Japanese Higher Education Industry Restructures

According to a recent Chronicle of Higher Education article, "At least 35 of Japan's 99 national universities are planning mergers within the next three years, according to an education-ministry report issued last month." Why such drastic changes? In a nutshell, it's long term demographic changes coupled with Japan's lingering economic troubles that just won't go away.

This is a major development with widespread implications, not only for Japan, but many other nations with ties to Japanese universities. As the global knowledge industry race heats up, higher education capacity will be even more important in determining how nations fare economically. If the Japanese higher education system restructuring is aimed at improving the country's economic position, then this is a good thing. If it is simply an accountant's approach to cost-reduction, then this could be a prescription for disaster.

I don't doubt that Japan's higher education system is over-capacity; at least as gauged in relation to Japan's slowing population growth rate and other demographic factors. What if the U.S. and other national higher education systems were to look at the situation as a basis for new international knowledge partnerships? More options, beyond cost-cutting, may surface under this approach. As I see the future, the world will need more, not fewer, smart people. Maybe we should start talking about the global education market--that appears to me to be where we are headed.

Here are two useful Japanese higher education and science and technology links: Japanese Ministry of Education; and Japanese Science and Technology Bureau of the Education Ministry.