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Daniel James, Hiroshima Shudo University, JapanAbstract
This paper is the third in a longitudinal series examining the relationship between financial support and study abroad at a medium-sized private university in western Japan. Earlier studies focused primarily on the stated preferences of first-year students before and immediately after the introduction of a revised scholarship system in 2024. The present study shifts the focus from intention to actual participation and compares students who took part in university study abroad programmes in the 2024 and 2025 academic years. The revised scholarship system combines fixed support for first-year students on short-run programmes with variable awards determined by destination, programme duration, and demonstrated foreign-language proficiency or accumulated foreign-language credits. The data show that overall participation increased considerably from 66 students in 2024 to 112 in 2025. The strongest growth occurred in short-run programmes, while exchange participation also increased and expanded to a wider range of destinations. Medium-run programmes remained a small proportion of total participation in both years. Despite these changes in participation, destination preferences were comparatively stable: South Korea remained the leading short-run destination and English-speaking countries continued to attract substantial numbers. The findings suggest that financial support may be more effective in increasing participation than in fundamentally redirecting destination choice. However, the two-year comparison is also likely to reflect exchange-rate conditions, visa requirements, international relations, programme availability, and other institutional and individual factors. Further data from 2026 and 2027 are required to determine whether the observed patterns represent sustained changes.
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Conference: ECE2026Stream: International Education
This paper is part of the ECE2026 Conference Proceedings (View)
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