Economics
Japan's Students Forced to Live Under a Burden of Debt
- Economic slump guts middle-class that once covered fees
- Government promises more scholarships, but borrowing grows
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Kengo Kyogoku borrows about 122,000 yen ($1,035) per month in addition to a scholarship and a part-time job, because his mother can’t afford to pay his college fees at the prestigious Waseda University in Tokyo.
“The amount is huge,” said Kyogoku, a sophomore of communications and computer engineering. “I get depressed when I think about it. I wonder if I would have to pay it all back forever. But I have no choice.”