Chiba University has announced that study abroad will become a compulsory element of undergraduate and postgraduate programmes for all students entering the university from 2020, making it the first comprehensive national university to introduce such a policy.

Students will be expected to study abroad for between 1 week and 2 months at least once during their degree.  Tuition fees at the destination institution will be covered by Chiba University.  The university estimates that from 2023 approximately 10,000 undergraduate and 3,500 postgraduate students will gain overseas study experience as a result of the initiative.  

Chiba University has been a leading proponent of study abroad in recent years.  In 2016, it introduced a 6-semester system to facilitate access to overseas programmes. Meanwhile, in the same year overseas study became compulsory for students enrolling in the university’s newly established College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.  The success of this pilot initiative is thought to have encouraged the university to introduce compulsory study abroad across the whole university. The university has also been active in developing partnerships with overseas institutions and now has student exchange agreements with around 300 institutions.

Chiba University is one of many institutions across Japan to expand its provision of study abroad opportunities.  This general trend is a response to various factors which include strong demand from students (the short-term market has grown exponentially in recent years) as well as calls from government and industry for universities to nurture graduates with ‘global skills’.  Another key driver is demography. With Japan’s 18-year-old population set to fall by approximately 130,000 by 2030 universities are competing for what will become a shrinking pool of prospective students.  Spurred by these demographic challenges, it’s likely that more universities in Japan will look to expand their study abroad offer, which could in turn lead to new partnership opportunities for UK institutions.