Why Study in Japan? Reasons to Choose Japan for Studying Abroad

Thinking about your future? Wondering if Japan is a good place to study? In this article, we help you decide on whether to choose Japan as your study abroad destination. World-ranked universities, the best environment to study Japanese, scholarships to subsidise or fully cover your tuition, and a bright future ahead of you, there are many reasons why studying in Japan is advantageous to you.

Table of Contents

1. World-Ranked Universities in Japan
   1. Trivia About Japan's Top Universities
2. English Courses Available in Japan Universities
3. Best Environment to Study Japanese
4. Study for Free in Japan with Scholarship Programmes
5. Stepping Stone to a Career in Japan
6. Great Career Prospects Even Outside of Japan
7. Excellent Research and Facilities at Japan Universities
8. Opportunities to Travel Around Japan 
9. Exposure to Japanese Culture and Everything Japanese

World-Ranked and Top Universities in Japan

Japan has always prioritised education. As a result, they have several universities that have ranked Top 200, Top 100, and even Top 25 in the world. We will be looking at the 3 most trustworthy and reliable global academy rankings - Shanghai Ranking, QS, and Times Higher Education.

Note: In January 2023, it was announced that the Tokyo Medical and Dental University and The Tokyo Institute of Technology (which is mentioned throughout the rankings) would be merged into 1 school called 東京科学大学 (Tokyo Kagaku Daigaku). At the time of this update, the English name has not been announced. 

Shanghai Ranking 2021 Academic Ranking of World Universities

※ Shanghai Ranking, “2021 Academic Ranking of World Universities”

QS World University Rankings 2023 

We recommend checking QS’s World University Rankings page for more details about these universities including academic reputation, international students ratio, and employment outcomes.

※ QS Top Universities, “QS World University Rankings 2023: Top global universities”

Times World University Rankings 2022

We recommend checking Times World University Rankings pages for more details about these universities including proportion of international students, research score, and employment outcome.

※ Times Higher Education, “World University Rankings 2022” “Japan University Rankings 2022”

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English Courses Available in Japan Universities

And last but not least, if you’re conflicted about picking Japan for your studies abroad because you can’t speak Japanese, don’t worry! Because there are English degree courses available at Japanese universities too. In fact, many degree courses targeted at international students are mainly taught in English. To further support international students' lives, these courses also come with compulsory Japanese language classes to help you quickly acclimate to life in Japan. 

Trivia About Japan’s Top Universities

The University of Tokyo is considered the most prestigious university in Japan. 17 prime ministers and 16 Nobel Prize winners come from here.

Kyoto University is the second oldest university in Japan. 17 Nobel Prize winners hailed from here.

Nagoya University is the university with the 3rd most Nobel Prize winners after the University of Tokyo and Kyoto University with 6 Nobel Prize winners.

Best Environment to Study Japanese

Watching anime and joining online Japanese classes are certainly good ways to learn Japanese, but they still can’t beat the full immersive experience of studying abroad in Japan or even better studying Japanese in Japan. 

Many international students in Japan can attest to the fact that there’s no better way to study Japanese than coming here. But why is it better to study Japanese in Japan? 

1. It’s do or die. You need to know some Japanese to survive here or life will get very tough. This is the greatest driving force that will drastically improve your language skills. 

2. Many more opportunities to practise speaking and listening. Good environment makes for good learning. 

3. Stronger motivation to learn. The urge to learn more, learn fast, and use your knowledge fast. 

Scholarship Programmes for International Students

With a scholarship, financial burdens that come with studying abroad can be greatly reduced. 

Japan offers a large selection of scholarship programmes to help international students that dream of studying in Japan. 

Amongst the many types of scholarships available for Japan, the most well known ones are probably MEXT and JASSO. Well, we’re here to tell you there are way more, including those offered by private foundations, universities, and even international organisations. There are also scholarships available for specific groups of people, for example specific nationalities, specific fields of study, and more.

Note that local governments (ward office) and universities may also have scholarships available for existing students. These are usually awarded based on your grades, attendance, participation in curricular activities, and by teacher recommendation.

Stepping Stone to a Career in Japan

Thinking of starting a life and working in Japan? There are people fortunate enough to enter via intra-company transfer, or by getting an English teaching job, etc. Another common and admittedly relatively easy way, provided you have the funds for it, is to study in Japan then get a job when you graduate. 

In a recently conducted survey on the recruitment of international students and highly-skilled foreign nationals, it was revealed that the majority of companies in Japan prefer to hire foreign national graduates from a Japanese university as opposed to foreign nationals who graduated outside Japan. 

※ DISCO, “「外国人留学生／高度外国人材の採用に関する調査」(2021 年 12 月調査)  Pg. 2, 8”

Some tips to boost your job hunting success in Japan:

1. Improve your Japanese language skills as much as possible. 

2. Get a part-time job or do an internship in your future career field - some people get hired where they part-time/intern after graduation.

3. Study the right field so you have the applicable skills to appeal to your future employer.

As a plus, you can gauge whether life in Japan is suitable for you. Working in Japan is considerably tougher than studying here, so if you're not enjoying life in Japan as an international student, you might want to rethink continuing your stay after graduation.

Great Career Prospects Even Outside of Japan

Not planning to work in Japan? So what? Graduating from Japan doesn’t mean your future career and life needs to be focused here. In fact, holding a degree from a top university in Japan, actually even without that just having Japanese language skills will already greatly boost your career prospects outside of Japan. 

Japan is a highly developed country with one of the busiest economies and financial sectors in the world. What that means for you is that companies outside of Japan need your Japanese capabilities and insight into Japan to conduct business dealings with Japanese. They’ll have someone to lead business trips to Japan and translate online meetings for smoother communication. So, fear not and take the plunge, your education in Japan will not go to waste. 

Japanese Universities Excel at Research and Technology

Japan is one of the best countries when it comes to research and development. For this part, let’s have a look at global academy rankings again, this time by subject. For further details, we recommend searching rankings by subject and looking at their scores on Shanghai Ranking, QS, and Times Higher Education. 

Japan has quite a few research-intensive universities that are well-equipped with the latest equipment and optimum environments for students and researchers to make new discoveries and create. These universities also make Japan an attractive platform for post-graduate education. 

Opportunities to Travel Around Japan 

Moving on to the fun reasons to study in Japan, obviously being in Japan would mean so much more time to explore! It’s also cheaper since you don’t need to take a flight across half of the world. 

Tips for internationals students travelling in Japan:

1. Make good use of student privileges. Bring your student card with you everywhere. Look out for student discounts. 

2. If you have a commuter pass, explore stations and their neighbourhoods along your bus / train route. Saves travel costs. 

3. Save travel costs by staying at capsule hotels or hostels whilst on a trip. 

Also, since education in Japan is holistic in nature, they greatly value outside classroom activities. Which means class trips! 

Exposure to Japanese Culture and Everything Japanese

One of the most difficult things about being a fan of Japanese music, drama, anime, manga, etc. is the distance from Japan's limited goods and especially experiences. Studying in Japan is one of the ways to get close enough to explore places you’ve only seen on screens, meet idols and stars, and experience concerts & musical shows. It truly is a one-of-a-kind experience. Though we must warn you, there are fans of Japanese culture that end up de-mystified by the reality that is life in Japan. 

But pop culture is not all there is to Japanese culture, there’s traditional Japan, festivals, temples & shrines, food, and so much more. 

So, have we convinced you to study in Japan? We sure hope so.