Higher education in Japan is now at a turning point. The decrease in the 18 year-old population will make it difficult for some universities to survive, while the stagnated economy will require the private sector to seek fewer, excellent employees. The authors focus on vocational education, and first analyse how higher education responds to such changes. They then discuss what industry expects from formal education under these circumstances and how it evaluates that education. The article draws on primary data collected through a questionnaire sent out to Japanese companies.
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References
1.
Statistical Abstract of Education, Science and Culture, 1995 edition, Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture, Tokyo, 1995.
2.
Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture, Diagaku-Shiryo (University Data), No 126, July 1995, p 17.
3.
Hiroshi Numaguchi Gakko Kyoiku to Keizai Hatten (School Education and Economic Development), Gakubunsha, Tokyo, 1995; MutaHiromitsu, Transition from School to Work in Japan, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo, 1994.
4.
Becker classified skills into ‘general’ skills applicable to any jobs and ‘special’ skills useful only to a particular job (BeckerGary S., Human Capital, 2 ed, University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL, 1975). Although most skills are a combination of the two, Japanese in-company training, particularly for the first few years, includes various general skills.
