| Abstract |
Student mobility to Japan from highly developed countries has remarkably increased in recent years, though went largely unnoticed by international student mobility researchers. The framework of ISM and on international students in Japan is dominated by utilitarian models, while non-material aspirations have only recently gained more attention. This paper aims to fill these gaps in understanding students’ aspirations to study in Japan by analyzing motivations of students enrolled in Japan study programs at four Central and Eastern European universities. Findings from a questionnaire survey and focus group interviews from autumn 2022 strongly corroborate the significance of non-material, intrinsic rather than instrumental aspirations and the perceived utility of studying abroad for personal growth. Credit mobility allows study abroad to serve as a proxy to rite des passage making childhood dreams come true. Economic opportunities might incrementally evolve from this complex relationship between going abroad and contemporary middle-class biographies. These findings suggest that understanding of student mobility to Japan in general needs to go beyond economic theories and socio-cultural and subjective factors of young adults from other regions, especially from Asia, needs to be explored as well.
| Authors |
- Miloš Debnár, Ryukoku University
- Wolfram Manzenreiter, University of Vienna
| Access |
The article can be found open-access in the latest volume of Global Perspectives on Japan on the Forum Tauri Press website.
