2019 Volume 28 Issue 2 Pages 123-141
From the 20th to the 21st century, major countries have invested large amounts of funds in international scholarship programs for higher education to build cultural, economic, and political ties with countries sending students. Japan also formulated a “Plan to Accept 100,000 Foreign Students” in 1983 and has been striving to enhance systematic measures for accepting international students.
This paper analyzes the impact of changes to the application system for international scholarship programs on the quality of applicants and selected candidates, with special attention paid to the JDS scholarship project in Cambodia granted by the government of Japan.
The analysis begins by comparing the English scores of three groups of applicants restricted by weak, medium, and strong application constraints at each stage of the application and final selection. Then, the composition of the applicants is examined to determine how their quality and composition have altered with the change to the system.
This paper reveals that the quality of applicants restricted by strong application constraints is lower than for those restricted by weak or medium constraints. This is caused by the “Target Organization System” that reduces applicants' degree of freedom to choose a field of study in their application. As a result, it leads to the paradoxical situation of hindering talented public servants in Cambodia from applying for the JDS scholarship despite JDS introducing the new system with the aim of fostering human resources within the government sector.
