Japanese Companies Seek STEM Talent and Japanese Learners

In recent years, Japan’s talent recruitment market has remained candidate-driven. The shortage of STEM talent is particularly serious, and companies are also turning their attention to international talent in response.

Approximately 70% of international students in Japan major in the humanities and social sciences, leaving relatively few STEM candidates. This indicates that STEM talent is limited within the major distribution of international students in Japan.

Against this backdrop, interest is growing in international students majoring in STEM and studying in English, as well as STEM talent enrolled at overseas universities. More companies also want to recruit students studying Japanese at overseas universities, regardless of their major.

Companies are also turning their attention to international talent, and interest is growing in international students majoring in STEM and studying in English, as well as STEM talent enrolled at overseas universities. More companies also want to recruit students studying Japanese at overseas universities.

This feature draws on interviews with promising universities in Japan and abroad that produce STEM talent and Japanese learners interested in employment in Japan, highlighting each university’s distinctive approach to developing talent.

Based on these interviews, it introduces each university’s distinctive curricula, employment outcomes at Japanese companies, and messages for companies. The feature presents the realities of talent development and employment at universities in Japan and abroad.