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An article prepared for a book of the 75th Anniversary, The Society of Chemical Engineers Japan (2012)
化学工学会75周年記念誌内記事「留学生便り」の原稿（2012）

私は政府派遣奨学生として日本の魅力を知らないまま来日し、日本語学校、学部、大学院を経て、教員という立場となりました。学部生の時は日本になじめず苦労しました。各国からの留学生や外国人研究者を受け入れるようになった今疑問をもつようになったのは、多くの大学等の機関が留学生を受け入れる目的を、留学生は日本を選び留学する目的を、深く考えないまま、政策主導で留学生が増えている現状です。長期的なビジョンがないまま、プロジェクトや大学のメリットのために「使える人材」として留学生を獲得するという短期的視野が強くなることを恐れています。

留学生は日本に一時的に滞在する人材だという見方もありますが、日本の理解者として日本を離れた後も関係を継続できるのがベストです。私の見た限りでは、残念ながら日本社会の仕組みや慣習になじめず、誤解したまま帰国した例も少なくありません。

海外の資源とエネルギーに依存する日本にとって、留学生教育は将来への「投資」であり、教育の場において、質の高い「国際人材育成」を促進する存在です。留学後も日本型教育を受けたという共通点が効果的な媒体となって、日本と彼らとの関係が継続し、分野や国を超えた交流または連携が形成されることを望んでいます.

Translated by miraitranslate.com/

I came to Japan as a government-sponsored scholarship student without knowing the appeal of Japan, and after studying at a Japanese language school, undergraduate course, and graduate school, I became an academic staff.

When I was an undergraduate, I had a hard time because I couldn’t get used to Japanese ‘style’. Now that we have accepted foreign/international students and researchers from various countries, I have come to have a question about the current situation in which the number of international students is increasing under the initiative of policy without thinking about the purpose of many institutions such as universities to accept foreign students and the purpose of international students choosing Japan to study abroad.

I am afraid that without a long-term vision, there will be a stronger short-term view of acquiring international students as “useful” people for projects and university benefits.

There is a view that international students are human resources who stay in Japan temporarily, but it is best to be able to continue the relationship even after leaving Japan as an understanding person. Unfortunately, as far as I can see, there are quite a few cases of (former) international students returning home with misunderstandings because they could not adapt to the structure and customs of Japanese society.

For Japan, which is dependent on overseas resources and energy, international student education is an “Investment” in the future, and promotes high-quality “International human resource development” in educational setting. I hope that the common point of having received a Japanese-style education after studying abroad will serve as an effective medium for the continuation of the relationship between Japan and them, and that exchanges and partnerships across fields and countries will be formed.