Japan draws up ¥100 bil policy to attract foreign researchers

Just wait until those foreign researchers need to face Japanese language barrier, Japanese culture, Japanese bureaucracy, Japanese way in doing things. Not to mention all the money they got after paying income tax need to pay residential tax, social insurance, pension etc. Hope they'll enjoy their time in Japan.

The JSPS and Monbusho have brought over foreign researchers (grad and post-docs) for decades. These programs do not require the researcher to pay residence taxes or pensions and private health insurance is included, as are language lessons. Also, most Japanese academics speak reasonable to fluent English.

sakurasuki

Just wait until those foreign researchers need to face Japanese language barrier, Japanese culture, Japanese bureaucracy, Japanese way in doing things. Not to mention all the money they got after paying income tax need to pay residential tax, social insurance, pension etc. Hope they'll enjoy their time in Japan.

Sounds like a good idea, but serious researchers FAR prefer to work with NGOs and Corps, far more freedom and $upside, vs. dealing with lousy Bureaucrats.

Naturally, second tier researchers will jump at the chance!

This is a positive development that we’re seeing in many countries hoping to capitalize on America’s brain drain. It’s a good opportunity for Japan to increase its research budgets and support the many Japanese researchers who have been struggling to secure funding. If done correctly this could boost the entire Japanese research community, including industry, but I worry that establishing the program and providing funding will experience the typical bureaucratic delays and challenges.

Maybe one way to look at this is long-term.

Trump has only 3 and a half years left and will be heading for lame duck status soon. He may not even last those 3 and a half years.

Will the next administration be pandering to morons and conspiracy theorists?

Well done! Japan has lots of catching-up to do in such vital fields as gender studies , decolonization empowerment research etc. A healthy protest culture will show japanese students over-concentrating on their studies the error of their ways and funnel their energies into societally relevant movements like antifa. More diversity in practical subjects like underwater basket weaving will stop the japanese penchant for the theoretical side of university. This will certainly brighten up Japans future even more than all the stunning and brave measures the japanese overnment has taken the last 20 years.

iraira

The JSPS and Monbusho have brought over foreign researchers (grad and post-docs) for decades. These programs do not require the researcher to pay residence taxes or pensions and private health insurance is included, as are language lessons. Also, most Japanese academics speak reasonable to fluent English.

The problem with JSPS is that they offer no pathway to stable positions/tenure beyond the two years maximum of the fellowship. JSPS fellowships are intended as fixed term contracts with no prospects for anything more than that - after the two years you go home. If I’m not mistaken in 2014 they created a pathway for tenure as a separate JSPS stream. Guess what - they scrapped it after one year.

Cool they can't take all the students rejected from the US, Australia and the rest of the Five Eyes.

Welcome to Japan guys.

Be careful of what you ask for Japan!

With draconian levels of inheritance tax here, foreigners with earning potential are better to go elsewhere. Japan is ok for holidays.

Don't forget academics and researchers at UK unis. Our unis have had their finances damaged by government intervention too, and are cutting jobs and courses. Lots of academics and research students here would be overjoyed at getting a decent offer.

@iraira

The JSPS and Monbusho have brought over foreign researchers (grad and post-docs) for decades. These programs do not require the researcher to pay residence taxes or pensions and private health insurance is included, as are language lessons. Also, most Japanese academics speak reasonable to fluent English.

JSPS maximum can only invite 120 researcher for every single year

https://www.jsps.go.jp/english/e-fellow/e-ippan/adoption/2025.html

While many foreign researcher that being employed by university/institution under various program, at the end they becoming regular contract worker in their institution, which subject to regular residence tax and regular pension. So they just won't get exception like JSPS.

Meanwhile, same government begins to violate independence of Science Council on the pretext of 1 billion yen budget, and demands obedience to scholars including nobelists.

As they are not welcome in trump's country, they will go to Europe or Japan. Good News.

"Many researchers have departed the United States..."

Some foreign researchers have also avoided the US due to the recent publicity of crackdowns on immigrants (including the arrest of foreign university students).

Can Japan provide a safer, more welcoming environment for foreign students? Or are there, similarly, human rights issues regarding the way arrests and detention are carried out in Japan that the Japanese government needs to look at too?

Burning all the money would bring better results. Then you can at least hold a few kilograms of ashes in your hands.