Japan's aging society and declining birthrate are shrinking the pool of potential new students, forcing universities to rethink the way they have traditionally done things and implement radical changes, Todai's Honda said.
In fiscal 2011, 39 percent of 572 private universities failed to meet their minimum enrollment quotas, according to a survey by the Promotion and Mutual Aid Corporation for Private Schools of Japan. Japan has 596 private universities in total.
But the University of Tokyo has yet to experience any such enrollment problems, thanks to its revered status.
"Although (Todai) is not ranked that high among universities worldwide, it continues to retain its high status and prestige in this 'Galapagos country,' " Honda said, referring to Japanese students' perception of the school.
"Todai is able to survive even though it is not very capable of sensing or perceiving changes in society, the economy and the international environment," she said.
But while some on Todai's faculty may not feel a sense of crisis now, such complacency may be jeopardizing the university's long-term future, Honda said.
Regarding the gap between terms until autumn enrollment, some experts have expressed concern that it may increase the financial burden on students.
Todai hopes high school graduates will use the extra free time to engage in activities that benefit society, such as volunteering for worthy causes, or take on new challenges to broaden their views, such as corporate internships.
It remains unclear, however, whether the university plans to create such programs or internships at companies, or would provide any financial assistance to those participating in them.
It is also quite probable that the new six-month break will highly confuse many students as it will effectively strip them of any official status and leave them in limbo, Ibaraki University President Yukio Ikeda said Jan. 30.
To discuss the specific details of shifting the time of enrollment, Todai intends to set up two consultative bodies in April — one comprising representatives from 11 leading universities, including Tokyo's Keio University, and Kyoto University, and the other involving members of business groups such as Keidanren.
In January, Todai President Junich Hamada said it will be crucial for Japan's leading universities to cooperate in order to realize the change, given the wider changes to society autumn enrollment would necessitate.
Following Hamada's statement, more than 40 percent of 81 national universities announced they plan to start discussions on whether to start autumn enrollment, a recent Kyodo News poll found. In addition, 10 out of 12 private universities surveyed said they also intend to hold talks on the proposed change.
"I believe there are many problems in Japanese society, such as a narrow sense of values, a rigid way of thinking and intolerance. Internationalizing (universities) is desirable to address these issues and help to change society," Todai's Honda said.
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