Weak Japanese Yen Affecting Students' Plans To Study Abroad
Students in Japan who are hoping to study abroad are mulling changes to their plans due to rising tuition and housing costs caused by a weakening yen.
A Tokyo-based company which helps students make arrangements to study overseas says the number of inquiries about changes in plans has been rising since the beginning of the month.
The company says the number of students who wish to study abroad is recovering gradually, after dropping drastically due to the coronavirus pandemic.
It said last year the cost of studying in the United States for one year was about 3.6 million yen, or about 24,000 dollars, excluding travel expenses. But it said now the cost is 5.6 million yen, or about 38,000 dollars, due to a weakening yen against the dollar.
The cost of studying in other countries has also risen about 20 percent.
The company said inquiries about shortening the period of stay, changing countries, or postponing plans are increasing.
A mother planning to send her son to a high school in Britain said she came to ask about reducing his stay by one week as the cost has increased from the initial plan. She said sending her son abroad for study was a hard decision in a tough household budget, but she wants to help her son learn a foreign language.
A company official said inquiries are increasing from students who could not go overseas to study due to the pandemic, but the cost may change due to daily fluctuations in the exchange rate.
The official said some students are changing their destination to countries that allow them to work while studying.