Abstract
This study aims to reveal any changes in entrepreneurial awareness among Japanese university students through a systematic comparative analysis of Japanese data from the 2021 and 2023 Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey (GUESSS). The analysis finds three distinctive trends among university students in Japan.
First, there is a growing preference for stability, with students showing stronger inclination toward large corporations and fewer students aspiring to start their own businesses. Second, there is a marked decrease in students taking concrete steps toward entrepreneurship, with the proportion of students who are “doing nothing” in terms of startup preparation activities dramatically increasing from 57.8% to 95.8%. Third, women’s entrepreneurial intentions remain at about 30% of men’s levels and while a gender gap is observed around the world, this disparity is particularly pronounced in Japan.
These findings suggest structural challenges in entrepreneurship development in Japan, indicating the need for a more comprehensive support system that includes enhanced practical entrepreneurship education, establishment of a comprehensive support framework for women entrepreneurs, and development of a staged entrepreneurship support structure.
