Surge in number of foreign students worries Japan

The number of foreign students in Japan, particularly from other Asian countries, has risen dramatically in the last few years, worrying the government.

Twenty years ago, then-prime minister Yasuhiro Nakasone set forth his Plan to Accept 100,000 Foreign Students. This was in 1983, when Japan had only about 10,000 foreign students.

Nakasone's bold plan was to bring the number to 50,000 by 1990 and to 100,000 by the beginning of the 21st century.

At the time the plan was formulated, Japan had gained considerable international influence due to its growth as a large economic power. The government held the view that Japan should play a more active role in the area of international exchange, in line with developed countries. The goal of 100,000 foreign students was finally achieved in May 2003, when the figure hit 109,508.

In 1998, 50,000 foreign students were studying in Japan, which means their number doubled over just five years. This rapid increase occurred mainly among self-financed students, about 80 percent of whom came from China, Taiwan and Korea.

Norifumi Ushio, the director of the Office of International Student Education Policy at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), cites three key factors to the achievements of the plan:

"First, the rapid economic growth enjoyed in China and other countries of Asia motivated students to continue their studies at university," he says. "Second, universities in Japan actively sought to accept students from overseas to make up for a shortfall caused by Japan's dwindling population of 18-year-olds. And third, Japan's simplified immigration procedures also played a big role."

Nevertheless, only 2.6 percent of students enrolled at institutions of higher learning in Japan are from abroad, much lower than the 7.6 percent in France or the 18.1 percent in the United Kingdom.

There is also a growing concern that some universities are accepting foreign students too easily without establishing sufficient admission procedures, educational content or administrative requirements.

In addition, the number of foreign students working illegally has been growing. To keep abreast of these issues, MEXT is studying a new plan that would take the place of the Plan to Accept 100,000 Foreign Students.

A think tank submitted in December a report titled Developing New Policies Governing Foreign Students to the ministry, in which they recommended that the ministry switch from an emphasis on expansion to an emphasis on quality.

The report was compiled by Tsutomu Kimura, President of the National Institute for Academic Defense and University Evaluation, who rang the alarm bells: "According easy enrollment to foreign students simply to secure student numbers or meet targets should be treated with considerable trepidation.

"Universities need to pay close attention to these students' class attendance, and to ensure that those with poor grades are given all the instruction they need."

Kimura also said universities needed to improve their international standing if they wished to attract talented foreign students to Japan.

"Starting this year, universities are obligated to have their educational research activities evaluated by a third-party institution. This would give foreign students a better way to know if a university is of a sufficiently high level to be recognized overseas."

The number of Japanese students studying overseas is also steadily increasing each year: in 2000, the number was 76,464. However, the geographical distribution for Japanese overseas students is heavily biased toward Europe and North America. Considering that the majority of foreign students coming to Japan are from Asia, there is a significant imbalance.

"Until now, Japan has never had a consistent policy to send students overseas in the way there are policies to bring overseas students into the country," said Ushio of MEXT.

"For the sake of mutual exchange, I would like to see an increase in the number of students we send to other Asian countries. I would also like to improve the quality of students we are sending overseas. Many who go overseas do so to study languages, but we need to send more people to earn formal degrees."

With the advance of globalization, more and more students around the world have been choosing to study abroad: about 1.6 million foreign students now study in the 50 most advanced countries. Students from many different countries are crossing paths, and Japan is making efforts to catch up with the trend. --- Shin'ichi/Asia-Pacific Perspective