PhD in Japan

[jihanc]

Hello to all,

I´m really interested in following a PhD program in Japan. I have been looking through the Web to find a research center that might be interested in my field of expertise and the project I will like to develop, which involves translation and subtitling technology and its impact in language education.

I´m a BA in Modern Languages with an MA in Translation, Subtitling and Dubbing, as well as an MBA in Marketing and an MA in Scriptwriting. I have plenty of experience working with translation and subtitling.

I really need some orientation since my knowledge of Japanese is almost nonexistent, though I´m willing to learn as much as I can in order to achieve this goal. I will be moving soon, so I´m planning to attend Japanese classes in my new hometown.

Could you please help me with some advice about universities, faculties and/or professors who might be interested in working in this field? I will most appreciate it.

Thank you in advance.

Regards,

Jihan

[HarryHurry]

Hello to all,

I´m really interested in following a PhD program in Japan. I have been looking through the Web to find a research center that might be interested in my field of expertise and the project I will like to develop, which involves translation and subtitling technology and its impact in language education.

I´m a BA in Modern Languages with an MA in Translation, Subtitling and Dubbing, as well as an MBA in Marketing and an MA in Scriptwriting. I have plenty of experience working with translation and subtitling.

I really need some orientation since my knowledge of Japanese is almost nonexistent, though I´m willing to learn as much as I can in order to achieve this goal. I will be moving soon, so I´m planning to attend Japanese classes in my new hometown.

Could you please help me with some advice about universities, faculties and/or professors who might be interested in working in this field? I will most appreciate it.

Thank you in advance.

Regards,

Jihan


Same old estory....too many MAs...too many holes...too many trolls...

[KansaiBen]

Could you please help me with some advice about universities, faculties and/or professors who might be interested in working in this field? I will most appreciate it.

Thank you in advance.

Regards,

Jihan

look for the poster from Tsukuba University flogging his g30 program for foreign students. He seems to be advertising it enough.

[YMO]

look for the poster from Tsukuba University flogging his g30 program for foreign students. He seems to be advertising it enough.

Ahh, that'd be me then. But, sadly, I got nothing for this guy. Maybe the Doshisha guy has something.

[Booker]

first of all, OP, why?



why get a phd? and why--more importantly--get one in japan?

[HarryHurry]

first of all, OP, why?



why get a phd? and why--more importantly--get one in japan?



"Well, it all began when I wuz 3.5 years old and I suddenly realized I had a burning ambition and life dream to get PR in Japan and live there happily ever after, or even longer...." :rolleyes:

[jihanc]

University of Tsukuba has an interesting staff that I´m planning on contacting, but I would like to see other options. These things take time and I´m a girl that like to plan things before jumping into any conclusion. Thanks a lot for the information about the "Global 30 program" in University of Tsukuba, I´ll look more into it.

[ttokyo]

... my field of expertise and the project I will like to develop, which involves translation and subtitling technology and its impact in language education.

I´m a BA in Modern Languages with an MA in Translation, Subtitling and Dubbing, as well as an MBA in Marketing and an MA in Scriptwriting. I have plenty of experience working with translation and subtitling.

I really need some orientation since my knowledge of Japanese is almost nonexistent, though I´m willing to learn as much as I can in order to achieve this goal. I will be moving soon, so I´m planning to attend Japanese classes in my new hometown....

My impression is that it would be of little sense to engage in any projects involving translation or subtiteling in Japan if you only have no or little command of the language. For translation of Spanish<->English, the US would make much more sense with your background (especially California).
Things might be different if you a 'expert', who would work on a project to apply your knowledge in Japan. In that case, your professor in Spain should be able to help you contacts in Japan If you want to join a PhD program, you would be anyway be required to present credentials and recommendations.

[jihanc]

My impression is that it would be of little sense to engage in any projects involving translation or subtiteling in Japan if you only have no or little command of the language. For translation of Spanish<->English, the US would make much more sense with your background (especially California).
Things might be different if you a 'expert', who would work on a project to apply your knowledge in Japan. In that case, your professor in Spain should be able to help you contacts in Japan If you want to join a PhD program, you would be anyway be required to present credentials and recommendations.

Hi Ttokyo,

I am an expert on an important subtitling software, since I was the person in charge of working with BETA versions. I reported to programmers the possible mistakes the Software had in order for them to develop all the things translators may need to increase the quality of the subtitles. I also have more than 7 years of experience working with subtitling and dubbing solutions (translation, subtitling, closed captioning, and subtitling for the hearing impaired.) Showing my credentials and recommendations won´t be a problem.

I understand that it may seem that the US would be more adequate due to my background, but I believe the research that I am interested in may apply to any language, and I work with other languages besides English. In addition to this, it would be much more difficult for me to move and do research in the US.

I am really thankful for the advice.

[ttokyo]

I understand that it may seem that the US would be more adequate due to my background, but I believe the research that I am interested in may apply to any language, and I work with other languages besides English. In addition to this, it would be much more difficult for me to move and do research in the US.

? I still don't get you. Why would it be more difficult for you in the US when you speak English and Spanish, but no Japanese.
The other thing is that it looks like that you have been working for an IT company for the last years and I would think that the ties between universities and the industry would be tighter in the US as well. But good luck anyway.

[Booker]

seriously.

you need to ask yourself why it's so important to get a phd in japan. what will you get out of it that you won't get out of a phd somewhere...else.

chances are future employers [outside of japan] won't give two shits about a phd from a japanese university, even some of the more impressive ones.

just food for thought.

[jihanc]

seriously.

you need to ask yourself why it's so important to get a phd in japan. what will you get out of it that you won't get out of a phd somewhere...else.

chances are future employers [outside of japan] won't give two shits about a phd from a japanese university, even some of the more impressive ones.

just food for thought.

Booker, thank you for the advice.

Actually, I though about it for a long time and studied different options before posting on this forum. Years of planning took me here. ^_^
You might be right when you say that future employers would overlook Japanese Phd´s, but it is also truth that prestige does not always translate into quality. I might be wrong, I´m only human, but japan seems to be one of the best options for what I´m looking for. :)

[kurogane]

For me, and for Booker, a PhD in Japan just made sense.

For you, a PhD in Japan is the stupidest thing you can do. Even allowing for the ingrained stupidity requisite of your idiotic delusions about what Japan is and what it can do for you, you sound like an anime-tard babboon lusting after some apocryphal Japanese chick dreamed up watching too many Sailor Moon marathons.


But you're Iberian, so that should be about par.

Good luck.



BTW, YMO, IHOMO, hardly "flogs" his G30 programme anymore than KB "flogs" erroneous, ill-thought, and often downright idiotically misinformed advice.


What YMO does is provide thoughtful, balanced, if somewhat overly rosy advice to people stupid enough to think that doing an undergraduate degree in Japan is a good idea.


So good on him, IHOMO.

[jihanc]

For me, and for Booker, a PhD in Japan just made sense.

For you, a PhD in Japan is the stupidest thing you can do. Even allowing for the ingrained stupidity requisite of your idiotic delusions about what Japan is and what it can do for you, you sound like an anime-tard babboon lusting after some apocryphal Japanese chick dreamed up watching too many Sailor Moon marathons.


But you're Iberian, so that should be about par.

Good luck.



BTW, YMO, IHOMO, hardly "flogs" his G30 programme anymore than KB "flogs" erroneous, ill-thought, and often downright idiotically misinformed advice.


What YMO does is provide thoughtful, balanced, if somewhat overly rosy advice to people stupid enough to think that doing an undergraduate degree in Japan is a good idea.


So good on him, IHOMO.

This is the first and last time I will lose my time answering this kind of message, but just to let you know:

1. I´m a woman.
2. I´m not from Spain, I´m just here now.
3. You know absolutely nothing about who I am, what I have done and what I want to do.
4. You have no idea what my reasons are.
5. It´s none of your business. I just asked if someone new about faculties and/or professors that may be interested in my field. The stories you create about others are just that, fiction.
6. There is something called respect and politeness, and certainly I would expect it from someone who has already obtained his PhD.

And just an advice, underestimating people just shows how much you still need to grow as a person.

That would be all.

P. S. As I already said, this will be my first and last reply to impolite and fiction based remarks.

[HarryHurry]

Booker, thank you for the advice.

Actually, I though about it for a long time and studied different options before posting on this forum. Years of planning took me here. ^_^
. :)


Troll alert...

[ダニエル]

HarryHurry, I've found a story for you: http://goo.gl/ESgwy

[KansaiBen]

I really need some orientation since my knowledge of Japanese is almost nonexistent, though I´m willing to learn as much as I can in order to achieve this goal. I will be moving soon, so I´m planning to attend Japanese classes in my new hometown.

Jihan

I just wonder how you hope to get a PhD here without being able to speak any Japanese at all

http://educationjapan.org/jguide/university.html

Second, and this is only rumor mind you...... lots of women research students at Japanese universities experience sexual discrimination, sexist remarks by their professors and supervisors, many of them middle aged conservative men who believe that women have no place in academia or getting an education, and should be at home making babies. These are people who have power over your graduation.

If you can put up with that then all power to you.

[HarryHurry]

I just wonder how you hope to get a PhD here without being able to speak any Japanese at all

.

The OP will speak troll...:D

[ttokyo]

Second, and this is only rumor mind you...... lots of women research students at Japanese universities experience sexual discrimination, sexist remarks by their professors and supervisors, many of them middle aged conservative men who believe that women have no place in academia or getting an education, and should be at home making babies. These are people who have power over your graduation.

...as you mention it... my ex on her PhD program got pressure to sleep with the professor. She got the PhD with ease and good grades ...go figure...

[KansaiBen]

...as you mention it... my ex on her PhD program got pressure to sleep with the professor. She got the PhD with ease and good grades ...go figure...

and unlike the US there are very few rules or laws against overt sexual harassment. If you want to graduate you get with the program or you stay home. The professors are GOD here.

[wzwzwz]

and unlike the US there are very few rules or laws against overt sexual harassment.

Actually, Japan has fairly solid sexual harassment laws. See the 1985 Equal Opportunity Employment law and its 1997 and 2006 amendments (i.e. Article 11 of the 2006 amendments). Interestingly, the 2006 change expanded the previous law to specify that men can also be victims of sexual harassment.

Japanese courts have handed down judgements with significant damages awarded to plaintiffs in sexual harassment cases. For example, a plaintiff won a suit for 7 million yen in damages against the Bank of Japan in 2001, and someone else successfully sued the then-governor of Osaka in 1999 for sexual harassment.

So, no, Japan is not a utopia of gender equity, but you are still full of sh*t.

[wzwzwz]

6. There is something called respect and politeness, and certainly I would expect it from someone who has already obtained his PhD.

Haaaaaa. I see you know very little about grad school ;)

[KansaiBen]

Japanese courts have handed down judgements with significant damages awarded to plaintiffs in sexual harassment cases. For example, a plaintiff won a suit for 7 million yen in damages against the Bank of Japan in 2001, and someone else successfully sued the then-governor of Osaka in 1999 for sexual harassment.
.

and that is how many cases out of the total number of sexual harassment cases in Japan? And how many cases do not get reported as the plaintiffs fear being harassed or hounded out of their jobs?

You will also note that the former Governor of Osaka (Knock Yokoyama) was caught in the act (had his hand up the woman's skirt while she was sleeping, he was a public figure and it was performed during official duties. he later killed himself and was known as a lech and a pervert anyway. Most women who file such accusations fear losing their jobs, being suspected of leading the perpetrator on, or somehow encouraging it.

[wzwzwz]

Look, you said
and unlike the US there are very few rules or laws against overt sexual harassment.

That's just not true. There are laws.


and that is how many cases out of the total number of sexual harassment cases in Japan? And how many cases do not get reported as the plaintiffs fear being harassed or hounded out of their jobs?

If you actually care about the issue, not just about being right on the internet, fvcking Google it.


You will also note that the former Governor of Osaka (Knock Yokoyama) was caught in the act (had his hand up the woman's skirt while she was sleeping, he was a public figure and it was performed during official duties. he later killed himself and was known as a lech and a pervert anyway.

So what? Judges don't decide cases based on public opinion of a defendant's skeeziness. He broke the law. The victim sued, presented evidence, and won the case.


Most women who file such accusations fear losing their jobs, being suspected of leading the perpetrator on, or somehow encouraging it.

And how do you, a guy who doesn't even seem to know that there are harassment laws in Japan, somehow know what 'most women' fear when they're sexually harassed at work?

Sorry for the thread hijack, OP. You sure you still want to come to Japan? ;)

[KansaiBen]

Sexual Harassment and Domestic Violence in Japan

by: Yukiko Tsunoda, Attorney at Law

Today I am going to be speaking about how Japanese women have been struggling with sexual harassment and domestic violence form the legal perspective, then about how we envision and are planning the next stage.

First of all, unlike the laws in the U.S. and other countries, Japanese law does not say anything about sexual harassment and domestic violence. This means that Japanese society does not recognize the concepts of sexual harassment and domestic violence. As a result of the legal attitude and of similar social attitudes, we have not yet coined appropriate Japanese terms for these concepts. As some of you know, sexual harassment was given a Japanese acronym, "sekuhara" and domestic violence has a few Japanese terms, onen of which is "fufukan-bouryoku". A rough translation is "violence between spouses", a term that does not reveal the perpetrator of the violence. When a man acts violently toward a woman, and then "fufukan-bouryoku" is used to describe it, the violence of the male is concealed. Another term for domestic violence is "katenai-bouryoku". This means family violence. One of the problems of this term is that in the 1970s or 1980s, we used this term for adolescents who beat their parents, sometimes beat to death. In 1992, the term of domestic violence was introduced to Japan by a Japanese woman working on this issue in the U.S.. We finally decided to use the English term, domestic violence, and the Japanese, "violence by a husband or boyfriend" interchangeably.

You might wonder how, without any law addressing these problems, we can raise legal questions in courtrooms or elsewhere. I shall first explain to you our legal strategies.

With respect to the issues concerning sexual harassment, in 1989, when we filed the first case in the Fukuoka District Court, we exercised a tort clause in the Civil Code. Article 709 of the Civil Code says: "A person who violates intentionally or negligently the right of another is bound to make compensation for damage arising therefore." In sexual harassment cases, the responsibility of the employer is very important in the aspects of assurance of monetary recovery and maintaining a sexual harassment-free working environment.

With respect to the employer's responsibility, Article 715 of the Civil Code says:

"A person who employs another to carry out an undertaking is bound to make compensation for damage done to a third person by the employee in the course of the execution of the undertaking; however, this shall not apply, if the employer has exercised due care in the appointment of the employee and in the supervision of the undertaking or if the damage would have ensued even if due care had been exercised. 2. A person who supervises the undertaking in place of the employer shall also assume the responsibility mentioned in the proceeding paragraph."

These articles have been widely interpreted in various cases, so we created our strategies based on these articles. In order to use the concept of tort, we had to point out that sexual harassment should fall into the category of "violation of right". The legal team for the first case established the fact of the plaintiff's adverse and harsh treatment based on her sex by defendants, her immediate boss and the company. We argued that if she had been a man, she would not have been treated as she was and that what had happened to her should be recognized as sex discrimination clearly banned by the Constitution. Thus, the right guaraanteed to her by the Constitution had been violated. To support our argument, we also pointed out that women should be given equal treatment to men under the U.N. Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, which Japan ratified in 1985.

[KansaiBen]

So, the difficult task was, and still is, how to persuade judges that sex discrimination was a violation of women's human rights. Interestingly enough, when sex discrimination is very pervasive in the workplace or society, it becomes "normal" or "natural" and, therefore, is hardly considered unlawful. When we filed the first case, people reacted with perplexity as to why everyday occurrences that they took for granted would be unlawful. Because of this, we submitted to the court legal materials from the U.S. and Canada where sexual harassment had been defined as sex discrimination and many precedents had been set. Outside the court rooms, on TV or in magazines, men were grumbling "Even though sexual harassment is considered as being something wrong abroad, we are living in a different and unique cultural society, and we Japanese don't necessarily go along with foreign cultures." This was very common. In the court room, we could argue for the universality of human rights and against the violation of human rights in general, and sex discrimination in particular. Sometimes our arguments succeeded and sometimes not.

What kind of cases did we lose? I think there is a clear pattern to the cases in which judges did not recognize a violation of women's human rights. In all the cases, judges could not see the plaintiffs as victimes. Judges seem to have their own unique image of a "correct" victim of rape, sexual harassment, or sexual assault. They thought a victim should shout and cry out for help when she was being sexually violated, should not act rationally, nor come back again to the scene of an incident even if she had to come back, nor should she ever show aggression. If a plaintiff did not mesh with their imagined victim, they would not recognize her as a victim and, therefore, she would be declared a liar.

In the first court case we won, although most of the plaintiff's allegations were accepted by the judges, the plaintiff was criticized by the judgees for having been too assertive and aggressive. They said that some of the conflicts between the plaintiff and one of the defendents, her boss, were fueled by her aggressive behavior and, therefore, she was awarded only half of the damages claimed. The truth was that she sometimes acted bravely to protect herself from the defendant's relentless abuses. If she had not done so, she would have cracked up and even been forced from the workplace earlier than she was. She had the right to fight back to survive. Generally speaking, the Japanese, especially men with power, feel uncomfortable with assertive or outspoken women. It seems to me that these judges were feeling uncomfortable.

In subsequent sexual harassment cases, plaintiffs were sexually assaulted and in one case nearly raped.

In the attempted rape case, the plaintiff was a divorced woman in her forties with a young child whom she had to rear by herself. The attempted rape occurred in the afternoon inside the workplace. After the incident, she did not leave the place immediately. Instead she continued to work as usual. Moreover, she came back to work the next day. She was afraid that being absent would result in her losing her job. Besides, she was pleased with her wage and benefits and it would have been difficult to find another job as satisfactory. Two or three days after the attempted rape, she told a friend about the incident. He later became a witness for her. Notwithstanding, the judge wrote in his decision that he could not believe her story because of what he consider her strange behavor after the attempted rape. His decision came from the idea that all rape victims react in the same way.

[KansaiBen]

In the other sexual harassment case, which occurred in Yokohama, the judges--two males and one female--decided in favor of the defendant. They conceded that the alleged incident could have been a crime of sexual assault and, therefore, the plaintiff could have resisted the defendant (her immediate supervisor) more strongly, immediately screamed for help, and easily escaped through an unlocked door. The court went on to say that they did not believe her story because she had managed the situation so well. She had explained to the court why she did not shout or cry out. She said that she had quickly examined her situation and had concluded that she was not sure of successfully escaping from her attacker and also she was afraid of inciting him by shouting or crying out. In response to her explanation, the court wrote that it surely would be unreasonable and unexpected for a woman in her situation to manage as she did. The court no doubt expected her to behave in the way it imagined a "real" victim would behave.

I currently have a rape case, claiming monetary damages, in the Supreme Court. In 1995, in the district court, a female judge heard the case and ruled against my client. The judge pointed out in her written opinion that she had not believed the plaintiff's story, for almost the same reason as that in the Yokohama case. The judge wrote that the plaintiff had neither cried out for help not tried to escape from the defendant, her immediate supervisor. The rape occurred inside the workplace after normal working hours. The judge pointed out that the plaintiff was familiar with the layout and know there was a door close to the place where the alleged rape occurred. She, the judge, also pointed out that the plaintiff knew there were houses outside and she could have screamed for help. In the appellate court, judges again rejected the plaintiff's allegation by accepting the defendant's story about being in a romantic relationship with her and have her consent for sexual intercourse. The plaintiff categorically denied his assertion of a romantic relationship, saying that she had been forcibly hugged and kissed by the defendant two months before the alleged rape. The judges pointed out that she had come back to the workplace not only the day after the alleged forcible hug and kiss but also the day after the alleged rape. Therefore, they could not believe any part of her story. They said she had behaved in a very strange way as the victim of those attacks.

So the question is: "why do judges, male and female alike, continue to hold a stereotypical image of a victim of sexual violence?".

I'll provide you with some reasons.

There is no education about gender issues for judges, public prosecutors, and law enforcement offices before they take office and while they are in office. In law departments of universities, very few classes deal with gender issues. There are sometimes special lectures and seminars in these departments, as well as in the Institute of Legal Research and Training. The Institute, run by the Supreme Court, is where all students of law who successfully pass the bar exam must study for two years.
In addition to the lack of gender-sensitive education in the legal field, there is a thought that gender issues or theories of sex equality are considered dangerous. I heard of an episode in which a female law graduate had expressed to her male professor her aspiration to study the legal theory of Professor Catharine MacKinnon. He strongly advised her to abandon her plan if she did not wish to lose her promised future as a legal scholar.


Unlike the U.S. or western countries, Japan has maintained an old-fashioned rape law under which a victim is still required to show evidence of having resisted. Also, a victim's tacit consent or the rapist's misunderstanding of consent is still accepted as an effective defense by the legal system.
Most victims are, in fact, barred access to the legal system for remedy in a criminal case or a civil case. There is no rape shield law in Japan, so a victim's privacy is not protected. Moreover, rape must be reported to police within six months after the occurrence in order to accuse a rapist. Few victims report a rape and few victims file lawsuits asking monetary recovery. Therefore, judges most often see rape victims with physical injuries that have been caused by strangers with weapons. And thus, their image of "real" victims is continually reinforced.
Media and pornography also reinforce the same image. Male students in universities in law departments are not immune from the influence of those materials that saturate the nation.
In order to make the situation surrounding sexual harassment better, we must ask the Government to at least fix the above-mentioned problems. We really need a new law addressing this issue. Under the tort clause, only monetary damages are available for victims usually after they have lost their jobs and/or have been severely harmed emotionally or physically. The tort law is not helpful in preventing and stopping sexual harassment immediately. The first court case clarified that employers were responsible for the prevention of sexual harassment and the protection of its victims. Another defect in our tort law is that it does not recognize the concept of punitive damages. As a result, awarded damages have ranged from a low of 800,000 yen to a high of 1.5 million yen. To more employers this is a drop in the bucket. And thus, they are not financially motivated to create sexual harassment-free working environments.

[wzwzwz]

Yeah, I'm not going to read all that. What's your point?

Japan has sexual harassment laws.

[KansaiBen]

Yeah, I'm not going to read all that. What's your point?

Japan has sexual harassment laws.

They also have laws against racial discrimination too, doesn't stop foreigners being the victims of racist landlords and onsen owners as well.

My own personal opinion is the law is a toothless tiger. Laws are pretty useless if the courts do not enforce them or people are not prepared to stand up for themselves.

[wzwzwz]

Nobody's saying Japan's sexual harassment laws are perfectly enforced and that it's a perfect utopia of gender equality here.

You said Japan had "very few rules or laws against overt sexual harassment" and I said that's not true. There are laws. You want to argue that further or are we done?

And I'm sure the OP isn't basing her decision on where to get a PhD on what sexual harassment laws are on the books in each prospective country, despite your helpfully racist suggestion that Japanese profs are just waiting to grope her.

[KansaiBen]

And I'm sure the OP isn't basing her decision on where to get a PhD on what sexual harassment laws are on the books in each prospective country, despite your helpfully racist suggestion that Japanese profs are just waiting to grope her.

I never said that a Japanese prof wants to grope her. I said that many believe that Japanese academia is no place for a woman. They can make life uncomfortable for a graduate student if they dont want her to be there by making sexual overtures, sexist remarks, including mysogynistic remarks. It can constitute harassment and in worse cases as mentioned she feels she has to sleep with her supervisor or professor if she wants to graduate. its happened since time immemorial.

[kiera2]

I just wonder how you hope to get a PhD here without being able to speak any Japanese at all
Depending on the field of study, many Japanese universities accept graduate students and researchers who have proficiency in either Japanese OR English.


They can make life uncomfortable for a graduate student if they dont want her to be there by making sexual overtures, sexist remarks, including mysogynistic remarks. It can constitute harassment and in worse cases as mentioned she feels she has to sleep with her supervisor or professor if she wants to graduate. its happened since time immemorial.
As a female scientist nearing the end of my PhD in Japan, I've never encountered or heard of anything of the sort. The sexism I've encountered has been more like background noise: gender roles and social attitudes about women and female sexuality that would be considered woefully backwards in the west. A female coworker simply couldn't fathom why I was surprised by handicapped rules for women in a friendly sports game against another lab. A Japanese man once told me outright that being intelligent is 一長一短 (has pros and cons) for a woman, because it intimidates men and makes it hard to get a boyfriend. A female friend of mine was asked by her thirty-something-year-old male coworker, in all seriousness, whether women enjoy sex. A 24-year-old Japanese female friend was shocked to discover that women can and do masturbate.

In my experience, these sorts of attitudes persist because Japanese people - both male and female - don't seem to recognise the sexism inherent in subtler gender roles. But while some older professors might harbour negative attitudes about women who choose to study and work instead of raising a family, daring to say or imply that they shouldn't be allowed to is something else entirely. My personal experience of Japanese academia has been purely meritocratic, and in over three years I haven't met a single Japanese person who would tolerate or engage in active and overt sexual harassment.

The difference is that outright sexual harassment IS recognised as unacceptable. The sheer number of jokes about "sekuhara" I've heard when someone is innocently tapped on the shoulder or whatever make it clear that people are aware of the concept. I've no doubt that my Japanese colleagues would be every bit as appalled by actual sexual harassment in the lab as I would, and none of my female friends involved in graduate studies over here have ever mentioned encountering any.

I'm sure there are isolated cases of overt sexual harassment, as there are in any country, but in my experience it certainly isn't the norm or even remotely commonplace for professors to pressure female students into giving them sexual favours. I'm more than happy to give more detail if the OP would like, but in general Japanese sexism will make you want to shake your head and roll your eyes, not run looking for a lawyer.



On an unrelated note, what the f@ck is wrong with people on this forum? On what planet is it acceptable to respond to a polite question with totally unprovoked hostility and racist insults?

[ttokyo]

Ok, back on topic.



Actually, I though about it for a long time and studied different options before posting on this forum. Years of planning took me here. ^_^
You might be right when you say that future employers would overlook Japanese Phd´s, but it is also truth that prestige does not always translate into quality.

The matter of fact is that most Japanese universities offer neither. This is not only from my own year at an admittedly 'low rated' university, but also from a fried who did a one-year post-doc at one of the top rated. He was appaled at the low level of academic discussion, high level of red tape, etc. While this still might look attractive for students from developing countries (especially if they get a scholarship) it would rather delay the carreer of most of us.

[well_bicyclically]

Yeah, I'm not going to read all that. What's your point?

Japan has sexual harassment laws.

they also have laws against: illegal substances, underaged drinking, smoking in public places, speeding, illegal parking, and spousal abuse. ... none of which seem to be having any effect...