March 8, 2017
About one out of every four high school students from financially struggling families work at a part-time job five days a week, the Okinawa Prefectural government announced on March 6.
In the prefecture’s survey, 32.6% of students from low-income households have part-time jobs and 27.3% work five days a week. Regarding a question about the reason for working as a part-timer, “To earn lunch money” was the most common answer (34.8%), followed by “To help with family expense” (33.7%). “To cover the commuting cost” ranked third (24.1%).
In regard to the question whether they intend to go to university or technical college, the percentage of students who expressed hope to receive tertiary education was 66.1% for those from needy families and 78.9% for those from ordinary families.
In the comment section, some students wrote, “I hesitate to go on to higher education due to financial reasons,” “In order to enter university or technical college, I have to apply for a student loan program, but I feel anxiety about burdens associated with the loan repayment.”
The Okinawa Prefectural government in November and December 2016 surveyed public senior 16 and 17 year-old high school students along with their parents. The purpose of this survey was to find out how the social and economic situation in Okinawa affects students’ lives overall and to make use of the findings in public support measures.
In Okinawa, 75% of U.S. military facilities in Japan are concentrated. This heavy U.S. military presence hampers the sound development of Okinawa’s economy and is a major factor in causing the prefecture to be the poorest in Japan.
Past related article:
> Return of US bases generates 32 times more direct economic benefits in Okinawa [February 23, 2015]
In the prefecture’s survey, 32.6% of students from low-income households have part-time jobs and 27.3% work five days a week. Regarding a question about the reason for working as a part-timer, “To earn lunch money” was the most common answer (34.8%), followed by “To help with family expense” (33.7%). “To cover the commuting cost” ranked third (24.1%).
In regard to the question whether they intend to go to university or technical college, the percentage of students who expressed hope to receive tertiary education was 66.1% for those from needy families and 78.9% for those from ordinary families.
In the comment section, some students wrote, “I hesitate to go on to higher education due to financial reasons,” “In order to enter university or technical college, I have to apply for a student loan program, but I feel anxiety about burdens associated with the loan repayment.”
The Okinawa Prefectural government in November and December 2016 surveyed public senior 16 and 17 year-old high school students along with their parents. The purpose of this survey was to find out how the social and economic situation in Okinawa affects students’ lives overall and to make use of the findings in public support measures.
In Okinawa, 75% of U.S. military facilities in Japan are concentrated. This heavy U.S. military presence hampers the sound development of Okinawa’s economy and is a major factor in causing the prefecture to be the poorest in Japan.
Past related article:
> Return of US bases generates 32 times more direct economic benefits in Okinawa [February 23, 2015]
