Japan plans graduate course for career changers to earn teaching licence in one year

Japan's Ministry of Education has decided to create a new course at graduate schools that would let working adults obtain a teaching licence in as little as one year, according to reports by Nikkei, Nishi-Nippon Shimbun and Yomiuri Shimbun. Nikkei said the ministry had put together the outline of the system and that it centres on practice in schools. Nishi-Nippon reported on the 21st, citing people familiar with the matter, that the ministry had settled on the policy. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]

Nikkei said participants would be paid during the practice period by the municipality that plans to hire them, to reduce financial worries while studying and make it easier for people with specialist skills to become teachers. Nishi-Nippon said working in schools for pay would count as graduate study and is expected to earn credits. Yomiuri said that once participants receive a temporary licence from a board of education during the practice stage, they work full time and earn a salary. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]

Yomiuri said the ministry aims to introduce the course by fiscal 2030. Graduate schools and boards of education would design the curriculum together and select participants with hiring after completion in mind. The ministry would show the plan to a Central Council for Education subcommittee on the 22nd and wants to submit a bill revising the Educational Personnel Certification Act to the ordinary Diet session next year. [ 2 , 3 ]

Nishi-Nippon said there are three types of standard licence: advanced, first-class and second-class, equivalent to graduate school, university and junior college completion. The new course would lead to a first-class equivalent licence. Yomiuri said that a university graduate with no teacher training who seeks a licence at graduate school generally needs three years at present. The new course targets university graduates and would allow completion within a year. [ 2 , 3 ]

Yomiuri said a standard licence requires at least 57 credits for elementary school and at least 56 for junior high and high school, of which 20 would be deemed already earned through work experience. The new course credits would be about 10 in foundation subjects, such as subject teaching and children's development, and about 26 in practical training such as classroom teaching and student guidance. Under the assumed curriculum, participants would study intensively at graduate school in April and May and in the August summer holiday, then gain practical experience in schools from June while receiving guidance from graduate school staff after school and at weekends. If the required credits are earned, a regular licence would be awarded the following spring and formal hiring would follow. [ 3 , 4 ]

Yomiuri also cited an OECD survey showing that second-career teachers made up 0.9 percent of lower secondary teachers in Japan in 2024, against an OECD average of 8.4 percent. Nishi-Nippon said the aim is to ease the shortage of teachers and secure a wider range of people from different working backgrounds. [ 2 , 3 ]