Hello. I've been searching around the internet for information and advice for the MEXT undergraduate scholarship, where an undergraduate can go to a Japanese university for 4-5 years (possible 1 year of preparatory Japanese lessons).

I've heard both good things and very bad things about living/college in Japan, but most information seemed to be trying to crush someone else's false fantasies about Japan.

In two weeks I will be going to Japan for my senior year of high school, and I will be living with a host family. (This is part of an organized program, so I'm not doing this on my own. In addition my classes are in English except for two AP level Japanese language classes.) During this time I'm hoping to learn the Japanese language and customs as much as possible in addition to deciding if living in Japanese society is right for me.

I've heard that Japanese universities are basically a 4-year wait until students get jobs at companies, and that the companies are where they actually learn things. I've also heard that the only thing that matters is the reputation of the Japanese university that the students come from, not their education. How much of all this is true?


Regarding education, I would rather learn a lot in the U.S. than waste 4 years doing nothing in Japan. Am I better off applying for the MEXT scholarship and going to a university in Japan rather than staying in the U.S. and get a bachelor's degree, or does it not matter?

Assuming that during my year abroad I decide to live in Japan because I feel that's what's best for me, would doing the MEXT scholarship put me in a more advantageous position over having gotten my bachelor's in the U.S. (for both settling down in Japan and finding work)?

Any advice you could give me will be greatly appreciated.

Sounds like a decision only you can make.

Getting into university in Japan is harder than the study itself after you are in.
But it is far from just sitting around.. there is work to be done.

As for which direction gives you a better chance of staying in Japan... wont make much difference to visa opportunities either way.

Thanks for the information, petina!

I'll keep on debating with myself on which path I should take and see how these next 9 months in Japan go.