Half a year has passed since Japan's national universities gained corporate status. The aim of the incorporation, initially at least, was to make university management efficient. What has changed, or has not changed, in substance? How much progress toward efficiency has been made, or is likely to be made? Let me address these questions on the basis of my experience.
National university teachers are not public servants anymore, yet most restrictions derived from the Public Service Law and the Public Education Personnel Special Law remain. However, since these restrictions can be altered or abolished at the discretion of each university, the degree of liberalization must vary.
It is possible, for example, to adjust the numbers of teaching posts among various divisions of a university -- such as departments, graduate schools and research institutes -- because the "quota" requirement has been abolished. Yet, at most universities, there are no discernible signs that executive boards have tried to make adjustments using their prerogatives.