Studying In Japan

About 40 percent of orphaned third-year high school students from single-mother households who want to find employment have been forced to give up further studies due to living hardships, according to a survey.

The survey was carried out by Ashinaga--a nonprofit organization providing financial support to children who have lost one or both of their parents--on the aspirations of students from fatherless families.

Ashinaga conducted the survey from December to late February on recipients of a scholarship from the NPO.

Replies were collected from 582 students.

On their future aspirations after graduating high school, the survey found a majority of the students, or 44.3 percent, aspired to go on to university.

However, 27.8 percent said they wanted to look for a job, 19.8 percent wanted to attend vocational school, and 6.2 percent replied they planned to go to a two-year college.

A total of 40.1 percent of those polled cited "living hardships" as a reason for finding employment instead of pursuing higher education--with 21 percent citing "it is financially difficult to pursue higher education," while 19.1 percent answering "for the sake of helping out the family finances."

As a result of the economic downturn, the NPO said the number of single mothers losing their jobs also is increasing.

An official from the NPO said, "Due to the worsening economy, there're fears of a rise in the number of those who give up higher education because of financial reasons."

This weekend and next weekend, Ashinaga plans to raise funds at about 250 locations nationwide over the four-day period. For inquiries, contact the NPO at (03) 3221-7788.

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/