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The Japanese government has been actively promoting the acceptance of foreign personnel in recent years in an effort to improve Japan’s international competitiveness and promote the globalization of industries and companies. Particular attention has been paid to accepting international students who are expected to be able to serve as advanced members of the workforce in the future. In January 2008, former Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda proposed the new 300,000 International Students Plan, and the Japanese government is now striving to achieve its objectives by 2020.
While previous international student policies focused on meeting the needs of students upon their arrival in Japan and on providing support to help them return home, this new policy is distinctive in that it is a systematic policy for promoting the acceptance of international students into Japanese society, including efforts to help them find jobs or pursue other options in Japan after they graduate. The relevant agencies of the Japanese government are forming comprehensive, organic ties to help achieve this.
Also, starting in 2007, even before the 300,000 International Students Plan was announced, the Career Development Program for Foreign Students in Japan was established out of a partnership between the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry to support the job seeking activities of international students. This project involves getting industry and academia to work together to attract international students, from the stages of recruitment and screening, to providing support for specialized education and Japanese language education, to helping students find employment, all as a means of inviting highly talented international students to Japan and promoting their successes in Japanese companies.
These policies are expected to further bolster the support available to international students for their job hunting efforts. There are also plans in place to gradually improve Japan's immigration control policies. For example, starting in 2009, the length of stay for international students was extended and the documentation requirements related to research position and job hunting activities were relaxed. In July 2010, the "pre-college student" visa was integrated with the "college student" visa.
Further, to encourage foreign students with advanced specialized skills to seek employment in Japan, it was decided to adopt a point system in which scores are assigned to a candidate’s qualifications, employment history, and research results. Those who exceed a certain number of points are eligible for preferential treatment, such as an extension to their length of stay in Japan.
As of May 2010, there were 141,774 international students studying in Japan, the largest number ever.
A breakdown by the countries and regions of origin of those students reveals that 86,173, or 60.8%, came from China. Next, in order, are South Korea with 20,202 students (14.2%), Taiwan with 5,297 (3.7%), Vietnam with 3,597 (2.5%), Malaysia with 2,465 (at 1.7%) students (see chart). |
