Fundamental Views concerning the National
University Reforms—Independent and Autonomous Efforts toward the
Functional Enhancement of National Universities—

May 2, 2013

The Japan Association of National Universities

1According to the University Reform Action Plan released by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports,
Science and Technology (MEXT) in June 2012, MEXT will formulate “University Vision,” “Fundamental
Policies for National University Reforms,” “National University Reform Plan,” etc. in the years to come inorder to promote national university reforms.
In response to these developments, the Japan Association of National Universities (JANU) decided to
conduct reviews necessary for maintaining the independence of national universities and autonomously andstrategically promoting national universities’ functional enhancement that is being required by society. To
that end, JANU set up four sub-working groups under the working group of the Committee on Enhancementof the Functions of National Universities. By doing so, we have developed a mechanism that ensuresefficient, substantial, and in-depth discussions and have strenuously conducted review activities.
Fundamental Views concerning the National University Reforms—Independent and Autonomous Efforts
toward the Functional Enhancement of National Universities is JANU’s latest report. We hope thegovernment will pay due attention to this report and make the best use of it in efforts to formulate national
university reform policies.

2

Table of Contents(Introduction)(1) Fundamental Views concerning the National University Reforms(2) History of JANU Activities(3) Notes on the Latest Review
1. Overview
 What Is the Significance of National Universities?—Reconfirmation of the Public Roles of National
Universities(1) Growing Importance of National Universities(2) Reconfirmation of the Public Roles of National Universities(3) Significance of National Universities
2. Fundamental Understandings about the Functions and Roles to Be Enhanced
 Educational Function
 Research Function
 University Hospital Function
 Function as Regional Centers Universities Single-department Colleges Graduate Universities
3. Conclusion—What Is Expected of the Government
 Roles of the Government in the National University Reforms
Role 1: Upgrading of National Universities to Lead Intellectual Innovation in Japan
Role 2: Respect for Diversity Arising from the Historical Background and Autonomy of Each National
University
Role 3: Guaranteeing Access to Higher EducationRole 4: Improvement of Various Environments to Encourage Functional Enhancement
Role 5: Improvement of Evaluation Systems
Role 6: Stabilizing the Financial Foundation and Reviewing Financial Systems(References) Challenges to Be Addressed by National Universities for Each Function
1. Enhancement of Educational Function ·················································
2. Enhancement of Research Function ··················································
3. Enhancement of University Hospital Function ·······································
4. Enhancement of Function as Regional Centers ····································
5. Direction of Problem-solving Measures for Each Form of National Universities
 Universities Single-department Colleges Graduate Universities

3

Exhibit 1
Exhibit 2
Exhibit 3
Exhibit 4
Exhibit 5

(Introduction)(1) Fundamental Views concerning the National University Reforms
Each national university shares such common functions as education, research, and regional andinternational contribution, which should not exist as categorized ones. All national universities must addresscommon challenges if they are to upgrade and enhance each of the above-mentioned functions. And yet, in theface of such domestic challenges as rapidly declining birthrates and ageing population as well as suchworldwide issues as globalization, it is also true that there are different challenges facing individual universities,
depending on their sizes or the characteristics of the local communities in which they operate.
However, we should not attempt to address such challenges through an approach or method that classifies
the challenges based on the sizes or organizational forms of universities, assigns different functions to different
universities, and perpetuates such assignment. This kind of shortsighted view that advocates the division ofroles among universities will only lead to the shrinking of the entire body of national universities, resulting inloss of the diversity currently enjoyed by national universities.
JANU adheres to the position of regarding these challenges as common issues facing the entire body ofnational universities and addressing them by improving the organic collaborative system among the national
universities. Diversity of national universities cannot be achieved by developing diverse forms of university
organizations or assigning different functions to different universities. It should rather be achieved by diversity inthe characteristics that universities express when they adapt their missions to changes of the times, refine their
missions ahead of the times, make autonomous decisions about the functions that need improvement, anddraw up and implement specific measures for enhancing relevant functions.
(2) History of JANU Activities
JANU has believed that it is of foremost importance to further enhance functions developed by each
university, while organically gathering all the strengths accumulated by the entire body of national universities.
Based on this understanding, JANU has thus far released two reports, namely The Future Direction of National
Universities—Voluntary Action Guidelines in March 2008 and Enhancing the Functions of National
Universities—Pledge to the People in June 2011.
The Guidelines aims to help national universities draw up voluntary action plans for enhancing their functions,while at the same time comprising a “declaration of action” that encourages national universities to live up to
expectations from all levels of Japanese society. Pledge to the People is the national universities’ commitment
to common objectives, namely (1) enhancing national universities’ functions as national and regional centers toensure the recovery of society and the construction of a sustainable society in Japan in the wake of theunprecedented devastation caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake and the serious disaster that hit
Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, (2) gathering national universities’ strengths so that they can function
as an “organic system for intellectual collaboration,” and (3) responding to the people’s needs and expectations
in all possible situations, thereby fulfilling their social responsibilities.
As shown below, Pledge to the People cites four common functions to be strongly enhanced, five measures
to be taken for the enhancement of these functions, and five roles to be played by the government for theachievement of such functional enhancement.

4

{ Four Functions to Be Enhanced
Function 1 : Providing excellent education and developing persons of distinguished talent
Function 2 : Energetic promotion of scientific research
Function 3 : Contribution as a center of regional promotion
Function 4 : Promotion of active international exchange and contribution to the international community{ Five Measures for Functional Enhancement
Measure 1 : Clarification of characteristics and distinctive features and implementation of ongoing reforms
Measure 2 : Establishment of an internal quality assurance system for education, research, and otheractivities and improvement of the quality of such activities
Measure 3 : Ensuring strict self-evaluations and active disclosure of university information and fulfillment of
the responsibility to explain to stakeholders
Measure 4 : Facilitation of cooperation with education and research institutions in Japan and abroad
Measure 5 : Making university operation more efficient and advanced, and acquiring diverse funds and using
them effectively{ Five Roles to Be Played by the Government to Achieve Functional Enhancement
Role 1 : Upgrading of national universities to lead intellectual innovation in Japan
Role 2 : Guaranteeing access to higher educationRole 3 : Improvement of various environments to encourage functional enhancement
Role 4 : Improvement of evaluation systems
Role 5 : Stabilizing the financial foundation and reviewing financial systems(3) Notes on the Latest Review
In the latest review session, we decided to base our discussions on the above-mentioned points andcarefully gather and organize various opinions from JANU member universities. To that end, we agreed to set
up four sub-working groups under the working group of the Committee on Enhancement of the Functions of
National Universities, thereby establishing a review system that would ensure in-depth discussions.
These sub-working groups have focused their discussions on the issues of increasing importance or urgency
in the face of recent changes in social situations, while adhering to the ideals and directions upheld in The
Guidelines and Pledge to the People. However, we excluded functions relating to international exchange andcontribution from the agenda of the latest review session because the JANU Education and ResearchCommittee have been discussing such functions since the spring of 2012. Instead, we added the hospitalfunction of universities to the topics of discussions because it takes on unique importance as healthcare needs
become more diverse and sophisticated with the rapid ageing of the population. The functions discussed,
therefore, were (1) Educational Function, (2) Research Function, (3) University Hospital Function, and (4)Function as Regional Centers. During the discussions, we also identified challenges by organizational
characteristics, namely university, single-department college, and graduate university.
The reason why we paid attention to organizational characteristics is that, since there could be various waysof building and upgrading an organic collaborative system among national universities, it is important fornational universities of different forms to deeply understand each other’s organizational characteristics. It is also
believed that mutually complementary cooperation among different types of universities would also help
facilitate their functional enhancement.
Meanwhile, we also need to give due consideration to such external conditions of the local communities inwhich national universities are located as demographic composition, change of industrial structure, and future
trend toward the decentralization of national government power to the local authorities. In that context, thechallenges identified and organized during the latest review session are only tentative and need further scrutiny
5

in the years ahead.
Further, we decided not to make any specific mention of any individual department or discipline in this report.
Based on the above understandings, we will describe some of the viewpoints that we would like MEXT tonote or reconfirm in the process of formulating “University Vision” and “Fundamental Policies for National
University Reforms.”
As a “sequel” to The Guidelines and Pledge to the People, this report discusses the fundamental views that
we have come up with on our own initiative in regard to the national university reforms. It is our hope that thisreport will help advance our efforts toward the formulation of specific policies in close cooperation andcollaboration with MEXT in the years to come.

1. Overview{ MEXT is committed to strongly promoting university and higher education reforms by formulating“University Vision” and “Fundamental Policies for National University Reforms.” In that process, we believe
it necessary to reconfirm the significance of universities, particularly national universities. As a major agent
in the university reforms, we should discuss and proceed to, on our own initiative and by consideringsociety’s needs, why universities’ activities have public nature or roles and how we should redefine
universities’ public roles and functions in today’s rapidly changing society.
 What Is the Significance of National Universities?
— Reconfirmation of the Public Roles of National Universities(1) Growing Importance of National Universities{ In the years to come, Japan will face such domestic problems as rapidly declining birthrates and ageing
population as well as such international challenges as the accelerating trend of globalization. These
challenges are expected to bring about enormous change to our conventional socio-economic structure,posing various intricate and complex problems to our future generations. Besides, there is no question that
global environmental destruction, global warming, and other issues that need to be addressed on aworldwide level will become increasingly urgent. It is also necessary, particularly in Japan, to be constantly
on the alert for such extensive natural disasters as earthquakes.
{ Rapidly declining birthrates and ageing population may cripple social security system, and changes in thenation’s disease patterns and an increase of “marginal villages” in intermediate and mountainous areas
may result in the weakening or even disappearance of local communities. Moreover, it is not hard to
imagine that the advancing globalization of economy will not only drastically change our country’s industrial
and employment structures, but also make people’s mindset more borderless and further accelerate themobility of people seeking better job opportunities across national boundaries.
{ Despite all these challenges, however, Japan must continue sustainable development as an advanced,
high-quality and affluent society that embraces multiculturalism, while maintaining a fair and flexible system
of mutual cooperation. To that end, we need to develop individuals with highly specialized knowledge andskills who have lofty ideals and strict ethics, skills to communicate with various people regardless of theircultural backgrounds, generations, or social statuses, and abilities to solve problems from both global andlocal (hereafter called “glocal”) perspectives. It is also of foremost importance to advance scientific studies
that will lay the foundation for various innovations. Higher education institutions have a leading role to playin addressing such challenges that could substantially affect our country’s future. In this context, national
6universities, among other higher education institutions, are expected to play a particularly significant part, inview of their public roles described in the following.
(2) Reconfirmation of the Public Roles of National Universities{ In the process of building modern states, universities have been expanding and propagating the body ofknowledge developed by mankind and making it a source of social wealth, thereby functioning as a driving
force for social progress. In Japan, too, this process took place in the Meiji era and thereafter, where former
imperial universities led and worked with various other types of higher technical colleges to help develop
our nation into a modern state. After that, throughout the period before and after World War II, national
universities were founded one after another by integrating various higher education institutions located ineach region, leading higher education and scientific research and contributing to social development in ourcountry. Today, as Japan is experiencing a tremendous crisis in the wake of the Great East Japan
Earthquake, national universities are expected more strongly than ever to fulfill their public role of ensuring
sustainable development of both Japan and the entire human society, through education, scientificresearch, industrial promotion, the promotion of culture, art, and sports, medical activities, and regional andinternational contribution. Because of this public nature of national universities, the national government
guarantees equal opportunity in higher education by founding and maintaining national universities.
{ Education and research at universities have brought about the development of science and technology
through the production of human resources and advancement of research, thereby bringing great benefits
to society. Because of these benefits to society and ever-growing expectations for the increase of such
benefits, universities are regarded as being of “public nature” and recognized as entities whose
expenditures should be partially funded by the government, though recipients of higher education are also
required to assume part of the financial burden. National universities, among other types of universities,
have received substantial benefits from investments made by their founder, namely the national
government.
{ Meanwhile, the society that has been supposed to be the recipient of the benefits of higher education haschanged into a “knowledge-based society.” Also, people’s values have been diversifying due to thematuring of economy and advancement of globalization. All these developments have made it necessary toreview and discuss anew why public investments are necessary for higher education institutions,particularly national universities, what their present statuses are, and how they should develop in the future,
by taking into consideration Japan’s national strategy as well.
{ Rapidly declining birthrates, ageing population, and population decrease will lead to the reduction ofworking population. Savings and investments will also decrease as a result of the ageing of population.
Capital accumulation will slow down. All these developments are expected to have an enormous effect on
the Japanese economy. If Japan is to maintain its position as a highly industrialized country and develop asustainable and mature society in the globalizing world, it is necessary to encourage more women andsenior citizens to join the labor market. At the same time, we need to create new industries throughtechnological innovations, and enhance productivity and add more value to our products by increasing
efficiency. To achieve these goals, it is essential to provide higher education in a way that develops
individuals with highly specialized knowledge and skills (particularly global human resources and female
human resources) and continue basic scientific research in a steady, consistent manner. In this sense,
education is a practice that produces no quick results, but greatly affects the future of a country and that is
expected to bring about greater social benefits than the amount of money invested. Education is also vital if
7

a country is to maintain and increase its international competitiveness. That is why we are convinced that
education deserves public investment of the scale commensurate with the national power of each state.

(3) Significance of National Universities{ National universities have a certain level of diversity because they have different historical backgrounds
and processes of foundation and development, as well as characteristics associated with their sizes andgeographical locations. However, they are evenly located across the country to ensure equal opportunities
for higher education and have such common missions as maintaining and passing on to future generations
high-quality education and research in a wide range of disciplines and developing human resources who
can support the development of our country both at the national and regional levels.
While situations surrounding national universities today are extremely challenging, MEXT and national
universities themselves should renew their recognition of the national universities as an important social
sector that plays a vital and central part in delivering what is expected of education in Japan. Specifically,education in Japan is expected to hand down to future generations the traditions of our society, cultural
affluence, as well as the unparalleled fairness and strong intellectual curiosity that characterize Japanesepeople.
{ National universities are entrusted by the people to play vital roles that will greatly affect the future of ourcountry. Responding to such entrustment from the people in an appropriate manner justifies the existence
and public roles of the national universities. In that context, national universities, both at individual andcollective levels, must recognize their potentials, carry out consistent reforms of their management andother aspects and autonomously fulfill their public functions and roles in ways that accord with the trend of
the times, while constantly enhancing the benefits that education and research bring about to society.

2. Fundamental Understandings about the Functions and Roles to Be Enhanced{ When studying national universities’ functions and roles to be enhanced in the years ahead, it is necessary
to have detailed discussions not only on the entire body of national universities but also on thecharacteristics (in terms of functions and forms of organization) of each national university. To that end, we
identified four functions of national universities. We also classified national universities into three categories
by form of organization, namely the “university” that comprises undergraduate (or other types oforganization designed to build the foundation for education and research) and graduate schools, the“single-department college,” and the “graduate university” that does not have an undergraduate-level
organization. In the following, we organized the functions and roles to be defined more clearly for each of
the above three forms of organizations. These processes are not intended to assign any particularcharacteristics to any individual national university or limit the roles of each university. Rather, thesecategories simply represent ideal types intended to help all parties concerned share common
understandings.
{ Through their education and research, all national universities have developed competent humanresources and made regional and international contributions. In the wake of the recent major earthquake
and tsunami disaster, national universities have made and are still making all-out, concerted efforts to
support the disaster-hit areas. Based on these functions, this report organizes matters that need moreclarification, in addition to specific issues discussed in Pledge to the People.

8 Educational Function
Since the Meiji era, national universities have played a leading role in modernizing Japan. National
universities have also provided highly advanced specialized education, taught various liberal arts
courses, and offered interdisciplinary programs integrating the humanities and sciences, thereby
producing glocal and innovative individuals who have knowledge and skills in science and technology
as well as in social and cultural fields. In Pledge to the People, JANU stated its policy to provide
excellent education, and in so doing (1) develop individuals who can lead local communities, (2)develop individuals who play an active role in the international community, (3) provide education thatemphasizes the acquisition of culture and an international perspective, (4) develop individuals of
distinguished talent with high ethical standards and an awareness of their duties who will play an activerole in their areas of expertise such as health care, law, education, and art, (5) develop individuals witha doctor’s degree who will play an active role in diverse fields. In the years to come, we believe it
necessary for national universities to further enhance their significance by strengthening these humanresource development functions. We describe in the following the abilities and qualities of humanresources that national universities should develop with greater emphasis.
(1) Train global leaders who can play significant roles in the international arena.
y Develop abilities to apply highly specialized knowledge and skills to actual problem-solving.
y Develop sophisticated communication skills that ensure intercultural and interdisciplinary
understanding.
(2) Train individuals who can be top leaders in various fields of society.
(3) Train researchers who can lead next-generation academic pursuits.
Specifically, undergraduate education should set such specific goals as developing knowledge, skills,
and creative thinking by combining a broad range of liberal arts courses and basic specialized courses.
By achieving these goals, undergraduate education must produce decent and independent citizens,
namely individuals with fundamental abilities and attitude required of fully-fledged members of society.
National universities should also upgrade their master’s programs and aim for the completion ofhigh-quality specialized education. At the same time, their master’s programs should be designed toencourage working adult students to further their education, thereby producing more people with amaster’s degree.
Doctor’s programs should conduct advanced research activities, thereby producing individuals who
can lead efforts to accumulate knowledge in diverse fields and address various domestic andinternational issues, as holders of the highest academic degree with cutting-edge specialized
knowledge.
 Research Function
By making the most of the research results they have consistently accumulated in thenext-generation frontier areas and various cutting-edge fields of science, national universities should
promote unique and diverse basic research projects, as well as cross-sectional, interdisciplinary
studies that encompass both humanities and sciences, and continue communicating their research
results worldwide. By strengthening these functions, national universities should further enhance theirsignificance. Specific steps may include:(1) Implement various scientific research activities.
(2) Promote cutting-edge scientific research activities.
(3) Promote research activities oriented toward problem-solving.
(4) Create innovations.
By taking these steps, national universities should define their future roles and functions moreclearly.
9However, a nation’s research and development capabilities should be developed not by any
particular university, but by a broad range of institutions with diverse characteristics. In this sense, each
university, regardless of its size or location, should fulfill its role by making the most of its
characteristics.
 University Hospital Function
University hospitals play a vital role as central medical institutions that provide advanced medicine
and emergency medicine, develop leading-edge medicine, and contribute to community healthcare. In
the wake of the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, national university hospitals throughout thecountry have dispatched doctors and other medical professionals to the disaster-hit areas andvigorously provided and are still providing various medical support activities.
Meanwhile, a growing regional difference in the number of doctors has resulted in the uneven
distribution of doctors among different departments of university hospitals and other medical institutions
and serious shortages of doctors in some departments. Under these circumstances, university
hospitals play such various roles and functions as:(1) Develop diverse medical professionals who lead team medicine and provide clinical training(2) Develop and provide highly advanced, cutting-edge medicine(3) Function as a central medical institution providing highly advanced medical care in each local
community
In the years ahead, we can easily predict that declining birthrates and aging population will change
the nation’s disease patterns and increase the importance of preventive medicine and public health.
Against that background, university hospitals must pioneer new fields of medicine, hire medical andnursing care professionals who graduated from higher education institutions, train general physicians
and doctors specializing in specified diseases, and develop medical professionals who canappropriately respond to the change of society. University hospitals need to define these roles andfunctions more clearly.
 Function as Regional Centers
The target areas and contents of services to be provided by national universities and the functions
they should fulfill vary depending on their fields of specialization, locations, and other environmental
factors. In general, however, national universities develop human resources required by society, andfunction as regional centers committed to developing knowledge and culture, supporting health andindustrial promotion, and training teachers through their education, research, and regional contribution.
By engaging in these activities, national universities fulfill responsibilities at their own initiative to ensure
the vitalization and sustainable development of the local communities in which they operate. At thesame time, national universities also have the role of linking local communities to the world byintroducing the local communities in which they are located and by attracting information from theworld.
In other words, national universities are expected to function as local think tanks, while at the sametime acting as local opinion leaders that drive the development of the local communities from a global
perspective.
Furthermore, in regions where several universities are located, there are many cases in which
national, public, and private universities address local issues by cooperating with each other in waysthat allow different categories of universities to make the most of their respective advantages.
Coordinating such inter-university cooperation is another important role of national universities.
In the future, with more national government power being shifted to the local authorities and moreautonomy being enjoyed by local communities, geographical locations and local characteristics will be
10

of greater importance. Against that backdrop, national universities should define their diverse roles andfunctions even more clearly by emphasizing the above vital factors.
 Universities
Comprising many departments of diverse disciplines, universities can contribute to society throughsuch functions as comprehensive education and research, regional and international contribution, andmore. Individual universities have the potential to make use of these unique advantages of theuniversity.
Making the best use of their diverse human resources and mutually complementary, inter-university
networks of cooperation, universities provide comprehensive liberal arts education and conduct
interdisciplinary research activities that combine the humanities and science. In the years to come,universities are hoped to further enhance their advantages through such steps as the restructuring of
education and research organizations.
 Single-department Colleges
The significance and advantage of single-department colleges lie in the fact that they collectively
cover many fields of specialization and that each of them can conduct education and research anddevelop highly skilled human resources in its field of specialization in an efficient and flexible way. In
this sense, single-department colleges ensure diversity in two ways—diversity required of Japan’shigher education system and diversity in its capabilities to respond to various regional and global
needs.
In terms of research, each single-department college engages in its unique research activities in linewith its mission. In that process, many colleges have produced researchers who lead their fields ofspecialization, thereby functioning as research hubs unique to Japan and enhancing our country’s
overall research capabilities and potentials.

 Graduate Universities
The major advantage of graduate universities is that, since they have no undergraduate schools,
they can restructure their organization flexibly to produce highly skilled individuals immediately
adaptable to the needs of society and develop education and research systems oriented toward
addressing new challenges.
Furthermore, because they attract students from various universities and disciplines, graduate
universities have the greater potential of developing talented individuals who can pioneer new
academic fields.
In view of their characteristics and goals, we should further enhance graduate universities as one ofthe pillars of the Japanese university education system.

3. Conclusion—What Is Expected of the Government{ As a source of a broad range of human resources and multi-faceted wisdom, national universities havebeen playing the leadership role in efforts toward continuous intellectual innovation. National universities
have been able to play such a role because they, as a collective entity, have enjoyed a certain level ofdiversity in terms of functions, forms of organization, and locations. Currently, national universities are11

making voluntary efforts toward making various arrangements for organic collaboration among themselves,
which we believe will help further enhance the potentials of national universities associated with theirdiversity. Also, as demonstrated by their responses to the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, national
universities, together with the highly skilled individuals and advanced knowledge they produce, areessential both for the country and local communities in various respects, including Japan’s crisis
management.
{ At the same time, since national, public, and private universities are currently play overlapping roles, it isnecessary to reorganize the roles that each category of universities is expected to play. For example, there
is a growing need for a greater number of individuals with high expertise and versatile abilities who canaddress various challenges associated with the rapid progress of the globalization of society such as
intensifying competition for innovation and other global issues. To respond to such needs, one possible
approach that the national universities should take is to shift their emphasis further toward graduate
education. This approach, however, will involve thorough discussions on specific future mechanisms toaddress such challenges as graduate school quality assurance, enrollment limit control, and treatment of
individuals with doctoral degrees. At the same time, we should be fully aware of the substantial roles thatnational universities have so far played in undergraduate education and liberal arts education and the factthat national universities are expected to continue producing well-rounded, competent individuals who canlead the global community.
{ JANU is committed to playing a central role in efforts toward the enhancement of the functions of the entire
body of higher education institutions in Japan, including national, public, and private universities. To that
end, we will meet the expectations of the nation and our stakeholders in cooperation with national
universities, by collecting information on the universities and providing opinions based on analysis of suchinformation. Through this and other measures, we encourage national universities to enhance theirfunctions and disclose information on their progress with self-reforms.
Meanwhile, we will continue discussions on issues that need examination from medium- and long-term
perspectives. These issues include (1) increase of the flexibility of systems related to resource allocationand medium-term goal-setting, evaluations of national university corporations and those for university
accreditation, inter-university cooperation and collaboration, such treatment as personnel administrationand salary and wages, budget execution, asset management, and so forth, (2) improvement and reforms of
selection systems for admission, and (3) measures to actively utilize individuals with a doctoral degree insociety. With respect to these issues, we will step up our efforts to propose the government to review theexisting systems and their operation.
{ Finally, we would like emphasize again that national universities are determined to step up efforts todevelop outstanding individuals who are highly educated, have advanced knowledge and skills in theirrespective areas of specialization, and therefore can lead social reforms. National universities are also
committed to promoting further advancement of scientific research.
What follows are some of the roles that we expect the government to play in implementing the national
university reforms.

12

■ Roles of the Government in the National University Reforms{ We generally agree to the measures described in the University Reform Action Plan that concern (1)restructuring of the functions of universities in the rapidly changing society and (2) upgrading andstrengthening of university governance systems to restructure the functions of universities. It should also be
noted, however, that national universities are diverse in terms of locations and functions and that they have
utilized their respective characteristics to act as regional centers while conducting global-level research
activities.
When restructuring the functions of universities, we should be fully aware of these points and refrain from
simplifying discussions by thoughtlessly allocating specific roles to specific universities or dividing
universities into several categories.
{ While it is true that the national university reforms should be promoted with speed and force, they should
not be carried out in a rough and sloppy way. Rather, the national university reforms must be carried out on
the basis of close cooperation between MEXT, which is responsible for the functional enhancement of
national universities as a whole and the vitalization of each discipline, and the national universities, each ofwhich is expected to enhance its functions in a voluntary and strategic manner. Through such efforts, weshould further enhance the functions of national universities and actively disclose results of such efforts tosociety, thereby further strengthening the positive interactive relationship between society and national
universities based on mutual confidence and support. Using the allegory of the wind and the sun, thenational government’s sunshine policy will accelerate the national university reforms. From this perspective,
the government roles described below should be defined more clearly.
Role 1: Upgrading of National Universities to Lead Intellectual Innovation in Japan
Since their foundation, as national organizations, national universities have supported innovation at thenational and regional levels and taken on the responsibility of systematically developing diverse talented
individuals who can contribute to Japan’s sustainable development. Japan must overcome its current
difficulties, reconstruct itself and maintain its security, reinvigorate local communities, and ensure its
continuous, stable and systematic development. In order to ensure that national universities help achievethese goals, the government should support national universities’ efforts to enhance their functions in all
respects with all its resources, as they are the source of human resources and wisdom and play a central
role in bringing continuous intellectual innovation.
When reviewing the scale of higher education institutions including undergraduate schools or graduate
schools, the government should pay close attention to the significance and role of national universities
which, as centers for developing outstanding human resources and creating knowledge, have beenplaying an essential part in supporting the sustainable development of the country and local communities.
Role 2: Respect for Diversity Arising from the Historical Background and Autonomy ofEach National University
Each national university has its distinctive characteristics associated with its history and tradition, as
well as the disciplines in which it has advantage over other universities, its size, and the functions that itparticularly emphasizes. Making the best use of such characteristics, national universities have responded
to the needs of local communities and society, while playing the roles that they are expected to play at theinternational level. Support from the local community that each national university has enjoyed since its
foundation is also noteworthy.
When redefining national universities’ missions or formulating policies relating to the national university
13reforms, the government should pay the utmost respect for each university’s unique features andcharacteristics and consider that each university takes initiative in drawing up its future vision and otherplans.
Role 3: Guaranteeing Access to Higher Education
In view of the current economic situation and widening social disparity, national universities must
continue to play a major role in providing equal opportunities in education. To that end, the government
should not raise the standard tuition fees for national universities that are paid by students and should
adhere to its current policy of setting uniform tuition fees for all undergraduate and graduate schools andareas of study. The government should also provide scholarships that need no repayment or
non-interest-bearing student loans to a wider range of students who have financial difficulties, or grant
them total or partial fee exemption. It is also necessary to establish new systems and environments andupgrade the existing ones even further to guarantee students with disabilities, those from overseas, etc.
access to barrier-free education.
Role 4: Improvement of Various Environments to Encourage Functional Enhancement
It is important to create a necessary environment to help national universities actively enhance theirfunctions such as voluntary cooperation, joint operation, and joint facility use among different universities,
while paying attention to their sizes, disciplines they emphasize, and their locations. Examples include
providing institutional support of the kind that is not bound by numerical targets regarding the number ofuniversities involved or by the types of universities, such as flexible operation of systems to promote
cooperation; reforming relevant systems so that resources made available through increased efficiency
can be used to enhance the quality of education and invest in education and research as a reward for
improvement efforts, rather than to reduce budgets; creating environments that make it easier forpresidents to provide leadership in maintaining and improving the education and research environment
and achieving qualitative change of university governance (securing a discretionary budget for the officeof university president from government subsidies for operating expenses and from project funds,
permitting the spending of subsidies or project funds on a multi-year basis under certain conditions, etc.);
creating environments, including tax reforms, to facilitate the introduction of external funding. It is also
necessary to enhance flexibility and promote the standardization of rules concerning the use ofcompetitive research funds.
With regard to the Revised Labor Contract Law which came into force in April, 2013, it is necessary to
study ways to appropriately ensure a certain extent of flexibility in the employment of researchers, so thatthe revision will not adversely affect national universities’ efforts toward further promoting their education
and research.
Role 5: Improvement of Evaluation Systems
While university evaluation systems are important for national universities to fulfill their accountability
and improve their education, research, and operation, their too detailed, uniform goals and evaluation
methods pose several problems. One of the problems is that setting goals and making evaluations
becomes an end itself, hindering the education and research activities of national universities andpreventing the results of evaluation from being effectively used to improve university operation.
Furthermore, the actual condition of national universities is not fully conveyed to the nation.
It is important to put in place evaluation systems that will truly help develop the individuality of each
university and enhance its functions, taking into consideration the significance and purposes of each14

existing evaluation system as well as the unique characteristics of education and research conducted byuniversities, which are a different type of entity from independent administrative agencies. It is also
necessary to review the current goal-setting and evaluation methods, including their relationships withevaluation systems for university accreditation, through discussions and cooperation with evaluation
bodies and other organizations, so as to make evaluation results more visible to the nation, including
university personnel.
Role 6: Stabilizing the Financial Foundation and Reviewing Financial Systems{ Being maintained by investments from public finances and therefore not totally dependent on paymentsfrom consumers or their families alone, national universities have been able to promote cutting-edge
and innovative basic sciences, applied sciences, and research and development, hire a large numberof distinguished faculty members who provide undergraduate and graduate education, cooperate withindustry and local communities, and promote regional medicine. National universities have conducted
these activities in an integrated manner and in so doing have played a principal role in Japan’s higher
education system.
{ In the meantime, since the late 1990s in particular, OECD countries have taken such active measures
as an increase of public investments in higher education. In Japan, however, there have been
discussions which do not give justice to the role of national universities as a core agent that ensures
the public nature of our higher education. As a result, the fundamental operating budget appropriatedfor national universities has been cut down sharply (down by 99.2 billion yen from FY2004 on an initialbudget basis, resulting in the accumulated budget reduction of 470.6 billion yen in 8 years), along withother administrative budgets. This has not only caused the deterioration of the quality and international
competitiveness of Japanese higher education, but has also led to the soaring of education cost borneby households. Some even argue that this situation is further accelerating the decline of birth rates inour country.
{ In recent years, large-scale competitive research funds available for public application set time limits.
This has resulted in the unstable employment of postdoctoral researchers and posed a serious problem
to many universities as to how to secure internal resources for funding the research projects that havepassed their expiration dates. To cope with these problems, universities strive to obtain external funds
and exert efforts toward selection and concentration of research themes. And yet, due to the continuous
reduction of their fundamental operating budget, universities are becoming less and less able tomaintain their overall research functions.
{ Meanwhile, since individuals engaged in education, research, and medical care services carried out by
national universities are the assets of the universities, each university is making voluntary efforts tocope with the government’s moves to reduce overall university personnel costs and, more recently, todecrease salaries for university staff, and other measures that result in the lowering of Faculty and staff
treatment standards. Still, these government measures could prompt many national university faculty
members to leave their posts and could make those who have decided to stay less eager or able toadvance university reforms.
{ In order to proactively evaluate and continuously support national universities’ initiatives for voluntarily
enhancing their functions based on their redefined missions, JANU desires to ask the government yet
again to adopt a powerful policy that truly underpins universities’ efforts toward functional enhancement.
15

Examples include securing stable financial resources, including subsidies for national universities’operating expenses, in a continuous and stable manner from a long-term perspective; expanding
scholarship programs and tuition exemption measures for students; upgrading facilities and equipmentthat provide infrastructures for education and research activities; making well-balanced public
investments in basic administrative funds and competitive research funds; restore the treatment
standards for national university faculty members; and introducing discretionary budgets that university
presidents can appropriate for their universities’ systemic reform projects (World Premier International
Research Center Initiative [WPI], Program for Leading Graduate Schools, etc.).
Moreover, in order to make education and research at national universities as well as their contribution
to society even more advanced and effective, it is necessary to overhaul the financial systems ofnational universities. Examples include improving methods of allocating subsidies for supporting theoperation of national university corporations in ways that appreciate universities’ efforts to carry out
reforms rather than placing too much emphasis on the results of their efforts; allowing national
universities to flexibly execute their budgets such as a personnel budget; and strengthening themanagement foundation of university hospitals.

16

(References) Challenges to Be Addressed by National Universities for Each Function{ Based on the “Conceptual Image of the Contents of the University Vision,” we have prepared exhibits
describing challenges that national universities and the government should respectively address for theenhancement of the functions of national universities.
1. Enhancement of Educational Function ··························································

Exhibit 1

2. Enhancement of Research Function ·····························································

Exhibit 2

3. Enhancement of University Hospital Function ·················································

Exhibit 3

4. Enhancement of Function as Regional Centers ···············································

Exhibit 4

5. Direction of Problem-solving Measures for Each Form of National Universities ······
 Universities Single-department Colleges Graduate Universities

Exhibit 5

17

Exhibit 1
1. Enhancement of Educational Function[Steps to be taken by universities]c Carry out continuous university-wide improvement of educational system and environment based on
redefined missions.
d Under the leadership of presidents, develop comprehensive educational programs that transcend theboundaries between different undergraduate and graduate schools.
・ Place importance on liberal arts education and share integrated, systematic curricula that transcend theboundaries between existing disciplines.
e Carry out a qualitative change of education into one designed to develop the creativity that ensuressocietal changes.
・ Change class format into interactive lessons that encourage students’ voluntary and independent
learning.
f Train global human resources
・ Substantially increase the number of Japanese students dispatched to overseas universities and thenumber of International students admitted to Japanese universities (future ambassadors for Japan).
・ Create a “global campus” on which outstanding students and faculty members both from Japan andabroad gather and make friends with each other.
・ Increase classes given in English while at the same time promoting understanding about the Japaneseculture.
g Admit students who have the motivations, abilities, and aptitudes that are in line with each university’s
admission policy.
(Introduce various means of selection, such as referring to students’ achievement records up until theirgraduation from high school to identify and admit individuals with unique talents.)[Steps to be taken by the national government]c Draw up measures for promoting education based on a long-term vision.
d Assist in securing faculty members necessary for implementing consistent and carefully-craftededucational programs.
e Help create an environment that encourages students’ active learning
f Provide financial assistance to students through tuition exemption and scholarship programs.
g Help create a secure and comfortable learning environment for International students (scholarships anddormitories).

18

Exhibit 2
2. Enhancement of Research Function[Steps to be taken by universities]c Carry out continuous university-wide improvement of research system and environment based on
redefined missions.
d Help outstanding researchers devote more time to research activities and produce results more quickly inthe competitive environment.
・ Develop a system in which research technical staff and URAs (University Research Administrators) can
provide research assistance and various other experts can play roles in such activities as intellectual
asset management and utilization, and appropriately evaluate such staffers, experts, and their activities.
・ Standardize and simplify rules.
e Develop a research environment for young researchers.
・ Develop a mechanism and an environment that help young researchers gain independence early intheir careers.
・ Encourage the efficient use of research funds through creative approaches.
f Improvement of employment statuses of young and mid-career researchers who tend to be hired on ashort-term basis.
g Develop an environment that facilitates active promotion of female researchers to more senior positions.
[Steps to be taken by the national government]c Draw up measures for promoting research based on a long-term vision.
d Increase investments in research and development and maintain balance between top-down andbottom-up types of projects.
e Properly maintain and manage university facilities and equipment and seek new ways to secure financial
resources for their maintenance and improvement.
f Provide more research funds that support each faculty member’s research activities (e.g. Grant-in-Aid for
Scientific Research).
g Based on a university’s vision and other statements, allocate resources in a well-focused, strategicmanner.
・ Develop research universities commensurate with the scale of the nation.
・ Support and strengthen research institutions producing excellent results.
h Concentrate funding in the development of knowledge bases.
i Appropriate project budgets in a way that ensures smooth systemic reforms.
・ Effective extension of research results requires budget appropriation and project operating costmanagement that take into account relevant time-lines.
j Increase flexibility and standardize rules in the appropriation of competitive funds.
k Draw up measures to improve the social status of individuals with doctoral degrees.

19

Exhibit 3
3. Enhancement of University Hospital Function[Steps to be taken by universities]c Develop indicators concerning the quality of medical care and disclose to society.
・ Clarify standards and definitions of medical care.
d Develop a new system for providing community medical care through the introduction of enhanced medical
ICT.
・ Train general physicians and other medical professionals and enhance university hospitals’ function todispatch doctors to local communities.
e Reorganize existing departments or create new departments in a way that corresponds with new fields of
medicine, and promote team medicine.
・ Build a medical care system that encompasses new fields of medicine. Develop and continuously
review a system of practicing team medicine, thereby lowering barriers between professions, fields ofspecialization, and departments.
f Develop global human resources and promote international exchange of hospital personnel.
・ Promote overseas research and training.
・ Invite medical professionals from overseas.
g Develop a system to support reemployment or return to work after a period of leave or career break.
・ Provide support and retraining when medical professionals return to work.
[Steps to be taken by the national government]c Ensure the quality of medical care provided by board-certified doctors, secure an appropriate number ofboard-certified doctors for each field of specialization, and review the medical fee schedule based on thenumber of board-certified doctors in each such field.
・ Manage the board certification system in a way that reflects the number of doctors required by eachfield of specialization.
d Develop a system for providing community medical care.
・ Standardize and share medical information.
・ Develop a system to train “general physicians” and clarify their status in terms of remuneration for theirservices.
e Develop medium- and long-term plans for training medical professionals and financial plans that supportthem.
・ Enhance systems for career path creation and training, and promote personnel exchange.
f Develop an environment where doctors have less burden of on duty and more time for research.
・ Increase the number of nurses and other professionals and expand the scope of their responsibilities.
・ Establish an incentive system designed to motivate doctors to engage in research.
g Provide financial support for the improvement and enhancement of environments for medical training andresearch as well as for medical practice.
・ Allocate a sufficient number of professors to facilitate clinical training and basic medical research, andsecure research funds on a consistent basis, and address the problem of ageing facilities andequipment.
h Develop a suitable environment and carry out systemic reforms to allow foreign doctors to practice
medicine in Japan.
・ Introduce exceptional deregulatory measures that allow foreign doctors to acquire medical care skills
through on-site training.
i Appropriately evaluate advanced medical care and acute care services in the medical fee schedule.
・ Secure financial resources for maintaining the functions of advanced treatment hospitals.

20

Exhibit 4
4. Enhancement of Function as Regional Centers[Steps to be taken by universities]
c Enhance regional coordination functions that each university has or that are achieved throughinter-university cooperation, take initiative in supporting regional development, and review the scope ofactivities and division of roles concerning support for regional development.
d Based on the strong confidence that national universities enjoy in the local communities in which they
operate, make commitment to solving problems that may arise between government, local people, andindustry.
e Discuss specific measures to enhance the systematical inter-organizational cooperation to solve the social
problems.
[Steps to be taken by the national government]c Develop places of employment for local human resources, thereby encouraging graduates to stay in thelocal communities in which their universities are located.
d Promote universities as the Center of Communities (COC) and local- or regional-level inter-university
cooperation to secure research funds.

21

Exhibit 5
5. Directions of Problem-solving Measures Corresponding
with National Universities of Different Forms
 Universities[Steps to be taken by universities]
c Strengthen presidents’ governance to make the most of the functions as universities.
d Under the leadership of presidents, promote university-wide efforts toward strengthening researchcapabilities.
e Inter-departmental allocation of resources.
f Enhance the capabilities of humanities and social sciences researchers to work and communicate
internationally (contribution to the creation of new business models and commencement of overseas
operations from a new perspective).
[Steps to be taken by the national government]c Create an environment that makes it easier for presidents to provide leadership.
・ Secure funds that universities can use flexibly for the maintenance and improvement of education andresearch environments and for the qualitative change of university governance (secure part of a projectbudget as a discretionary budget for the office of university president on a multi-year basis).

 Single-department Colleges[Steps to be taken by universities]
c Strengthen governance in ways that make the most of the advantages of single-department colleges.
・ Being fairly small in scale and basically limited to one discipline, single-department colleges are better
able to manage their organizations in a quick and responsive manner.
d Take measures to train individuals with more practical, highly specialized skills.
e Take measures to build research hubs with more enhanced functions.
f Enhance the function of single-department colleges as (national and regional) hubs for training individuals
with practical, highly specialized skills through cooperation among national, public, and private universities
as well as among industry, academia, and government.
g Promote research projects unique to each college.
h Provide many opportunities of practical, hands-on learning both inside and outside the country.
[Steps to be taken by the national government]c Carefully allocate resources to colleges in a way that suits the characteristics and features of each college.
d Recognize the importance of there being colleges of diverse forms.

22 Graduate Universities[Steps to be taken by universities]c Operate universities and strengthen governance by making the most of the strengths of graduate
universities.
d Develop a system to provide leading-edge graduate education to students with diverse backgrounds.
e Build strong research hubs.
[Steps to be taken by the national government]c Implement policies to further promote the mobility of students at the time of advancing to graduate school.
d Raise awareness about the importance of graduate university as a form of academic institution.

23