Generally speaking, internships are programs that allow students to gain practical, on-the-job work experience at companies or other organizations. These programs have garnered attention for the opportunities they provide to students. They are well-established in the United States as a means of facilitating learning and improving skills as well as providing a reference for choosing a career path, and it is said that between 70 and 80 percent of American students have participated in such programs. In 1998, the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare began actively promoting and offering assistance for the spread of internship programs in Japan.
When hosting a Japanese university student as an intern, the period can be between two weeks and three months, and there are no major restrictions on the work that they can perform. However, if the intern is an international student, their status of residence under immigration regulations requires that the work be limited to “designated activities” if remunerated and “cultural activities” if not. The regulations that apply to the status of residence of international students do not permit activities corresponding to “practical training” (work on production lines, participation in sales activities, etc.).
To find an internship with a Japanese company from overseas, a university must go through the very difficult process of searching for a host company in the unfamiliar environment of Japan. At the same time, companies looking to host highly capable individuals must consider things like cultural and language barriers, preparations for living environments and complicated immigration procedures, which often causes them reconsider. Meanwhile, for students wishing to do internships in Japan, learning the Japanese language is one of the primary objectives along with acquiring work experience, and short-term internships are not conducive to achieving that objective. We believe it is important to resolve these kinds of problems that keep the three parties apart.
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