Where are Japanese universities heading?

Japanese universities today confront a multitude of problems. These problems range from methods of selection to the place of general education in the curriculum; from the refining of postgraduate education in the field of humanities and social sciences to systems of appraisal; from the employment of young scholars (post-docs) to financial support for private universities; and  finally to collaboration between universities and industry.

In this paper, I draw on comparisons with universities in Europe and the United States to shed light on these several problems, and reflect on why it is that the revival of general education is a matter of great importance.

Inoki Takenori is a specialist in Japanese economic history, labor economics, and the history of economic thought. He published broadly in Japanese including the award-winning Keizai shisō (Economic Thought) (Iwanami, 1987) and Jiyū to Chitsujo: Kyōsō shakai no futatsu no kao (Freedom and Order: Two Faces of the Competitive Society) (Chūō kōron, 2001). Among his English publications are Aspects of German Peasant Emigration to the United States, 1815－1914: A Reexamination of some Behavioral Hypotheses in Migration Theory (Arno Press, 1981) and Skill Formation in Japan and Southeast Asia (co－authored with Koike Kazuo; University of Tokyo Press, 1990). He received several prizes and awards. Latest the Purple Ribbon Medal in 2002.