Japan with one of world’s best education eco-systems calling Indian students to study, shape their careers

JAPAN CALLING INDIAN STUDENTS: LOOK EAST-WARD 
PUNE: Toshihiro Kaneko, Chief Consul, Consulate of Japan in Mumbai, has exhorted students from Pune to choose Japan as a preferred destination saying among others benefits education at a moderate cost was available there. The Chief Consul also pointed out that despite leading education facilities available in Japan, the number of Indian students currently studying in Japan was much lesser as compared to other countries and expressed optimism that the scenario would change. He also emphasized that Japan’s capital Tokyo, was closer to home to the Pune students than compared to cities like New York (United States of America), London (United Kingdom) and Sydney (Australia). Kaneko on Saturday was speaking during the first Indo-Japan Education Conference, as part of ‘Konnichiwa Pune 2022’, organized by the Indo-Japan Business Council (IJBC) and supported by the Consulate General of Japan in Mumbai.

Dr Milind Pande, Pro Vice Chancellor, MIT World Peace University, Dr Rajib Shaw, Professor Graduate, School of Media and Governance, Keio University, Japan, Vinaya Vaidya, Lead for Management and Leadership Development, Fujitsu Consulting India, Kazunori Sasaki, Representative India Office, University of Tokyo, along with IJBC President Siddharth Deshmukh and Sudhir Jaiswal, Chairman, Higher Education Research Council (HERC), IJBC were present on the occasion.

The Chief Consul said only 1,457 Indian students were studying in Japan as of May 2021.

“One can get a very good education at a moderate price in Japan. The cost of education in Japan is much lower compared to other countries like the United States of America, United Kingdom.  Japan is a popular study abroad destination,” Kaneko said while advocating the need to enhance educational ties between India and Japan.

“There are also good employment opportunities at Japanese companies. Japan is a very safe country and there is a convenient life environment along with good infrastructure. One can also engage with Japanese culture,” added Kaneko.

Referring to the demographics, Kaneko said Japan was an ageing society, while India’s had a reasonable amount of young population and that Japanese colleges were looking for good students.

The Consul also informed that there were 807 Japanese Universities, of which 86 were national, 101 public and 620 private, while there were 309 junior colleges and 57 colleges of technology in Japan. The number of specialized training colleges in Japan stood at 3,049.

“Students can also get the benefit of different scholarships offered by the Japanese government and private universities along with tuition fee reduction and exemptions,” he added.

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