Greetings from the President

Strengthening student support as we usher in a new era

Greetings

President, Japan Student Services Organization

Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO) was founded on April 1 ,2004, as a core institution to comprehensively implement various student support services for higher education in Japan. The organization has been working towards a target (midterm objective) that had been given to it by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology with a five-year deadline and managed to mark its fourth term in April 2019.

Society is changing along with the rapid progression of science and technology, such as ICT and AI, resulting in significant changes in higher education and the lives of students pursuing such education. Moreover, the world in which we live has been transformed by the spread of COVID-19. Student life as supported by JASSO has also undergone unprecedented changes. Under these circumstances, the roles to be fulfilled by JASSO, a national center for student support, are becoming increasingly important. We would like to, in collaboration with the government, universities, and other related organizations, work on further enhancing the following three pillars: Scholarship Programs for Japanese Students, Support Programs for International Students, and Student Support Programs.

First, with respect to the Scholarship Programs for Japanese Students, the New System for Higher Education Aid was begun in April 2020 to expand the breadth of scholarship grants and establish tuition fee reduction and exemption systems over and above what existing scholarship loans (interest-free and interest- bearing loans) offered. Measures to reduce the burden on students who are finding it difficult to repay scholarship loans have also been implemented. As the Japanese government is currently discussing the expansion of the New System for Higher Education Aid into the middle class and the establishment of the Deferred Payment System for Tuition Fees for the postgraduate phase, we will prepare for the prompt operation of those systems as well.

When it comes to Support Programs for International Students, we provide financial aid and information on
study-abroad topics both for international students looking to study in Japan and Japanese students studying
overseas. International student exchanges, which were stagnant due to the spread of COVID-19, are finally resuming, and the second stage of the TOBITATE! Young Ambassador Program has started this fiscal year. As international exchanges promoted through partnerships among universities regain vitality, we will enhance the various support for international students. We will continue to promote international student exchanges while keeping an eye on the post-COVID-19 world.

With regard to Student Support Programs, we conduct a survey on student life, as well as gathering to provide
best practices in student support, helping train faculty and staff members at universities with focuses on providing career education and job support, and supporting students with disabilities. Based on the current trends in internships and job search and on the fact of increasing number of students with disabilities, we are also working on improving student support system at universities and other such institutions while utilizing online tools.

Operating in accordance with the principle of equal opportunity in education as set forth in the Constitution and the Basic Act on Education, we will continue to reinforce the framework of support that will allow motivated and capable individuals to obtain equal opportunities to study and lead meaningful student lives. We will work to improve the contents of our programs to cater to all students by making sure to adopt the point of view of users and carrying out information activities that are clearer and more carefully tailored towards students, parents, school officials, and citizens.
We respectfully ask that you continue to support and cooperate with us in the fulfillment of our mission.

April 2023
Japan Student Services Organization
YOSHIOKA Tomoya, President