شبكة المعلومات العربية التربوية

Women’s empowerment is a globally and continually discussed phenomenon. Indeed, women’s participations and achievements can be seen in various fields of social life. Women can be seeing holding senior level positions in areas such as politics and business. However, the area of higher education is still overwhelmingly a male preserved spot. Women are still considered a minority at professorial and dean level. The purpose of this paper was to explore the Japanese experience in terms of women’s empowerment in higher education management by clarifying the historical background and current situation, as well as the obstacles and policies that affect Japanese women’s empowerment. In depth interviews were conducted with ten women occupying various senior positions in universities in Japan. A snowball sampling method was used to choose the women. Interview findings can be viewed within four themes including: a) current situation, b) supporting factors, c) challenges, and d) strategies. Based on the findings, recommendations and implications were provided. (Published abstract)