Nearly a quarter of all private universities in Japan lost money in 2001, according to a report released last month by a quasi-governmental agency. As a result, many institutions have been forced...
The article discusses the lack of enrollment at several private colleges in Japan. According to the article, Japan's ministry of education has announced that almost half of the country's 550 private four-year universities are below their government-set recruitment targets. Japan's low fertility rate and its demographic conditions are contributing to the schools' enrollment problem.
Japanese education experts say they are unable to support the controversial rejection of applications for three new universities by new Minister of Education Makiko Tanaka, who said too many universities would erode higher education standards.
Many Japanese private institutions, including half the junior colleges (which cater heavily to women), have lost money in the last two years. Causes include decreasing overall enrollments stemming from a falling birth rate, economic recession, and an increase in the number of new institutions. Some of the troubled private institutions have had to shut down. Others pursue policy to avoid this fate. Cost cutting falls heavily on staff. Measures to make institutions more attractive often center on attracting nontraditional students--businesspeople, homemakers, and retirees.
Japanese courts in major cities have issued rulings on prepaid tuition fees at private higher education institutions: to be returned or not. Referring to several elite and other private institutions, the Tokyo District Court sentenced them to return the prepaid tuition to students who did not enroll, though they had been admitted.
A Japanese university has filed for bankruptcy protection, citing a decline in its enrollment. The case, the first of its kind, could mark the start of a trend in Japan, where the birthrate -- and, along with it, the pool of college-age students -- has steadily shrunk for more than a decade.
The owner of a private Japanese university was arrested this month and charged with making off with millions of dollars in government subsidies while his institution ran up such huge debts that it was reportedly close to shutting down.
The operators of Kwansei Gakuin University and Seiwa College, both in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, plan to merge in spring 2008, The Yomiuri Shimbun learned Wednesday.