I just graduated high school and really want to live in Japan, so I figured the best step would be to go to university there. Now, I‘m wondering what degrees I can study that are accessible in English (my Japanese isn‘t good enough to study completely in Japanese yet) and have good career prospects. Does someone have interesting suggestions apart from engineering?
by kutw
4 comments
Take a look at the programs offered through TUJ and LUJ (assuming you are American), you are able to use Federal Student Aid to pay for it. I know that TUJ offers Japanese language classes, but i’m not sure on LUJ.
It is important to consider the financial aspects of things as well, as you will have to either take extra summer classes or return home during summer break if there under a student visa.
After high school I wanted to do the same but didn’t have the resources financially. Ended up going for 1 year after college and enrolling in a language program at Kansai University. I also pondered trying to get a second degree while up there and found that lots of my options for fully English degree programs in Japan were mostly available for arts and business. Finding the schools that offered this was tricky. I recommend researching which schools in Japan qualify for US FAFSA. If you don’t already know, the DOE does provide FAFSA for international studies but with certain schools. They have a downloadable excel sheet and it lists what programs are offered. Use that to help you narrow down the schools and the programs they might offer. Hopefully that helps somehow. Gambatte ne!
I’d strongly recommend focusing more on figuring out what sort of career you want to have rather than just focusing on being physically present in Japan. Tons of schools will let you do exchange programs where you can spend a semester or two in Japan and study the language on top of your chosen field of study. If you’re not sure of your passion then a lot of schools will let you do general studies for your first year or two where you just take a wide variety of classes until you find yourself gravitating towards a particular field.
For a life in Japan the “best step” isn’t necessarily going to undergrad in Japan. Many people go to Japan after getting their undergraduate degree in their home countries and go on to successful careers.
This especially true if you’re limited to courses taught in English in Japan. You may be better served by doing your degree in your home country where you can be taught at more reputable institutions, in your native language, and where you may be eligible for scholarships, student loans, etc. Remember, you can do a semester or year of study abroad in Japan if you choose a university in your home country with an exchange agreement.
A lot of young people make the assumption that going to school in Japan is the best route to working there. That’s not always true. Plenty of undergrads do their studies at an English-language course at a Japanese university, graduate, and then do not have the skills/qualifications needed to be hired by a Japanese company and return home. Also plenty of people who graduate and work a bit in their home country and then move to Japan.
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