Japanese Model of Attracting Foreign Youth in the Higher Education System

Abstract

Introduction. National education and science systems are increasingly integrated into the international scientific and educational space in the context of increasing globalisation. The result of integration processes is an increase in the number of students in the world: if in the 1970s there were about 29 million people in the three-level education system, in 2000 – 100 million, in 2005 – 139 million, in 2010 – 181 million, in 2012 – 196 million. According to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, the number of such students will grow to 263 million in 2025. In the Russian Federation, 283 000 foreign students (5% of the total number of students) were enrolled in the 2016 / 2017 academic year, and in the United States, about 1 million foreign students were enrolled in the 2014 / 2015 academic year. Given the trends of globalisation of education, Japan was forced to join the struggle for foreign students and the export of educational services. Negative demographic trends such as falling birth rates, an aging population, and a declining youth population are also stimulating the factors in the internationalisation of Japanese universities and the country’s increased participation in the global competition to attract young people to the national higher education system. The aim of the study was to identify the features of the functioning of the model of attracting foreign youth to the higher education system in Japan in the context of worsening problems of population aging and slowing economic growth. This situation is also partly relevant for Russian socio-economic and demographic development. Materials and methods. The article uses statistical data from a number of international organisations (UNESCO, OECD, IOM, World Bank), the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan, the Japan Foundation, and public and private universities in Japan. The sociological method was applied. The authors of the article conducted three focus groups on strategies and tools for attracting foreign students to Japan during a research trip in July 2019. Currently, the higher education system in Japan is one of the best not only in the Asia-Pacific region, but throughout the world. Japan has actually become one of the leaders in the world market for educational services; applicants from different countries seek to master the most in-demand specialties. Results. The study revealed that the system of attracting foreign students to Japanese universities is based on the concept of foreign migration policy, that is, on promoting the country’s geopolitical and economic interests in the AsiaPacific Region (APR). Japanese universities teach students from countries that are strategic partners of Japan: China, Vietnam, Nepal, South Korea, Thailand and Taiwan. An important element of the strategy for attracting foreigners is the work of universities, cultural and educational foundations that promote the Japanese language and culture outside of Japan. The Japanese higher education system, despite its historical traditionalism and conservatism, is gradually internationalising and opening up to the world through active access of universities to foreign educational markets and channels for attracting foreign students. Universities, as the main elements of the higher education system, have become the agents of Japan’s foreign policy, focused primarily on the Asia-Pacific countries and its strategic partners. Moreover, the partner countries were chosen not only based on the priorities of Japanese geopolitics and economy, but also on objective demographic indicators (young age structure, large population). The interaction with migration partner countries is supported by real steps on the part of the Japanese authorities: investment, trade, business and cultural contacts. The experience of Japan can be used in Russia to organise work to attract young people to study in higher education institutions from countries that are geopolitical partners, primarily in the former Soviet Union. Scientific novelty. The features of the functioning of the model of attracting foreign youth to the higher education system in Japan in the context of worsening problems of population aging and slowing economic growth are revealed. Practical significance lies in the possibility of further practical application of the results of the current research on the features of the Japanese model of attracting foreign youth to the higher education system.