graduate school, a junior college and Sophia School of Social Welfare. Seibo Nursing School operates Seibo College of Nursing in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo, and some other entities.
According to the two schools, their future goals coincide, with Jochi Gakuin wishing to expand its educational and research expertise in the field of nursing, and Seibo wanting to put greater emphasis on international medical treatments.
(Apr। 29, 2009)
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20090429TDY02305.htm
Jochi Gakuin operates Sophia University in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, which comprises eight faculties and a graduate school, a junior college and Sophia School of Social Welfare. Seibo Nursing School operates Seibo College of Nursing in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo, and some other entities.
According to the two schools, their future goals coincide, with Jochi Gakuin wishing to expand its educational and research expertise in the field of nursing, and Seibo wanting to put greater emphasis on international medical treatments.
(Apr। 29, 2009)
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20090429TDY02305.htm
Govt to pay for 2,500 research supporters at universities
The Education, Science and Technology Ministry will for the first time help universities hire research supporters, who assist with the research activities of teachers and doctoral students, by covering their employment costs।
Starting by paying for 2,500 research supporters at 50 universities throughout the nation this fiscal year, the ministry aims to improve the employment situation for young postdoctoral researchers, who often have trouble finding stable jobs after receiving their PhDs, and to improve the nation's research environments।
The government incorporated 30 billion yen into an additional economic stimulus package for fiscal 2009, assuming required costs to be 4 million yen per person। But it will be left up to each university's discretion how to disburse the allocated funds, and any surpluses may be used for administrative and public relations costs.
After the supplementary budget bills pass the Diet, the ministry will invite applications from national, public and private universities, and select those deserving of assistance by considering their research performance and enrollment levels in doctoral courses। Research supporters are tasked with duties that include maintaining observation instruments used for experiments, applying for research funds and generating data for external evaluation, cooperating with universities abroad and companies, helping with the hosting of international conferences.
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20090425TDY02307.htm
Starting by paying for 2,500 research supporters at 50 universities throughout the nation this fiscal year, the ministry aims to improve the employment situation for young postdoctoral researchers, who often have trouble finding stable jobs after receiving their PhDs, and to improve the nation's research environments।
The government incorporated 30 billion yen into an additional economic stimulus package for fiscal 2009, assuming required costs to be 4 million yen per person। But it will be left up to each university's discretion how to disburse the allocated funds, and any surpluses may be used for administrative and public relations costs.
After the supplementary budget bills pass the Diet, the ministry will invite applications from national, public and private universities, and select those deserving of assistance by considering their research performance and enrollment levels in doctoral courses। Research supporters are tasked with duties that include maintaining observation instruments used for experiments, applying for research funds and generating data for external evaluation, cooperating with universities abroad and companies, helping with the hosting of international conferences.
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20090425TDY02307.htm
Young researchers to get govt help to study abroad
The government plans to support young researchers who hope to study abroad by covering their travel and accommodation expenses, government sources said.
Under a five-year program, 15,000 to 30,000 young researchers and graduate students will attend universities and research institutes overseas for several months to one year.
To fund the program, the government plans to incorporate 30 billion yen into a supplementary budget for fiscal 2009.
While studying abroad in unfamiliar surroundings is usually a valuable and galvanizing experience for young researchers, there is a strong tendency for them to stay in the nation as there is no guarantee that they can obtain stable employment after returning to Japan, and the comfortable research environments here offer a powerful inducement for them to stay put.
The number of researchers staying abroad for more than one month has been on the decline after peaking at 7,674 in fiscal 2000.
(Apr। 20, 2009)
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
For Japanese Students, Boring Careers Are Looking Pretty Good
Heading en masse to new positions in Japan's major corporations, fresh university graduates in black suits have become as common a sight in Tokyo as April's cherry blossoms. But this year, things are different. According to a closely watched annual survey, the companies that were once synonymous with Japan Inc. — Toyota, Sony, Sharp and Canon — have lost their luster as potential employers. For those seeking secure jobs-for-life, students are instead looking to relatively low-risk industries such as railroads and public utilities.
The survey, a poll of nearly 6,000 university seniors conducted by Recruit Co., a Tokyo-based research and human resources company, revealed that Japan's flailing, export-driven economy has had a profound impact on the outlook of those on the brink of entering the workforce. Toyota's ranking as a preferred employer plummeted from 6th place last year to 96th place this year. Sony fell from 8th to 29th place; Sharp from 14th to 55th place; Canon from 20th to 77th place.
And which companies are the top five dream employers? Central Japan Railway and East Japan Railway Co. rose to first and second place (up from 4th and 9th place last year). Japan Post — formerly the public office that the government began to privatize in 2007 — jumped 357 spots to rank 30th. Chubu Electric Power and Kansai Electric Power both gained more than 50 places each to rank in the top 50.
It's not surprising that automakers and electronic companies are no longer as appealing as they once were. Toyota Motor, which has typically ranked in the survey's top 10, will likely post its second straight operating loss in its 2010 fiscal year — right when the students polled by Recruit will be entering the workplace. The company is expected to report a loss of $4.9 billion when it announces its 2009 results on May 8. Last week, Sharp Corp., too, slashed its outlook for its fiscal year ending March 31, to a net loss of $1.29 billion. (Read "Sony's Woes: Japan's Iconic Brands Under Fire.")
Recruit collected the data between Jan. 30 and Feb. 16, as a series of dire economic indicators painted a dismal economic outlook for Japan and major companies were laying off workers in waves. "News reports about worsened business and manpower conditions came out one after another," says Recruit spokeswoman Yuri Ito. "This survey is done around the time companies announce their recruitment plan for the following year. So some students might vote for those that plan to hire aggressively." Export-driven companies, out. Instead, "Students consider companies in industries like infrastructure and food, which are robust in a recession... companies that are stable and don't go away," says Ito. "Their parents think the same."
Grad students in engineering fields, of whom 1,860 were polled, still chose Panasonic as their ideal employer (followed by Sony), but automotive-related companies dropped in rank, and household products (including cosmetics) and pharmaceutical companies grew in popularity. The largest gains were seen by cosmetics companies Kao and Kose, food company Meiji, and three pharmaceutical companies: Shionogi & Co., Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., and Astellas.
Kevin Gibson, managing director of headhunting firm Robert Walters Japan, says he, too, is witnessing a flight to risk-free industries। "We see a gravitation away from banking and, oddly enough, manufacturing is perceived as insecure now," Gibson says. Robert Walters is placing a large number of executive and management talent into health care and the pharmaceutical industry. "It's getting fantastic people from I.T. and banking — people that [those industries] wouldn't normally be able to employ." But Gibson says the brain drain from old-guard companies may not last. "Media spent so much time beating up on these companies," he says. "They will bounce back."
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1891139,00.html?xid=rss-world
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Univ of Tokyo ranks 11th in global research paper citation frequency
TOKYO —
The University of Tokyo ranked 11th, up one notch from last year, among about 4,100 academic and research institutes worldwide in terms of how frequently its research papers were cited between January 1998 and last December, information company Thomson Reuters said Monday.
The University of Tokyo acquired the highest position since the company began releasing the global ranking in 2002. Among other institutions in Japan, Kyoto University ranked 30th on the list, Osaka University 34th and Tohoku University 64th.
Thomson Reuters said academic papers of such state-backed research institutions as the Japan Science and Technology Agency, Riken and the Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, as well as Tohoku University, Keio University and Okayama University became more frequently quoted in recent years.
In the field of materials science, Tohoku University ranked third in the worldwide ranking, followed by AIST at fourth. The University of Tokyo came in second in physics, and third in biology and biochemistry.
In the field of chemistry, Kyoto University ranked fourth, followed by the University of Tokyo at fifth।
Thursday, April 09, 2009
Foreign students finding jobs scarce
Foreign students seeking work in Japan after graduation are facing difficulties in finding jobs as employment conditions deteriorate because of the economic downturn.
More than 120,000 foreign students study in Japan annually. Observers say the government should support the students's job-hunting efforts to keep them from losing interest in Japan and returning to their home countries.
One foreign student looking for work is a 24-year-old graduate student from China's Jiangsu Province who lives in Akita. She is currently looking for full-time work at a Japanese firm for after she graduates. But the search is proving difficult.
"Since I began spending my time looking for work, my standard of living has been deteriorating day by day," she said.
With no financial support from her parents, she is living only on a scholarship and a part-time job to make ends meet. With graduation looming, she decided to quit her part-time job and focus on finding full-time work. By such methods as giving up her trips home to China, she has amassed 300,000 yen in savings. But she has found herself in a hard situation without her part-time income.
On March 8, she traveled halfway across the country to Tokyo, where she attended a job fair for foreign students held near JR Hamamatsucho Station in Minato Ward. Following the event, she stayed for a week with a friend living in the capital so she could call on companies in Tokyo, but she came away empty-handed, she said.
Savings wiped out, she can no longer afford to eat out, and is saving money by cooking and eating at home whenever possible.
"I've made it a habit to seek cheap foods at supermarkets. For example, I decided not to buy enoki mushrooms, whenever they cost more than 100 yen," she said.
The student buys boxed meals at supermarkets only after they become discounted at night and takes them to school the next day for lunch.
Still, she said she is not considering returning to China. "The competition is even more intense in China than here. There are fewer jobs to go around because of the economy. I want to work in Japan to utilize what I have learned in university and graduate school during my stay here," she said.
Similar difficulties have been experienced by a 31-year-old man from South Korea who now lives in Saitama Prefecture. After graduating from a private university here in 2007, he returned home and found employment. However, he returned to Japan after his wife decided to enter a Japanese graduate school, and he began searching for a job here this year. However, he has had no luck.
"There are far fewer companies hiring than there were before. I need to find a job as soon as possible to support my wife and me, but I haven't found a good place to work," he said.
According to the Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO), the number of foreign students studying in Japan at universities, graduate schools and junior colleges has been on the rise in recent years. As of May 1 last year, a record 123,829 foreign students were studying in Japan, up 5,331 from the previous year. About 60 percent of the foreign students came from China, followed by students from South Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam, according to JASSO.
Many students from Asia hope to work in Japan. However, only 10,262 students were able to obtain working visas in 2007 after finding jobs. Many students ended up returning to their home countries after failing to find work.
The employment situation for foreign students has gone from bad to worse due to the economic downturn. According to the Tokyo Employment Service Center for Foreigners--a job-placement office for foreign residents--there were 252 job listings targeting foreign students graduating in March available at the center as of Jan. 31, down 54 from the same period last year.
According to the organization, it is mainly small and medium-size companies that seek employees through the center. However, general manager Kazuo Hirasawa said companies across the spectrum are cutting the number of foreign students they hire.
The government has announced a plan to increase the number of foreign students studying in Japan to 300,000 by 2020 to enhance the country's international competitiveness by securing excellent human resources from around the world.
However, the government's measures to support foreign students finding jobs in Japan are limited, even though this is supposed to be an integral part of the government's plan. The government is now planning to host job fairs targeting foreign students and a meeting of universities and companies interested in recruiting foreign students.
But observers say the government measures are failing to keep up with rapidly deteriorating employment conditions.
Mitsuhiro Asada, chief editor of J-Life, a free magazine targeting foreign students published by ALC Press, Inc., said: "Foreign students are integral to the future of Japan. If the government really wants to increase the number of foreign students, it needs to focus its efforts on improving the status of foreign students after they graduate--including setting a target figure for the number of foreign students hired by Japanese companies."
Foreign students receiving more assistance in job hunt
When trying to get a job in Japan after completing their higher education here, foreign students often struggle with the nation's peculiar job-hunting procedures, under which students usually start such activities as early as the latter half of their junior year and submit "entry sheets" rather than resumes to prospective employers for the first round of screening.
Many job-hunting foreign students are uncertain about how to fill in these entry sheets or how they are expected to behave during interviews.
Therefore, some universities have been taking steps to help their foreign students find jobs.
For example, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University (APU), a private institution in Oita Prefecture whose foreign students accounts for 40 percent of the student body, regularly holds events called "Open Campus Recruiting," in which companies are invited to the campus to hold briefing sessions for foreign students and conduct recruitment tests.
During the 2007 academic year, there were about 380 sessions of the Open Campus Recruiting program.
On the other hand, Meiji Gakuin University in Tokyo started to offer job-hunting support to its foreign students in October last year. The private institution has asked for help from temporary staffing agency Pasona Inc., which provides advice to these students regarding how to fill in application forms and how to behave during interviews.
In addition to these two examples, many other institutions now offer special job-hunting seminars for foreign students.
In recent years, some companies have been willing to hire more and more foreign students. Starting with new recruits for the 2008 fiscal year, Lawson Inc., for example, has been hiring foreign students under the same working conditions as their Japanese colleagues. For the fiscal year starting this month, the major convenience store chain has about 40 foreign recruits.
"We value diversity [in our workforce]," a Lawson official says of why the company has hired an increasing number of foreign students.
Diversity in the workplace is thought to encourage people to respect different values that come from differing nationality, gender and age. This is also said to enhance their creativity.
"If companies can provide foreign employees with comfortable working systems," says Masato Gunji, senior researcher at the Japan Institute for Labor Policy and Training, "it would become easier for them to hire other types of workers such as homemakers and the elderly."
(Apr. 9, 2009)
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20090409TDY14001.htm
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20090409TDY14001.htm
Saturday, April 04, 2009
Indian-affiliated institution opens international school in Yokohama
An educational institution affiliated with the Indian government opened an international school in Yokohama on Friday
The Yokohama school, operated by India International School in Japan, uses a closed municipal elementary school building leased by the city of Yokohama, which is encouraging more Indian companies to operate in the port city
In the 2009 academic year beginning in April, 13 kindergarten and three elementary school students will study at the Yokohama school
Classes, conducted in English, promote Indian-style education, particularly math education on which India is known to focus, such as mental arithmetic calculation involving double-digit figures
IISJ is a nonprofit organization affiliated with the Indian government's Central Board of Secondary Education. About 350 students -- from kindergarten to senior high school students -- attend the international school it operates in Tokyo's Koto Ward.
IISJ plans to gradually increase the number of students at the newly opened Yokohama school to the size of the Tokyo school
About 10 Indian-affiliated companies, mostly IT-related firms, are operating in Yokohama, where about 1,300 Indian people reside, more than three times higher than from 10 years ago।
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D97ANL3O0&show_article=1
The Yokohama school, operated by India International School in Japan, uses a closed municipal elementary school building leased by the city of Yokohama, which is encouraging more Indian companies to operate in the port city
In the 2009 academic year beginning in April, 13 kindergarten and three elementary school students will study at the Yokohama school
Classes, conducted in English, promote Indian-style education, particularly math education on which India is known to focus, such as mental arithmetic calculation involving double-digit figures
IISJ is a nonprofit organization affiliated with the Indian government's Central Board of Secondary Education. About 350 students -- from kindergarten to senior high school students -- attend the international school it operates in Tokyo's Koto Ward.
IISJ plans to gradually increase the number of students at the newly opened Yokohama school to the size of the Tokyo school
About 10 Indian-affiliated companies, mostly IT-related firms, are operating in Yokohama, where about 1,300 Indian people reside, more than three times higher than from 10 years ago।
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D97ANL3O0&show_article=1
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Indonesian caregivers in Japan encourage compatriots
Dyana, 30, and Endah Trisnawati, 25, are among them. Last Friday, along with 300 other nurses, they took a competency test to qualify for jobs in Japan under the bilateral economic partnership agreement the two countries reached in 2007.
JAKARTA (Kyodo) News and e-mail messages from Indonesian nurses working in hospitals and nursing facilities in Japan have encouraged their colleagues to seek similar opportunities.
Last year, Trisnawati applied to be among the first batch of Indonesian nurses and caregivers sent to fill staff shortages at medical and nursing facilities in rapidly graying Japan.
Her documents were incomplete and her application was rejected. Disappointed, she had to put off her dream for a while.
Her friend, Asiana, however, was among the 208 Indonesian nurses and caregivers accepted by Japan. She arrived last August and three months later sent a message to Trisnawati urging her to try again.
Trisnawati, who speaks some English and Japanese, said Asiana told her she is very happy living and working in Japan.
"She faces some challenges, particularly cultural and language barriers, but little by little she should be able to adapt to her new environment," Trisnawati said.
Since her childhood, Trisnawati has been obsessed with things Japanese. The nurse, who has worked for 4 1/2 years at an international hospital in Bekasi in the suburbs of Jakarta, loves "manga" (comics) and has always hoped that one day she will be able to visit the country.
News from Japan has also motivated fellow hopeful Dyana to seek work in Japan.
"I heard that our nurses have been welcomed and appreciated by the Japanese people, unlike other Indonesian migrant workers in the Middle East,
Dyana, who has been working as a nurse at a maternity hospital since 2002, is seeking work in Japan to learn something about the health business and save money to set up her own clinic in Indonesia.
"When I return to Indonesia, I want to apply my experiences and knowledge from Japan to open a clinic here," she said.
During the Friday competency test, Dyana and Trisnawati tried to answer 180 questions in three hours.
Similar tests were also given last week in three provincial capitals — Medan in North Sumatra Province, Pekanbaru in Riau Province and Denpasar in Bali Province.
The test results will be announced Wednesday and interviews with Japanese facilities are expected by the end of next month.
Those who pass the competency tests and navigate other procedures will be included among 792 nurses and caregivers to be sent to Japan around November to work in hospitals and nursing facilities.
Japan has agreed to take in 1,000 nurses and other health workers each from Indonesia and the Philippines under bilateral economic partnership agreements.
Once accepted to work in Japan, the nurses and caregivers will study Japanese for four months in Jakarta and Bali from July and then two months in Japan.
Last year, the first batch of medical workers studied the language for six months in Japan.
It is unclear if Japan will take in more Indonesians beyond the two-year period as the Japanese Nursing Association and the Japan Association of Certified Care Workers have been lobbying the government to prioritize the employment of Japanese workers.
Critics fear accepting more workers from overseas could lead to deterioration in job conditions for Japanese staff, possibly including lower wages।
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20090325f2.htmlSaturday, March 14, 2009
Manga science crammers infatuate students
Study guides illustrated with cute, manga-esque female characters who explain the basics of subjects such as physics, chemistry and mathematics are selling well, giving rise to hopes among educators they will help stem the trend of young people turning away from the sciences।
Some doubt, however, whether such books will really help youngsters become more interested in the subjects।
The main store of the Maruzen bookshop chain in Tokyo's Marunouchi district has on its third-floor shelves a selection of books introducing difficult physics subjects such as the properties of neutrinos and the principles of quantum mechanics।
Visitors are lured to the section by a selection of books with large, colorful illustrations of attractive young girls on their covers।
PHP Interface, a publisher known for its business books, published a study aid in October titled "Genso-shuki--Moete Oboeru Kagaku no Kiso" (The Periodic Table--The Basics of Chemistry Learned through Infatuation)। In the book, attractive manga girls teach the periodic table by personifying the 118 chemical elements.
The company already has published 11 printings of the science crammer, selling a total of 35,000 copies to date।
Fluorine compounds are used for coating frying pans, and in the books the apron-wearing character embodying the element tells readers, "The fluorine coating repels water!"
A 16-year-old high school student from Chiba Prefecture said of the language used in the books, "As well as the drawings, the [characters'] lines also convey the properties of the elements।"
Miyuki Mitsuda, a part-time instructor at Musashi Institute of Technology, was the chief editor of the books। He said he asked the illustrators to try to help readers comprehend the properties of the elements by simply glancing at the drawings of the books.
Kochi cram school operator, Akihito Hamada, 47, said he always has copies at hand in class.
Manga drawings have been used in study books for many years। Hamada said, "The cute illustrations of girls go down particularly well among female middle school students."
A manga book explaining quantum mechanics published by PHP Interface last month has already sold 45,000 copies।
Hiroshi Matsui, a 74-year-old chemistry teacher at a vocational school in Hiroshima Prefecture, said he felt the book "is drawing in children who didn't get a feel for science from textbooks that focus on entrance examinations।"
Ohmsha Ltd।, a long-standing publisher of science and engineering books, has published about 20 books covering subjects such as calculus and Fourier analysis in its "Manga de Wakaru Shirizu" (Understanding through Manga Series). The series also features large front-cover illustrations of girls in maid costumes and other images typical of manga.
The most popular book in the series covers statistics। Maruzen reportedly sells twice as many copies of this book than any other title on the subject.
As Mio Murayama, a 32-year-old sales clerk at Maruzen's Marunouchi store, explained, it is not only the drawings of pretty girls that are helping the books sell।
"Some books barely sell at all," Murayama says। That's because they don't have the content to go with the pictures."
However, Akito Arima, a former education minister and chairman of the Japan Science Foundation, is not wholly convinced of the books' utility।
Arima said, "If [the books] are used by people unfamiliar with science to introduce them to scientific concepts, then I'm in favor of them using this kind of book।"
"People who really want to learn, though, should then study from try specialist books," Arima, 78, अद्देद.
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20090314TDY03103.htm
Some doubt, however, whether such books will really help youngsters become more interested in the subjects।
The main store of the Maruzen bookshop chain in Tokyo's Marunouchi district has on its third-floor shelves a selection of books introducing difficult physics subjects such as the properties of neutrinos and the principles of quantum mechanics।
Visitors are lured to the section by a selection of books with large, colorful illustrations of attractive young girls on their covers।
PHP Interface, a publisher known for its business books, published a study aid in October titled "Genso-shuki--Moete Oboeru Kagaku no Kiso" (The Periodic Table--The Basics of Chemistry Learned through Infatuation)। In the book, attractive manga girls teach the periodic table by personifying the 118 chemical elements.
The company already has published 11 printings of the science crammer, selling a total of 35,000 copies to date।
Fluorine compounds are used for coating frying pans, and in the books the apron-wearing character embodying the element tells readers, "The fluorine coating repels water!"
A 16-year-old high school student from Chiba Prefecture said of the language used in the books, "As well as the drawings, the [characters'] lines also convey the properties of the elements।"
Miyuki Mitsuda, a part-time instructor at Musashi Institute of Technology, was the chief editor of the books। He said he asked the illustrators to try to help readers comprehend the properties of the elements by simply glancing at the drawings of the books.
Kochi cram school operator, Akihito Hamada, 47, said he always has copies at hand in class.
Manga drawings have been used in study books for many years। Hamada said, "The cute illustrations of girls go down particularly well among female middle school students."
A manga book explaining quantum mechanics published by PHP Interface last month has already sold 45,000 copies।
Hiroshi Matsui, a 74-year-old chemistry teacher at a vocational school in Hiroshima Prefecture, said he felt the book "is drawing in children who didn't get a feel for science from textbooks that focus on entrance examinations।"
Ohmsha Ltd।, a long-standing publisher of science and engineering books, has published about 20 books covering subjects such as calculus and Fourier analysis in its "Manga de Wakaru Shirizu" (Understanding through Manga Series). The series also features large front-cover illustrations of girls in maid costumes and other images typical of manga.
The most popular book in the series covers statistics। Maruzen reportedly sells twice as many copies of this book than any other title on the subject.
As Mio Murayama, a 32-year-old sales clerk at Maruzen's Marunouchi store, explained, it is not only the drawings of pretty girls that are helping the books sell।
"Some books barely sell at all," Murayama says। That's because they don't have the content to go with the pictures."
However, Akito Arima, a former education minister and chairman of the Japan Science Foundation, is not wholly convinced of the books' utility।
Arima said, "If [the books] are used by people unfamiliar with science to introduce them to scientific concepts, then I'm in favor of them using this kind of book।"
"People who really want to learn, though, should then study from try specialist books," Arima, 78, अद्देद.
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20090314TDY03103.htm
Friday, March 13, 2009
Annual language test to turn twice-yearly
The Japanese Language Proficiency Test has long been a recognized way to measure one's Japanese ability.
But it is held only once a year, putting a great deal of pressure on the people taking the test — particularly those tackling the most difficult level — because failure means another full year of studying before they get another chance to prove their language ability.
"It was stressful," Wang Shenming, a 33-year-old इंडस्ट्री analyst in Taipei, said of taking the test's top, or Level 1, version. "I was worried that if I couldn't pass this time, I have to wait for one more year."
But starting in July, people studying the language will have more opportunities to take the proficiency test.
The Japan Foundation, a nonprofit organization specializing in international cultural exchanges, has announced it will hold the test twice a year in Japan, China, Hong Kong,
"It'll be more convenient for the examinees," said a spokeswoman at The Japan Foundation Center for Japanese Language Testing. "Even if examinees fail the test, they can try it again in half a year."
Wang said being able to take the test twice a year will make a big difference. He took the Level 1 exam in Fukuoka in 2003 but failed, so he took it again a year later in Taiwan.
"It they can take the exam twice a year, they will have more chances to pass the exam and not have to waste time when they are ready for the test," he said.
According to the spokeswoman, the Japan Foundation will next year expand the places where the test will be held every six months to some Southeast Asian countries, including Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia. The number of people taking the test is increasing in those countries, she said.
In East and Southeast Asia, most examinees are university students who want to measure their level of Japanese and who think the certificate that goes with a passing grade will be useful when applying for a job. Wang, who used to work at a Taipei branch of Murata Manufacturing Ltd., said having a test certificate is useful when looking for Japan-related employment.
He said he was asked to submit the certificate when he applied at the company.
"If I didn't have the certificate, I probably wouldn't have been interviewed," he said.
The proficiency test's growing popularity around the world has created a problem for the foundation.
People in China have started uploading answers soon after they finish taking the test there.
The examinees apparently jointly recollect written questions on the test and guess the right answers for their reference, but their answers can be viewed by other people who will be taking the test later the same day in different time zones around the world.
"We recognize that there are such Web sites," the spokeswoman said. "We're considering taking measures about it."
Chen Quan, 24, a graduate student who holds the Level 1 certificate, said it is common in China to put answers of public language tests on the Web.
"For example, right after the TOEFL exam, examinees start discussing the answers online," he said.
Chen said he used to worry that some people in different time zones could make use of such Web sites. However, he said he no longer cares about it that much because improving Japanese is more important than scoring higher marks.
"I think we should study for ourselves, not for a grade," he said।
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Today's College Scene / APU Japan's own city upon a hill
The following is an excerpt from The Yomiuri Shimbun's new series, "Today's College Scene," which visits a different university each week
BEPPU, Oita--Beppu is one of the nation's most famous hot-spring resorts, with steam from the water being apparent throughout the city। But there is more to this city than its fame of old, as it has now become known as the home of a "global village."
About a 40-minute bus ride from the city center, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University (APU) sits on a vast hillside that overlooks Beppu Bay and the Kunisaki Peninsula।
When The Yomiuri Shimbun visited APU early last month, it was the last day of finals। In the cafeteria could be found many foreign students, including Md. Asaduzzaman, a 20-year-old sophomore from Bangladesh.
The young Muslim was eating chicken, as his religion forbids him from eating pork। The school canteen offers a number of halal items on its menu for students such as Asaduzzaman, allowing them to eat comfortably within Islamic Law.
Asaduzzaman is among about 2,800 foreign students studying at APU as of November। The institution is currently tied for first place with Waseda University in terms of number of foreign students.
As APU's foreign students come from 87 countries and territories around the world, the cafeteria offers more than 200 items to meet their needs। In addition to dishes suitable for Muslims, there is a wide variety of vegetarian food, as well as kimchi imported directly from South Korea.
"I'd like to apply to my home country the business knowledge that Japan has developed as an economic giant," Asaduzzaman said in fluent Japanese।
Although most courses at APU are available both in Japanese and English, all students are required to study one of the languages intensively for their first two years to develop a high level of communication in both tongues। As a result, students can be found studying at all hours at the campus library.
The university's dormitory houses about 1,200 foreign and Japanese students। One of the residents, Takeya Tsuji, shared with me one particularly interesting episode from his life with people from many different countries.
Last summer, the 20-year-old freshman got to know a student from another Asian country as they had decided to stay at school during the semester break। The two talked with each other regularly, but Tsuji remembers something his friend told him.
"I'd like to see my family, but at the same time I'd rather stay here than go home," the foreign student said with a sad look on his face।
The remark made Tsuji worry about the difficult situations facing the friend's home country। At the same time, however, he was glad his new friend had confided in him.
"I imagine it's pretty hard to find a place like this where you can spend so much time getting to know so many foreign students--APU isn't your typical Japanese university," Tsuji said। Now he has joined a club on the campus to promote awareness about the damage caused by the Agent Orange used by U.S. forces during the Vietnam War.
APU was established in the hope of having "foreign students account for half of the student body।" For the past nine years, the institution has welcomed students from 104 countries and territories. However, the institution says it has been facing increased competition from other foreign schools.
As the university looks outward, it also looks inward, maintaining close ties with the local community, which helped establish the school। APU also has been looking into ways to stimulate the local economy and has presented plans on how to boost tourism to Beppu.
APU students are also engaged in nearly 200 community activities every year। One of the biggest events is the Sento Taisai festival, which the school inaugurated in 2005. As suggested by the name "Sento," a play on words that translates as "the capital of hot springs," students carry a mikoshi portable shrine to visit every one of the city's eight major hot spring districts.
Hirotsugu Hosokawa, 22, served as the head of the organizing committee for the fourth annual Sento Taisai festival, held in November।
"Working with so many people to organize the festival helped me to realize what it is I want to do," the senior said।
Hosokawa will begin working next month at a travel agency in the Kansai region, and is determined to promote Beppu's rich hot springs and hospitality.
===
Profile of Ritsumeikan Asia पैसिफिक University
Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University opened in 2000 after then Oita Gov। Morihiko Hiramatsu invited a new higher educational institution to be set up in the prefecture. The public and private sectors contributed to the establishment of the private institution--the Oita prefectural government and the Beppu municipal government donated the land for the campus and a total of 19 billion yen to cover the cost of construction, while the business community donated about 4 billion yen in scholarships for foreign students.
Aiming to foster an internationally-based workforce, APU consists of two schools--the College of Asia Pacific Studies and College of Asia Pacific Management, the latter of which will change its name next month to the College of International Management।
The school currently claims a student body of 5,900 students, 47 percent of whom are foreign students. About half of the faculty is non-Japanese, and includes APU President Monte Cassim, a Sri Lankan, who once studied in Japan.
(Mar। 12, 2009)
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/features/language/20090312TDY14001.htm
BEPPU, Oita--Beppu is one of the nation's most famous hot-spring resorts, with steam from the water being apparent throughout the city। But there is more to this city than its fame of old, as it has now become known as the home of a "global village."
About a 40-minute bus ride from the city center, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University (APU) sits on a vast hillside that overlooks Beppu Bay and the Kunisaki Peninsula।
When The Yomiuri Shimbun visited APU early last month, it was the last day of finals। In the cafeteria could be found many foreign students, including Md. Asaduzzaman, a 20-year-old sophomore from Bangladesh.
The young Muslim was eating chicken, as his religion forbids him from eating pork। The school canteen offers a number of halal items on its menu for students such as Asaduzzaman, allowing them to eat comfortably within Islamic Law.
Asaduzzaman is among about 2,800 foreign students studying at APU as of November। The institution is currently tied for first place with Waseda University in terms of number of foreign students.
As APU's foreign students come from 87 countries and territories around the world, the cafeteria offers more than 200 items to meet their needs। In addition to dishes suitable for Muslims, there is a wide variety of vegetarian food, as well as kimchi imported directly from South Korea.
"I'd like to apply to my home country the business knowledge that Japan has developed as an economic giant," Asaduzzaman said in fluent Japanese।
Although most courses at APU are available both in Japanese and English, all students are required to study one of the languages intensively for their first two years to develop a high level of communication in both tongues। As a result, students can be found studying at all hours at the campus library.
The university's dormitory houses about 1,200 foreign and Japanese students। One of the residents, Takeya Tsuji, shared with me one particularly interesting episode from his life with people from many different countries.
Last summer, the 20-year-old freshman got to know a student from another Asian country as they had decided to stay at school during the semester break। The two talked with each other regularly, but Tsuji remembers something his friend told him.
"I'd like to see my family, but at the same time I'd rather stay here than go home," the foreign student said with a sad look on his face।
The remark made Tsuji worry about the difficult situations facing the friend's home country। At the same time, however, he was glad his new friend had confided in him.
"I imagine it's pretty hard to find a place like this where you can spend so much time getting to know so many foreign students--APU isn't your typical Japanese university," Tsuji said। Now he has joined a club on the campus to promote awareness about the damage caused by the Agent Orange used by U.S. forces during the Vietnam War.
APU was established in the hope of having "foreign students account for half of the student body।" For the past nine years, the institution has welcomed students from 104 countries and territories. However, the institution says it has been facing increased competition from other foreign schools.
As the university looks outward, it also looks inward, maintaining close ties with the local community, which helped establish the school। APU also has been looking into ways to stimulate the local economy and has presented plans on how to boost tourism to Beppu.
APU students are also engaged in nearly 200 community activities every year। One of the biggest events is the Sento Taisai festival, which the school inaugurated in 2005. As suggested by the name "Sento," a play on words that translates as "the capital of hot springs," students carry a mikoshi portable shrine to visit every one of the city's eight major hot spring districts.
Hirotsugu Hosokawa, 22, served as the head of the organizing committee for the fourth annual Sento Taisai festival, held in November।
"Working with so many people to organize the festival helped me to realize what it is I want to do," the senior said।
Hosokawa will begin working next month at a travel agency in the Kansai region, and is determined to promote Beppu's rich hot springs and hospitality.
===
Profile of Ritsumeikan Asia पैसिफिक University
Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University opened in 2000 after then Oita Gov। Morihiko Hiramatsu invited a new higher educational institution to be set up in the prefecture. The public and private sectors contributed to the establishment of the private institution--the Oita prefectural government and the Beppu municipal government donated the land for the campus and a total of 19 billion yen to cover the cost of construction, while the business community donated about 4 billion yen in scholarships for foreign students.
Aiming to foster an internationally-based workforce, APU consists of two schools--the College of Asia Pacific Studies and College of Asia Pacific Management, the latter of which will change its name next month to the College of International Management।
The school currently claims a student body of 5,900 students, 47 percent of whom are foreign students. About half of the faculty is non-Japanese, and includes APU President Monte Cassim, a Sri Lankan, who once studied in Japan.
(Mar। 12, 2009)
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/features/language/20090312TDY14001.htm
After diploma, now to Japan
Eighty-six Universiti Industri Selangor (Unisel) students who are under a special programme with Japan will receive their diplomas from Chancellor Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor today।
The Japanese Associate Degree-Unisel (Jad-Unisel) students will leave for Japan on March 21 to pursue a two-year degree programme।The group is the second batch of students under the programme who completed their diploma engineering courses at Unisel. The three-year courses are conducted in Japanese.Under Jad, Yayasan Pelajaran Mara provides scholarships to Bumiputera students to continue their studies in Japan.The first batch of 75 students have enrolled in 15 Japanese universities, including Kejo University, Kinki University, Meiji University, Tokai University, Tokyo Denki University, Tokyo University of Science, Tokyo University of Technology and Waseda University.
Rosmah, wife of the deputy prime minister, is expected to be accompanied at the convocation by Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim, Entrepreneur and Cooperative Development Deputy Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah, Unisel Vice-Chancellor Datuk Dr Rosti Saruwono and Japanese ambassador to Malaysia Masahiko Horie.
http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Thursday/National/2502805/Article/index_html
The Japanese Associate Degree-Unisel (Jad-Unisel) students will leave for Japan on March 21 to pursue a two-year degree programme।The group is the second batch of students under the programme who completed their diploma engineering courses at Unisel. The three-year courses are conducted in Japanese.Under Jad, Yayasan Pelajaran Mara provides scholarships to Bumiputera students to continue their studies in Japan.The first batch of 75 students have enrolled in 15 Japanese universities, including Kejo University, Kinki University, Meiji University, Tokai University, Tokyo Denki University, Tokyo University of Science, Tokyo University of Technology and Waseda University.
Rosmah, wife of the deputy prime minister, is expected to be accompanied at the convocation by Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim, Entrepreneur and Cooperative Development Deputy Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah, Unisel Vice-Chancellor Datuk Dr Rosti Saruwono and Japanese ambassador to Malaysia Masahiko Horie.
http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Thursday/National/2502805/Article/index_html
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Institutional mergers, a revised student loan scheme and more performance-based funding are among changes an OECD review team has called on Japan to make to its tertiary education system.
The recommendations come less than four years after Japan reformed the system to give greater autonomy to the country's more than 4,000 tertiary institutions.But the review team's report published last week says Japan has yet to make the most of those reforms because institutions, including more than 700 universities, have not changed the way they operate and the country's Ministry of Education has yet to establish its role in steering, rather than running, the tertiary education system। "At the institutional level this tendency is exacerbated by the fact that Japanese universities do not yet have a pool of academic administrators with extensive management and financial experience to take on the strategic management of more autonomous and entrepreneurial university institutions," the report says। "The result of all of this is that the rhetoric of change has been accompanied by the reality of conservatism। This is creating a worrying policy vacuum, with an attention to means rather than ends।"The report recommends the momentum of the 2004 reforms should not be lost and there should be a formal evaluation of the reforms after not less than five years. It calls for increased public investment in tertiary education but in return for continuing consolidation of institutions, more performance-based funding, increased diversity in tuition fees and institution revenues, and more efficient management.With Japan's shrinking student population, the report says private tertiary institutions will be forced to merge or downsize and the public sector should also consider "voluntary consolidation". Already, 30% of Japan's private universities and 40% of its junior colleges do not fill their current enrolment caps.The report recommends that universities be permitted greater flexibility in setting tuition fees and that undergraduate courses be permitted to vary much more widely than at present. "In our view this would be a beneficial development since it would encourage differentiation among institutions much more effectively than existing competitive grant schemes, and it would promote some differentiation in the price of courses that is sensitive to instructional costs and returns to schooling. Both of these already exist within the private sector of Japanese higher education."In terms of helping students pay those fees, the report suggests replacing the current mortgage-like student loan system which requires regular set payments, to an income-contingent system along the lines of Australia's higher education contribution scheme. This would require repayment of loans only when the students' income reached a certain level. Japanese universities receive relatively little money from fund-raising and donations and the report recommends universities do more in this area. Tax incentives should be reviewed and universities permitted to invest such funds as they see fit.The OECD also highlights increases in women's participation and employment in tertiary education but notes this has largely been caused by widening job opportunities rather than by particular changes in the tertiary education system. "In a system where only a handful of universities are known to have childcare centres - Tokyo, Ochanomizu, Tsukuba, Nagoya and Tohoku - considerable opportunities for improvement with respect to gender equity remain," it says.The report urges Japan to do more to attract international students and faculty, including provision of more student accommodation. "Given the active recruitment activities of its main competitors, it makes sense for Japan to enter especially the upper end of the international graduate student market in a more direct and effective way.""In spite of the pace and scope of change in recent years, much remains to be done," it concludes.The review was based on information obtained from Japan, including a country visit in 2006, and is the latest in a series of OECD reviews of tertiary education in member nations. It was conducted by University of Liverpool Vice-chancellor and former Higher Education Funding Council for England Chief Executive Sir Howard Newby, OECD analyst Thomas Weko, University of Virginia professor and Dean of the Curry School of Education David Breneman, former President of the Lund Institute of Technology Thomas Johanneson, and University of Oslo professor and Director of the Higher Education Development Association Peter Maassen.
http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20090305191501962
Monday, March 02, 2009
BEIJING, March 1 (Xinhua)-- China and Japan will launch a bilateral exchange program involving about 1,500 teachers over the next three years, said Japanese Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nagasone here Sunday।
He made the remarks while attending a gathering with several Chinese students and teachers, as well as representatives of Japan living in China। It was his last stop before concluding his China visit.
According to Japanese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kazuo Kodama, Japan would accept 1,000 Chinese teachers while sending 500 Japanese teachers to China।
As to bilateral exchanges of youth, Kodama said on Saturday that the two sides will work together to implement a youth exchange program involving about 4,000 young people this year.
Other than high-level exchanges between the two countries, people-to-people exchanges were also very important for developing bilateral relations, said Nagasone, who was in China for two days।
The two sides celebrated the "China-Japan Friendly Exchange Year of the Youth" last year।
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-03/01/content_10923638.htm
He made the remarks while attending a gathering with several Chinese students and teachers, as well as representatives of Japan living in China। It was his last stop before concluding his China visit.
According to Japanese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kazuo Kodama, Japan would accept 1,000 Chinese teachers while sending 500 Japanese teachers to China।
As to bilateral exchanges of youth, Kodama said on Saturday that the two sides will work together to implement a youth exchange program involving about 4,000 young people this year.
Other than high-level exchanges between the two countries, people-to-people exchanges were also very important for developing bilateral relations, said Nagasone, who was in China for two days।
The two sides celebrated the "China-Japan Friendly Exchange Year of the Youth" last year।
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-03/01/content_10923638.htm
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