Hello! 16-year-old country boy here. I've been wondering for a while If I should take the initiative to study in Japan (Tōdai or Keio ideally but we all know that's impossible).
I've always been eyeing for the country since I was 12, and I figured entering Daigaku programs available in my country (The Philippines) would be a nice chance for me to actually get a shot at seeing the country. Living however is still a thing I'm floating on. Since Philippine Peso (PHP) and Japanese Yen have a pretty close rate but wages here are nightmarish (worse that I'm not in the National Capital Region), I don't think working until holiday season is up is really feasible, not when my family expects to eat 75% of my salary in the future and not with those bank account VISA requirements.
I plan on taking a Quantitative Engineering course, if not, Accounting is a solid second choice. And if not that, I guess English courses or HUMSS-based subjects would be nice, although I float on it aswell because I'm still a measly N3 (planning to work on N2 this year I promise!)
I will admit, this is a terrible, terrible plan, mostly because other than possibly living in the country in the future, my only goal is to just see Japan. I am serious about the study still. I've given myself about a month to actually think about it and I still have no idea, mostly because of time constraints. Originally I was gonna enter the Asia Kakehashi Project+'s exchange program for a semester and in general I was just looking for any exchange programs, but unfortunately my father refused to get me a passport which was needed (despite the fact that in the FAQ they said it wasn't). And because I'm running out of time since I'll be at the latter half of my Senior Year the next school year, I don't think a cultural exchange is realistic anymore.
Getting back on the actual question, reason for studying in the first place! I heard Japanese Bachelor's/Masters are pretty weak unless you're in one of the top universities, since most Japan studies are likely locked in Japanese, langauge and application-wise. Although The Philippines is also very far behind in terms of studies and education so studying or graduating from foreign universities get favored here a lot more, not just culturally but job favorability and opportunities as well (From my experience my US and Singapore-graduate acquaintances were highly favored back here). Not just that, but I think having a higher-level area for study would be fun for me to experience with how much more weak study here is. From my research scholarships like MEXT do offer full English courses, but mostly for the STEM fields with HUMSS fields being pretty rare in comparison. Jobs and working here, while I'm still thinking about it, is very oportunable with Japan, with very close rates currency-wise I can make more than enough to provide for my family while also having money to survive on my own with a decent job here, especially in IT-based areas where English proficiency will net higher favorability.
Really with the circumstances I'm surrounded, I just want to have an actual shot at seeing Japan. Working for my hellhole family for my whole life while saving very little until I can finally go there in 50 years doesn't sound fun. If studying is worth it, I might really consider this decision. If not, If you know of other ways that still revolve around studying in the country or just getting a chance to see it, please let me know! Thank you!
by Hot_b0y