Japan Universities: Study and Job Prospects

Hello, I'm a student from Indonesia who's about to finish high school soon and today I just found out I got accepted into Sophia University's Faculty of Liberal Arts, and will most likely attend.

I originally wanted to go to the United States, but the plan fell through because my mom thought it was too expensive. She then suggested that I study in Tokyo instead and apply for Sophia University. So I did and was so nervous as they accept such a small amount of students, but eventually I got in.

My mom (who previously studied in Tokyo) told me that Sophia University is a top private university in Japan, that it is known for being international/global, and that its graduates get good jobs because it has a good reputation. However, after searching online and not finding Sophia on any world rankings, I'm beginning to wonder if it really is a "top" university. Is it comparable to let's say, Keio or Waseda?

I also read some old posts in this forum, saying that Japanese colleges are kind of a joke, there isn't much learning going on, and that it's a breeze. How accurate is this for Sophia or other universities?

And another thing is job prospects. My dream is to work for a UN organization, is this achievable if I study in Sophia? I'm not asking if it's guaranteed, just that if it's at least achievable. If not, just what kind of jobs do Sophia graduates normally get?

I would really appreciate it if someone can explain to me about how universities actually work in Japan. I really want to go, but after reading stuff online I'm feeling doubtful and confused. Please help me.

America has the most expensive tuition fees in the world but there is a middle ground between the US and Japan. How about studying in the UK or Canada for example?

I would personally say that studying in Japan is only really going to be beneficial if you're really interested in the Japanese culture, language and way of life.

I would personally say that studying in Japan is only really going to be beneficial if you're really interested in the Japanese culture, language and way of life.

I would also add the benefit of looking for a job IN Japan.
Everyone starts looking for a job at least 1 year before graduation here and it would be more feasible if you are actually in Japan, especially Tokyo where most of the companies are.

However, since your interest is the UN, while I don`t have the specifics, from what I`ve heard that most people apply for the UN from their home country anyway. Going to the UN University here in Japan does not guarantee employment in the UN.

So it would be better if you research which part of the UN you are interested in, browse their websites for job postings and see the requirements. Though I`m sure English is a must, so better plan to take another TOEFL or IELTS because those expire in 2 years I think.

I would personally say that studying in Japan is only really going to be beneficial if you're really interested in the Japanese culture, language and way of life.

And you base this on what?

Hello! I'm a Malaysian, going to attend Sophia University's Faculty of Liberal Arts in April. I'm not sure if I can help you, but I'll just tell my story.

I got accepted to both Waseda SILS and Sophia FLA, but chose the latter for two reasons. First is that the FLA offered me a better scholarship ( well, I applied for Sophia's scholarship while Waseda offered me ). Second is that my mom wanted me to study in Sophia. I was fine with either, for reasons I'll talk about later. My mom is Japanese, so she's familiar with the whole reputation-of-university-determines-your-job thing in Japan. According to her, there's a thing in Japan that says ‘�Œc�ã’q (sou kei jouchi ) which refers to Waseda, Keio and Sophia. This means they are considered to be in the same tier, just below Tokyo University and probably Kyoto University? There's also MARCH, which refers to 5 universities in the tier below the 3. She also asked for the opinion of a few friends in Japan, and the majority said they would choose Sophia over Waseda, although both are prestigious in their view. So I hope this clears you up on whether Sophia is comparable to Keio and Waseda in terms of (local) prestige and reputation.

Now for Japanese universities being a joke, anyone who did a basic research on Japanese universities on a whole would have read that many times. But I have noticed that almost all, if not all, of those who said that is from the US. As for those from countries like Indonesia and Malaysia, there's a clear lack of opinion from them online. So how is it really? Truth is, I don't care. Education in Malaysia has been, unfortunately, largely a joke itself. Among my friends, anyone with ambition and/or financial capability is trying their best go overseas to study. Some of my high school friends are already studying in many countries including the US, UK, Australia, Germany, Taiwan, China, Singapore etc, with many joining them in the coming year after finishing their A-levels locally.

Got a little off-topic there, but in short, you are worried you won't get a good education in Japan, that your degree might be worthless and you might not be qualified for your dream job. I don't care that much about any of that. I've mostly been studying and learning anyway. If the classes and assignments are a joke, even better. I'll have more time to do my own study and research into topics I have actual interest in. I'm fairly confident that it should be better than education in my country. ( hard to be worse to be honest )

About job prospects. I can't help with this. I myself have no idea what I'm going to do in the future. I'm just living my life as it goes. Hopefully I won't get stuck doing slave labour-like office jobs in Japan. I guess whether a job in a UN organization is possible through studying in Sophia would largely depend on what you are going to study and what kind of job in what kind of UN organization you're trying to get into. Looking at the Career Stats page of Sophia's FLA website, I'm guessing most graduates go into slightly better slave labour-like jobs in more reputable companies. Well. Your call.

This got longer than I thought... Hope something in that wall of text helped you with something one way or the other. Feel free to ask any more questions through this thread or PM.

First of all, thank you so much for replying to my thread! All your answers are very helpful!

@DigitalGhost ; Actually, I am really interested in Japanese culture and language, and is actually the biggest reason for me to go there. I actually prefer going to Japan than other countries, but the only worry is the quality/credibility of study there compared to other countries.

@DQ ; Do you think graduates can compete for jobs globally? Or just in Japan? Although I want to study there, I don't know for sure if I want to work there, as I heard the lifestyle is pretty tough. As for the UN, I'll make sure I'll do my research.

@fleckyx ; I really appreciate your detailed answer. Yeah, I've heard from my mother and a Japanese friend that Sophia, Keio, and Waseda are considered very prestigious, but what confuses me is that Keio and Waseda can be found competing in world rankings but Sophia can't. It made me wonder if that although Sophia is in the same tier locally, it may not be internationally.
However, I see a lot of potential for growth in Sophia. I heard their having the new building this year, and really stepping their game up globally and stuff. I'd rather grow to a growing university than a stuck one.

As an Indonesian, I can understand. It's the same here. Only the state universities are decent but the others not really, and everyone's getting out of here too. I think Japan's education are heaps better than here, at least I hope so. I wish I could be a bit more carefree like you, but I just can't help but think of what I'll do in the future, if I actually want to work in Japan or not (As you said, I'm scared of doing slave office jobs), and if it could provide me with globally-renowned education so I could find jobs anywhere. Learning another language is always a plus for a job, but again, the quality of the degree matters, no?

And congratulations of getting in both Waseda SILS and Sophia FLA! I only applied for Sophia and I think I'll attend this autumn. I see you'll attend Sophia as well, so I hope we can meet soon!

And you base this on what?

Only that to me, Japan would be one of those countries that would be miserable to live in if you didn't really want to live there. It is culturally unique in many ways and there isn't really anywhere else like it on Earth.

It seems as though my point may have been moot though because that doesn't seem to apply in this OP's case.

@DQ ; Do you think graduates can compete for jobs globally? Or just in Japan? Although I want to study there, I don't know for sure if I want to work there, as I heard the lifestyle is pretty tough. As for the UN, I'll make sure I'll do my research.

The thing is, studying in Japan means people are going to expect you to not just absorb the culture but also the language, and Japanese is not exactly used worldwide.

So that advantage of English-Japanese skill only apply domestically, with companies that have business connections in Japan, or Japanese companies abroad.

For the UN I think French Arabic Chinese are pluses.