Education More Japanese universities shift toward teaching their classes in English

A growing number of universities in Japan have begun offering more of their courses in English, extending beyond exchange programmes to include local students. The University of Tokyo's Graduate School of Engineering drew attention earlier this year when it revealed plans to make English the standard language of instruction beginning in 2026. The announcement stirred debate online, as many worried that students educated almost entirely in Japanese would find it difficult to adjust to studying complex subjects in English. There were also doubts about whether professors could readily shift to teaching specialised material in a second language.

The move by the University of Tokyo coincided with similar, less publicised, steps taken by private institutions such as Sophia and Waseda universities, which have been gradually expanding English-taught programmes.

When Laurie Wesselhoff, a cultural anthropologist and lecturer at Keio University, started at Keio about 30 years ago, universities were talking about offering more classes in English, but "there wasn't much standardization or ministry guidance," she said. Instead, schools built English programs for returnee Japanese students and for international students, rather than the bulk of domestic undergraduates. The result, she said, was English tracks that looked international on paper but were socially and academically segregated between international and domestic students. That early model is exactly what universities are trying to get away from in 2025.

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Universities around the world are competing to attract top students, but most of those students and researchers don't speak Japanese. While the University of Tokyo remains Japan's leading institution — known for its highly competitive admissions — it ranked only 36th globally in the 2026 QS World University Rankings. For many Japanese universities, offering English-language courses, known as English-medium instruction (EMI), has become a way to remain competitive internationally.

I think it's a prudent move. 'Thanks' to the extent of the once British Empire, English is the most common technical language in the world. Most scientific, medical and technological research is published in English so to have a fighting chance of success in those and related fields, you require a firm grasp of the English language. It will have the added benefit of allowing young Japanese people to enjoy the beautifully composed prose of Marvel/DC/Fast & Furious films, in the original language.