Activity report
U.S.A. Study Abroad Seminar – Sponsored by the U.S. Embassy and JAOS
March 2, 2010 at Tokyo American Center March 9, 2010 at Kansai American Center in Osaka
With support from Fulbright Japan (Japan-U.S. Educational Committee) and the Benesse Corporation, a seminar titled ‘Applying to Universities in Both Japan and America – The Possibilities and Methods of U.S. Higher Education’, was chiefly held for the benefit of senior high school instructors. The general point of the seminar was how Japan cat meet the demands of globalization by having high school teachers show students that studying at American universities is one more option for their future. The event included keynote lectures as well as a panel discussion. The first keynote speech, by Mr. Masanori Fujii (Benesse Corporation, Director of ‘Route H’) was titled ‘Current Entrance Trends at Japanese Universities and How to Apply to Universities in both Japan and the U.S.’, while the second lecture, titled ‘The Merits of American Universities’, was provided by Mr. Masayasu Morita (President of Hitomedia and author of ‘Todai yori, Habado ni Iko’ [‘Forget Tokyo U., Let’s go to Harvard’]). The panel discussion was titled ‘Considering Applying to Both Japanese and U.S. Universities’. Panelists included keynote speakers Mr. Fujii and Mr. Morita as well as Chizuru Sasada (Senior Counselor at Fulbright Japan [Japan-U.S Educational Committee]). Moderated by Yoshiko Fujinobe (President of JACSAC [Japan Association of Certified Study Abroad Counselors]), the panelists fielded a variety of questions from the floor and debated topics such as Japanese university entrance examinations and studying at U.S. institutions of higher learning. U.S. ambassador to Japan, Mr. John V. Roos, made a notable appearance and spoke for 40 minutes through a translator on the importance of educational exchange between Japan and America. 110 people participated in the Tokyo seminar while 60 joined the Osaka event.