Universities and the Illusion of Global Competition

By Takehiko Kariya. Before we start on any discussion of Japanese universities in the context of international competitiveness, we first need to address the question of why international competitiveness is an important issue.
Particularly if we are to compare universities in Japan with those in Britain, it is essential to understand the substantial differences of context that exist between the two countries and the different kinds of international competition they face. Unless we are clear on this point, it will be extremely difficult to make any meaningful comparisons between the two systems. More...