By Adam Westlake Japan Daily Press, Jul5, 2012
More than 70% of Japanese universities have programs where their students can earn college credits by taking part at company offered internships. A number of universities also try to widen the spectrum of experiences offered to students by giving credits for studying abroad or volunteering. However, according to a yearly survey by Yomiuri, only 2% of students participate in these programs.
476 of Japan’s colleges offer credits for completing internship experiences, making that 74%. This is divided into 90% of national universities, and 75% of private universities offering such programs. The most likely to offer internship credits are the large universities, such as those with 5,000 or more enrolled students. 95% of colleges with numbers of enrollment like that award experiences with credits, and out of those large schools, 73% have study abroad options and 41% promote volunteer organizations.
Out of all the students attending universities with credits for internships, 2%, or roughly 45,085 took part in these programs. While numerous colleges are promoting efforts to help in areas still in recovery from the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami with volunteering, only 9,439 students earned credits through these means. It would be easy to look these results and think that today’s Japanese students are uninterested, or don’t care, but a just as likely option is that these colleges aren’t doing enough to promote their programs or making students aware of their choices.
[Via Asiaone]
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